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).

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is encouraging municipalities to join a $1.2 billion national settlement with Kroger to resolve allegations that the company contributed to the opioid epidemic. Michigan governments will receive nearly $42 million from the settlement over 11 years to help address the opioid crisis.

“The opioid crisis wreaked havoc on our communities, leaving men, women, and children forever changed,” Nessel said. “While this settlement cannot erase the profound impact the opioid epidemic continues to have on our state, it does represent a significant step toward holding companies accountable for the suffering they have caused. I urge every eligible municipality to register to receive these funds so this settlement can effectively reach our communities and help those most desperately in need.”

The deadline for local governments and counties to register to receive funds from the Kroger settlement is Monday, Aug. 12th. The settlement allows eligible local units of government in Michigan, referred to as subdivisions in the settlement agreement, to participate. If there is sufficient local government joinder, the agreement should become effective by early fall.

According to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, between the years 2000 and 2020, the opioid death rate in Michigan increased an average of 13.9% each year. These deaths—and the impacts on thousands who have struggled with opioid addiction—have created considerable costs for our health care, child welfare, and criminal justice systems. More significant than the dollars and cents in damage to our state, the impact of opioid addiction, substance use, and overdose deaths has torn families apart, damaged relationships, and devastated communities.

Since taking office in 2019, the Attorney General, who recently launched a website dedicated to opioid settlement distributions, has focused intently on combatting the opioid epidemic and holding accountable those responsible for creating and fueling the crisis. This effort resulted in over $1.6 billion to Michigan governments through settlements with Publicis, McKinsey & Co, Distributors (Cardinal Health, McKesson, Inc., and AmerisourceBergen), Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical, Allergan Pharmaceutical, CVS, Walmart, and Walgreens. Funds are distributed to the state and local units of government for opioid-use disorder treatment and remediation. The website includes an updated Opioid Settlement Payment Estimator worksheet that now includes estimates from the Kroger settlement.

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is reminding residents of the rights afforded to airline passengers as a result of the new U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) rules that went into effect on June 25th. A video highlighting the new rules can be found on the Michigan Attorney General’s YouTube page. Attorney General Nessel chairs the USDOT Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee that evaluates existing aviation consumer protection programs and recommended these changes to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in January of last year.

“The recent IT systems outage that severely disrupted air travel underscores the need for strong passenger protections,” Nessel said. “These new DOT regulations hold airlines accountable for fair treatment and timely refunds, restoring confidence in air travel and ensuring the rights of passengers are protected. I encourage any Michigan resident who has faced issues receiving a refund after a delay or cancellation to file a complaint with my office.”

The USDOT states that passengers are entitled to a refund for:

• Canceled or significantly changed flights: Passengers will be entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered. For the first time, the rule defines “significant change.” Significant changes to a flight include departure or arrival times that are more than 3 hours domestically and 6 hours internationally; departures or arrivals from a different airport; increases in the number of connections; instances where passengers are downgraded to a lower class of service; or connections at different airports or flights on different planes that are less accessible or accommodating to a person with a disability.
• Significantly delayed baggage return: Passengers who file a mishandled baggage report will be entitled to a refund of their checked bag fee if it is not delivered within 12 hours of their domestic flight arriving at the gate, or 15-30 hours of their international flight arriving at the gate, depending on the length of the flight.
• Extra services not provided: Passengers will be entitled to a refund for the fee they paid for an extra service — such as Wi-Fi, seat selection, or inflight entertainment — if an airline fails to provide this service.

The rules also require the airlines to provide automatic, prompt and complete refunds in the same method of payment used by the consumer to purchase their tickets.

The USDOT has launched a new online consumer dashboard (flightrights.gov) to help track airline compliance with the new rules and their customer service commitments to their customers, including a dashboard dedicated to current service members and their families.

Earlier this year, AG Nessel announced a new partnership with the USDOT that streamlines how the Michigan Department of Attorney General will work together with the federal agency to review consumer complaints and identify violations of federal aviation consumer protection requirements.

Further information about the new rules and passenger rights can be found on the USDOT Aviation Consumer Protection website.

Any resident who faced recent delays or cancellations at the airport, and has yet to receive a refund in compliance with the new rules, is encouraged to file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Team or with the USDOT directly.

A library of consumer alerts created by the Department of Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Team is available online and organized by a number of categories.

Consumer Protection Team
P.O. Box 30213
Lansing, MI 48909
517-335-7599
Fax: 517-241-3771
Toll-free: 877-765-8388
Online complaint form