Protestors descended on DTE headquarters in Detroit on Tuesday to oppose a proposed $456.4 million in rate increases for some of the most unreliable service in the country.

“I felt very frustrated as well as very disappointed” in DTE’s request to hike rates 10%, Tomena Rawls told WJBK. “I pay my bill. Zero balance. And still, I’m getting sub-par, non-efficient working power when it comes to my home.”

“It’s a daily struggle to afford our utility bills and it is a daily struggle to deal with the numerous power outages that customers experience,” Layla Elabed, with the grassroots group We the People, told Michigan Public, noting DTE investors reap more benefits from the rate hikes than customers.

Go Ad-Free, Get Content, Go Premium Today - $1 Trial

“When the power goes out, hundreds of thousands of families are left sitting in the cold or the scorching heat without power, because DTE prioritizes profits over affordable reliable electricity for customers.”

DTE filed its request with the Michigan Public Service Commission in March to increase rates by 10% for residential customers to raise $465.4 million the company claims it needs to improve grid reliability and met its goal of reducing power outages by 30% and outage time by half by 2029.

The request came less than four months after the MPSC approved DTE for a $368 million annual rate increase.

In May, Bridge Michigan published analysis of data from the research nonprofit Climate Central that shows Michigan residents suffer more and longer power outages than all but two states, despite paying 11% more for their monthly bill than the U.S. average.

Go Ad-Free, Get Content, Go Premium Today - $1 Trial

The analysis shows only Texas and California – the top two states for population – have recorded more major power outages impacting 50,000-plus customers than Michigan, putting the state ahead of all others in the Great Lakes region and other states routinely impacted by hurricanes, such as Louisiana and Florida.

In just the last year, the MPSC fielded 2,700 outage complaints, or four times the annual average between 2014 and 2020.

“The level of performance is unacceptable,” Dan Scripps, a Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointee and chair of the MPSC, told Bridge. “That’s maybe a thing we can all agree on – and trying to get to a better place.”

The MPSC has approved rate increases for DTE and Consumers since December, adding to a residential bill that 17% higher than other Great Lakes States on average, and 11% higher than the national average.

DTE President Matt Paul told the Detroit Free Press in March the pending $465 million request “is incredibly important for us to continue to do the work we need to do to build a grid of the future, and continue to improve reliability in the state.”

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel disagrees, filing testimony in the rate case on Friday that argues DTE should receive no more than a $139.5 million annual increase, which would limit residential ratepayer increases to around 2.5%.

That money, she said, should be focused on vegetation management and tree trimming because they’re proven to reduce outages.

“A deep dive into DTE’s latest electric rate case reveals a disturbing pattern of exaggerated projections and unsubstantiated projects that clearly prioritize corporate interests over customer benefits,” Nessel said in a statement. “DTE is once again seeking MPSC approval to bill its customers for corporate jet travel by executives on top of these inflated costs. Such exorbitant expenditures not only inflate customers’ bills but also undermine DTE’s corporate pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These unnecessary costs directly contribute to rising utility bills.”

Whether the MPSC heeds Nessel’s advice remains to be seen, but a Detroit Free Press investigation last year illustrates a cozy relationship between DTE, Consumers and the commissioners appointed to regulate them.

DTE and Consumers pay for 80% of the commission’s budget through assessments, and none of the 4,520 orders the MPSC has voted on since at least 2010 have been voted down. The Free Press investigation also revealed the vast majority of commissioners since 1990 have secured jobs in the energy field.

Both DTE and Consumers also contribute heavily to politicians through political action committees the companies contend does not involve ratepayer cash.

The DTE Energy Company Political Action Committee’s second quarter 2024 report shows it collected $106,661 in contributions, mostly from company executives, and spent $73,200. The expenditures included $10,000 direct contributions to each of the Senate Republicans and Democratic campaign committees, House Republican and Democratic campaign committees.

Other direct contributions went to the Fund for Democratic Women, and House and Senate leaders from both parties. In total, DTE dolled out cash to about three dozen state and federal lawmakers and a dozen political committees, records show.