AG Seeks to Reduce DTE Electric’s 10% Rate Hike to Less than 3%

LANSING – Continuing her work to limit energy costs for residents, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed testimony last Friday in DTE Electric’s (DTE) rate hike case. DTE filed its request with the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) in March seeking an annual increase in revenues of $456.4 million. This request, which comes less than four months after the MPSC granted the Company a $368 million annual rate increase, would result in a 10% hike for residential customers. Nessel argued DTE’s requested increase is excessive and unnecessary.

In her testimony, the Attorney General argued that DTE should receive no more than a $139.5 million annual increase, limiting any residential ratepayer increase to around 2.5%.  Nessel also recommends re-prioritizing customer dollars toward vegetation management and tree trimming, activities proven to be more effective at reducing outages compared to more expensive, capital-intensive options preferred by DTE.

“A deep dive into DTE’s latest electric rate case reveals a disturbing pattern of exaggerated projections and unsubstantiated projects that clearly prioritize corporate interests over customer benefits,” Nessel said.  “DTE is once again seeking MPSC approval to bill its customers for corporate jet travel by executives on top of these inflated costs. Such exorbitant expenditures not only inflate customers’ bills but also undermine DTE’s corporate pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  These unnecessary costs directly contribute to rising utility bills.”

Since taking office, the Attorney General has saved Michigan consumers more than $3 billion by intervening in utility cases before the MPSC.  Friday’s testimony reaffirms her commitment to affordable energy for consumers.

DTE sells electricity to approximately 2.3 million customers in Southeast Michigan and natural gas to 1.3 million customers across the state.

A copy of the Attorney General’s testimony can be found on the MPSC’s website (PDF).