Michigan AG Dana Nessel slams regulators over rising utility costs
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Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel vented her frustration on Monday, April 14, with big electric rate hikes and accused the regulators in charge of setting the rates of being too cozy with the utility companies.
Nessel aired her dissatisfaction with what she called relentless rate increases of recent years during a news conference in Detroit about energy affordability, speaking alongside several consumer advocates as well as state Rep. Donavan McKinney, D-Detroit.
Ultimate approval of utilities’ natural gas and electric rate requests is decided by the three members of the Michigan Public Service Commission, who are appointed by the governor and serve six-year terms.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and state Rep. Donavan McKinney, D-Detroit, spoke at a news conference in Detroit on April 13 about the rising cost of utilities.
In February, the commissioners signed off on a $242.4 million increase on electric rates for DTE Energy (representing a roughly 5% cost jump for households that took effect in March), and DTE is expected to file for yet another rate increase — size yet-to-be announced — before the end of this month.
“Michigan is facing an energy affordability crisis,” Nessel said. “The annual increases certainly feel like they will just never end.”
The attorney general said her office has intervened in every rate proposal case that came before the MPSC and pushed for lower rates than what the state’s two big investor-owned utility companies — DTE Energy and Consumers Energy — had sought approval for.
“It’s the commissioners who make the final decision on rates,” Nessel said, “and usually they just split the difference between the unjustified number that the utilities request and the figure my department determines is genuinely required to maintain operations.”
A Motor City Electric crew, who is contracted by DTE Energy connect the electric wire on Grant Avenue near John R Road in Hazel Park on June 30, 2021.
DTE and Consumers Energy are considered regulated monopolies, and the attorney general believes that they have been getting too high of a “return on equity” on capital investments in their rate cases, or the amount of profit that regulators allow them.
Asked why she believes big rate hikes continue to get approved by the commission, despite the unpopularity of higher utility rates, Nessel offered a blunt response:
“I believe that those commissioners are bought and paid for by the utilities,” she said. “They’re not there to represent the ratepayers in this state — they’re there to represent DTE and Consumers Energy, who are, again, two of the largest political donors in this state.”
Nessel stayed on the attack when asked why she thinks the commission hasn’t been following the recommendations from administrative law judges in the rate cases who called for lower rates than what the commission ultimately approved. The recommendations are non-binding.
‘Outrageous’: DTE, Consumers enjoy close relationship with state panel that regulates them
“The commissioners want to do the bidding of DTE and Consumers Energy and provide the rate increases that they request, and so they feel free to simply ignore the (administrative law judges’) determinations, which they are legally permitted to do,” Nessel said.
“But it begs the question, why even go through that process in the first place if you’re just going to ignore their analysis — it literally makes no sense,” she continued. “Except for if you look behind the curtain as to why they’re doing it, and then it makes a whole lot of sense.”
A representative for the Michigan Public Service Commission issued a statement late Monday in response to the attorney general’s claims.
The statement didn’t address Nessel’s more provocative assertions, but credited the MPSC’s “disciplined approach” in recent years for resulting in residential energy bills that have grown slower than the rate of inflation. Michigan families are paying $23 less per month than the national average for electricity, the statement said, and less than families pay in Ohio and Indiana.
“The MPSC will continue to push for a disciplined approach to balance the affordability of utility bills while allowing for needed investment,” the statement said.
Nessel and the advocacy groups at Monday’s news conference, including Evergreen Collaborative, offered several ideas for reining in and even lowering electric rates in Michigan.
Requiring more time between rate increase requests so they stop becoming annual events.
Disallowing fast-track approvals on data center projects.
Requiring performance metrics from utilities in rate cases that would trigger consumer refunds if not met.
Urging MPSC commissioners to take a more assertive stance in rate cases.
Requiring data centers to pay for the full cost of the electricity they use.
A DTE Energy spokesperson, Jill Wilmot, issued a statement Monday in response to Nessel’s comments that said electric bills in Michigan are below the national average and that of other Great Lakes region states.
“We know that any increase in bills matters for our customers and we’re committed to delivering clear value to them in return — through improved reliability, cleaner energy and continued efforts to keep bills as low as possible,” the statement said.
“Our recent investments in the electric system resulted in 2025 being the most reliable year in nearly two decades. Our investments are working, and we must continue to invest to deliver the reliability our customers demand and deserve. At the same time, we remain focused on keeping bills as low as possible.”
Contact JC Reindl: 313-378-5460 or [email protected]. Follow him on X @jcreindl
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan AG Dana Nessel slams utility regulators over energy costs
