December 14, 2009
LANSING - Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today signed the final five bills in a legislative package providing increased protection from shutoffs for customers of municipal utilities in Michigan. The governor signed the other three bills in the package on November 23.
"In these tough economic times, more and more people are having difficulty paying their utility bills," Granholm said. "Customers of municipal utilities now have the same protections against shutoffs that customers of regulated utilities have."
The five bills signed today:
- govern shutoff notices and procedures for the customers of municipal utilities;
- protect eligible low-income and senior citizen customers from utility shutoffs;
- permit the attorney general or a customer to bring a civil action against a municipal utility in shutoff cases involving serious injury or death;
- require municipal utilities to make efforts to identify customers age 65 or older;
- require the Department of Human Services to supply, at the request of energy providers, information about people who have applied for or are receiving public assistance. The information will be used to reach out to people on ways they can reduce energy costs and prevent utility shutoffs.
The bills signed by the governor today are House Bill 4658, sponsored by State Representative Andy Neumann (D-Alpena); House Bill 4673, sponsored by State Representative Jeff Mayes (D-Bay City); Senate Bill 553, sponsored by State Senator John Pappageorge (R-Troy); Senate Bill 554, sponsored by State Senator Roger Kahn (R-Saginaw); and Senate Bill 557, sponsored by State Senator Bruce Patterson (R-Canton).
The other three bills in the package signed by the governor on November 23 are House Bill 4386 (PA 152), sponsored by State Representative Bert Johnson (D-Highland Park); House Bill 4650 (PA 153), sponsored by State Representative Dudley Spade (D-Tipton); and House Bill 4655 (PA 154), sponsored by State Representative Wayne Schmidt (R-Traverse City).
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