(WXYZ) — Residents and community activist groups filled seats at a Michigan Public Service Commission meeting with one unified message: the rate hikes need to stop.
"People are fed up. They cannot afford more rate increases. People are struggling as is," said Donavan Mckinney, MI state representative.
Residents are tired of struggling to pay their energy bills, expressing frustration over rate increases by energy supplier DTE that have occurred year after year for almost a decade.
The most recent increase came this past January, resulting in a $217 million revenue increase for the energy giant.
During the meeting, one resident directly challenged DTE's justification for the increases: "If you're saying you need the increase for infrastructure and systems, why are your board members taking home so much profit annually?"
The Michigan Public Service Commission met with residents to hear their frustrations and answer questions about the ongoing rate increases.
I asked commission members who decides what constitutes "reasonable profit" for utility companies.
"That's one of the things we look at in cases, and it's a mix of how much debt they take, which is typically at a lower cost, vs how much equity, and then what they pay for both the debt and equity portions of those," a commission representative said.
Members of the commission told me they are the ones who determine the percentage deemed "reasonable profit" for DTE stakeholders.
When asked about the specific numbers allowed, the representative explained: "The total return on equity for both consumers and DTE on the electric side is 9.9%, and the total return is between 5 and 6%."
I pressed further on whether anything has been done to potentially lower those numbers based on the severe impact on everyday people.
"The requirement we have under court precedent is we need to balance the interest of customers with the interest of the utility being able to access the capital that they need to reinvest in their business," the representative said.
Despite these explanations, residents remain frustrated and say they will continue to be until they see results.
The situation is particularly concerning as DTE is now seeking approval for another rate increase in January 2026, which would bring a $574 million revenue increase.
When contacted, DTE provided this statement:
We appreciate the Michigan Public Service Commission’s effort to bring the community together to get feedback from Michiganders about how they want to be heard and involved in the key issues that impact them the most. DTE Energy follows a similar process, coordinating and engaging in local open houses and town halls, holding assistance events and participating in community-based meetings so we can directly connect with our customers and receive their input about the service we provide. This feedback is essential as we develop and implement our plans to deliver the safe, reliable, cleaner and affordable energy our customers demand and deserve.
DTE is making progress on building the electric grid of the future. Thanks to a combination of factors including strategic work and investment in the electric grid last year, our customers experienced a nearly 70% improvement in time spent without power in 2024 compared to 2023. We must continue to invest to deliver the cleaner and more reliable energy our customers demand and deserve.
Our recent investment request filed with the Michigan Public Service Commission further supports our ongoing work to improve electric reliability and system resiliency in the face of extreme weather and to generate cleaner energy – all while keeping customer bills as low as possible and below the national average.
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