Michigan homeowners may be able to reject the installation of smart meters soon.
A new bill, put forward by Representative Gary Glenn is now calling on utility companies to give residents the ability to opt out of the new devices, at no extra charge.
If the bill goes through, it'll be a huge win for critics, many of which have said they're worried about what this technology means for health and privacy.
DTE and Consumers Energy have been installing the meters over the past five years. The devices used electro-magnetic frequency to better determine a customer's power usage.
But in that time, numerous complaints have amassed from homeowners who have linked the device to medical problems like heart palpitations and headaches.
Others are bothered by the advanced meter's ability to determine what kind of appliances a customer is using at any given time.
Today, lawmakers discussed whether customers should be forced to have them installed and whether they should incur a fee if they opt out.
Right now, customers who opt out are forced to pay $70 upfront and another $120 for every year going forward.
But if the bill goes through, that fee requirement would go away.
Lawmakers are expected to revisit the issue and listen to more testimony on March 7th.
