Feds give Michigan $110M to install 127 EV chargers

Michigan will spend $866K per installed charger; Federal goal is to build ‘a nationwide network of EV chargers’

By James David Dickson | March 1, 2023

The state of Michigan will get $110 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation, through fiscal year 2026, to build out 127 chargers for electric vehicles. That comes out to roughly $866,141 per installed charger.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, or EGLE, will take the lead role in spending the money.

The state’s MI Healthy Climate Plan calls for building charging resources for a projected 2 million EVs by 2030 — up from just 17,500 in 2021.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has requested $65 million in the 2024 budget to build yet more charging resources. The federal funds will augment that effort.

Read it for yourself: The Michigan EV Infrastructure Deployment Plan

The federal funds come from the Infrastructure Act. EGLE will collaborate with the Michigan Department of Transportation, the Michigan Public Service Commission, and the state Office of Future Mobility and Electrification on the EV infrastructure project.

On March 1, DTE Energy switched millions of customers in Southeast Michigan to peak-hour pricing, with rates rivaling those in California. But as the Detroit Free Press has reported, EV charging will continue at discounted rates, even at peak hours.

Taxpayer funding for charging resources and lower energy rates for charging equipment are just two ways EV buyers will be subsidized. The governor seeks $48 million over two years in sales and use tax exemptions for EV buyers, and there is a $7,500 federal subsidy for purchases of certain EVs.

Last year in her State of the State address, Whitmer proposed a $2,000 state rebate for EV buyers.

“Thank you for putting the United States on a path to a nationwide network of EV chargers that can ensure a convenient, affordable, reliable, and equitable charging experience for all users,” wrote Gloria M. Shepherd, an associate administrator of the U.S. Department of Transportation in a Sept. 14, 2022, letter to Paul Ajegba, director of the Michigan Department of Transportation. The letter announced federal approval of Michigan’s plan for charging stations.

The road to two million EVs in Michigan by 2030 will be subsidized with taxpayer money.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

Top Michigan Democrat blames DTE Energy for slow response to ice storm. Now what?

Will Rep. Abraham Aiyash’s criticism of Michigan energy giant translate into action?

By Jamie A. Hope | February 28, 2023

Rep. Abraham Aiyash, the House Majority Leader in the Michigan Legislature, took DTE Energy to task last week over power outages caused by an ice storm. The Michigan Public Service Commission says the storm caused about 922,000 customers in Michigan to lose their power.

Aiyash, a Democrat from Hamtramck, tweeted Feb. 23: “As many across Michigan tonight are impacted by freezing temps and no power, remember that since 2010, DTE has raised rates by BILLIONS of dollars.”

He followed that message with another tweet, noting that DTE spends millions on politics, campaign contributions, and lobbying.

Yet Aiyash, his legislative colleagues and officials in the executive branch have the authority to fix the problem he called out.

Consumers Energy and DTE are the two regional monopolies approved by the Legislature to provide energy to Michigan. The energy companies do not have to worry about competition because their customers have no other options. The existence of government-approved monopolies means there are no competitive services to drive down prices or provide better service.

While legislators may complain about outages, they, along with the governor and Michigan Public Service Commission, are in control of the state’s energy supply.

Aiyash is the majority floor leader in the Michigan House. The public service commission is run by three members who are appointed by the governor. The current members were all appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and they are responsible for approving DTE and Consumers Energy’s recent rate hikes on residents. They also approved the companies’ plans to retire coal plants in favor of relying more on wind and solar energy.

The Legislature is responsible for setting up the framework in which the utilities and their regulators operate, says Jason Hayes, director of environmental policy at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

“The Mackinac Center has consistently pointed out how Michigan’s monopoly utilities receive the highest electricity rates in any of the Great Lakes states,” Hayes told CapCon.

Hayes says that opening up Michigan’s electric markets to competition would force the state’s utilities to bring their rates into line with the rates charged by utilities in neighboring states.

Aiyash did not respond to a request for comment.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

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