DEARBORN, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Michigan Public Service Commission hosted two town halls on Monday to hear from DTE Energy and Consumers Energy customers who lost power during recent storms.
The first town hall was during the morning in Jackson and the second was held at 5:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Dearborn Fordson High School.
It also comes as the commission prepares for another decision on a rate hike increase proposed by DTE.
“I demand that DTE be held accountable for their dangerous negligence,” one customer said during public comment.
DTE customers sounded off to the MPSC for more than two hours, upset over a rate hike request, especially after recents storms left more than half a million in the dark.
“It is simply placing the cost of maintenance on the customer and I reject that,” one customer said.
Customers accused the company of prioritizing shareholders over service. Even before the meeting began, a rally was held outside the auditorium by customers continuing calls for better service.
“This is probably one of the biggest issues that we’re having when we’re talking about energy," said Kamau Jawara, a Detroit organizer with We the People Michigan. "Families are out of power for five to 10 days — that's debilitating for families on fixed income.”
Representatives from DTE were at the town hall, saying they were there to listen.
“We expect to hear some very unhappy customers and rightfully so. We want to listen to them, they deserve to be heard and we want to do better by them,” DTE Director of Community Engagement Rodney Cole said. "We've got to make sure the grid can stand up to our changing weather patterns. It's not a popular answer, but it’s a truthful answer.”
Some of the public who spoke in favor of the utility company, including Pastor Horace Sheffield, got booed.
"I'm here to speak in favor of DTE because I think they’ve done the best they can," Sheffield said before being booed.
Throughout the meeting, it was clear that many customers are not happy and refuse to pay even more for unreliable power.
“Reject this rate hike and raise your ability to hold them accountable,” one person said to the commission.
The MPSC will be holding another town hall Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. that will be a virtual town hall, you can view it on the state's website.
