Editorial: DTE seeks another rate increase just before huge storm

More than 630,000 customers lost electrical power in last week’s icy storm that toppled limbs and trees into roadways and set buildings and fields on fire from downed electric lines.
Many in our area were without power over the weekend and into Monday and Tuesday. The storm started last Wednesday (Feb. 22) night and at 9 p.m., multiple houses were on fire on Willis Road where a hot wire was down.
The emergency crews, especially in Sumpter Township and Van Buren Township, worked nonstop for several days and then some wires fell on Monday.
There was a report of a woman being killed in Haggerty subdivision when a large limb fell on her as she cleared away smaller limbs.
DTE customers were shocked to hear that on Feb. 10, DTE asked Michigan regulators for authority to raise rates by about $620 million a year, including double-digit percentage increases for resident and non-industrial users.
The Public Service Commission in November approved a $31 million rate hike for DTE ($8.50 a year), much less than the $388 million it sought. Now it’s asking for more and a typical resident who uses 500 kilowatt hours per month would see a raise of about $150 more a year.
Ouch. For those who spent the weekend shivering in their homes, this is not the time to seek more money for no heat.