DTE Energy asks for another rate hike after receiving $217 million increase in January
After getting approval for a $217 million rate hike back in January, DTE Energy has applied for another rate hike to be considered in April.
DTE Energy filed paperwork at the end of February to indicate its plans to request an increase to its electric rates in April. The Michigan Public Service Commission will consider the increase. It's a move that Karla Mitchell, who CBS News Detroit spoke with at a diner in Brighton on Wednesday, said comes after frequent previous hikes.
"It's gone up a lot that I've seen in the last three years," she said.
In a statement, DTE Energy said that they need the additional money to continue to improve reliability and their infrastructure system. Mitchell said increases to her electric bill are tough to budget for.
"Unfortunately, we don't really have a choice. We can alter the groceries we buy," she said, noting that heating a home or a restaurant like Cheryl's Place, where she waitresses, isn't much of an option. "When you come in, in the morning and it's 12 degrees out, it takes a bit to get this restaurant warmed up."
Mitchell noted that she hasn't personally experienced prolonged power outages as a DTE Energy customer.
"We've only had an outage for one day out of three years, so I'm okay with that, knock on wood" Mitchell said.
The utility is facing down some possible multimillion dollar penalties if they don't meet certain benchmarks. DTE has said those criteria align with their existing efforts to improve reliability.
DTE Energy said the current filing doesn't include information on how much of an increase it is seeking and what the additional money will go towards. The company emphasized in a statement that if the rate hike is approved, customers wouldn't see any change in their bills until 2026.
