Commission that regulates Michigan utilities proposes penalties for outages

LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) - The commission that regulates Michigan power companies and sets gas and electricity rates that utilities like DTE and Consumers can charge customers is considering penalizing them when power outages occur.

The Michigan Public Service Commission is seeking comments from the public and relevant stakeholders about a proposal that would fine utilities based onto the time it takes to restore power to homes. 

It also is weighing penalties related to repeated power interruptions if customers experience multiple instances of an outage.

The commission announced the proposal following another series of storms that knocked out power for more than 500,000 households last week. Some homes in Southeast Michigan waited days for their power to be restored. 

"We share the public’s frustration with the number and duration of power outages, and particularly those who experience outages over and over again," said MPSC Chair Dan Scripps. "By focusing on the places where improvement is needed most, we’re working to better connect the financial performance of the utilities with the experience of their customers."

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In a news release this week, the MPSC said it particularly concerned about how long it takes both DTE and Consumers to restore power to homes. It's also concerned about the number of customers that experience multiple outages a year. 

With extreme weather becoming an increasingly common occurrence in Michigan, large-scale outages have typically followed those events. Last week, seven tornadoes touched down in Michigan and flooding hammered western Wayne County.

Outages are frustrating to customers because it disrupts things at home, causes food to go bad, and forces people to seek heating and cooling at community services. 

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Currently, utilities are penalized if more than 6% of its customers experience more than four sustained outages through December 2029 and no more than 5% of customers after Jan. 1, 2030. Last year, DTE had 163,417 such customers and Consumers Energy clocked 173,273.

Stakeholders are invited to comment on the proposal by 5 p.m. on Sept. 22. Comments should reference Case No. U-21400. 

Comments may be mailed to Executive Secretary, Michigan Public Service Commission, P.O. Box 30221, Lansing, MI 48909, or emailed to mpscedockets@michigan.gov