LOW INCOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE S.B. 879:
REVISED SUMMARY OF INTRODUCED BILL
IN COMMITTEE
Senate Bill 879 (as introduced 5-22-24)
Sponsor: Senator Sam Singh
Committee: Energy and Environment
Date Completed: 6-6-24
CONTENT
The bill would amend Public Act 3 of 1939, the Public Service Commission law, to
require the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to do the following:
-- Ensure that the Low-income Energy Assistance Fund was administered to
promote statewide access to the Michigan Energy Assistance Program (MEAP),
in consultation with the Michigan Public Services Commission (MPSC).
-- Provide to the Legislature a report on the distribution of funds from the Fund by
October 1 of each year starting in 2027.
Section 9t of the Act creates the Fund within the State Treasury to provide energy assistance
for low-income households. The DHHS, in consultation with the MPSC, must ensure that all
money collected for the Fund from a geographic area is returned, to the extent possible, to
that geographic area.
Under the bill, the DHHS, in consultation with the MPSC, would have to ensure it was
administered to promote all the following:
-- Statewide access to MEAP and that funds collected from a specific geographic area were,
to the extent possible, returned to eligible low-income customers in that specific
geographic area.
-- Collaboration between DHHS, MPSC, energy providers, and entities that administer
assistance programs to ensure that low-income customers in a participating geographical
area were receiving funds proportional to what customers in that geographical area were
being assessed.
-- For energy providers and entities that administer assistance programs, education and
outreach on availability of the assistance programs and funding.
Beginning October 1, 2027, and by each October 1 after, the DHHS would have to provide to
the House and Senate appropriations committees for the DHHS budget and the House and
Senate standing committees on energy a report that contained all the following information:
-- The distribution of money from the Fund across the State.
-- Each geographic area where funds were collected, and the extent to which the funds were
returned to the geographic area from which the funds were collected.
-- A summary of the education, marketing, and outreach to improve the distribution of funds.
-- For an electric utility, municipally owned electric utility, or cooperative electric utility that
served fewer than 45,000 retail customers, the total amount of funds collected from the
retail customers and the total amount of funds distributed to eligible low-income
customers in the electric utility's, municipally owned electric utility's, or cooperative
electric utility's geographic area.
MCL 460.9t Legislative Analyst: Nathan Leaman
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FISCAL IMPACT
The bill could have a fiscal impact on State government and no fiscal impact on units of local
government.
The bill would require the DHHS to produce an annual report starting on October 1, 2027. To
the extent that the reporting required additional staff resources to produce the report that did
exist in the DHHS, there would be a fiscal impact to State government. The cost to DHHS to
produce a statutorily required report would depend on the time it took to collect and compile
the information required. The bill would require the DHHS to submit a report on the MEAP,
which is based in the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs and housed within the
MPSC. The MPSC would likely see an increase in costs due to the added data collection and
reporting needed to create the required reports. This would likely include new software and
possible upgrades to the current information and technology systems used by the MPSC.
For context on the MEAP, the following two tables show data from 2017 through 2023 of the
distribution of collection of Low-income Energy Assistance Fund (LIEAF) by participating
electric service providers and distribution of MEAP funds by county.
Table 1
LIEAF Remittances from 2017 – 2023 by Electric Service Provider
Electric Service Providers Total Years Reported
Alger Delta Cooperative Electric Association $767,488 2017 - 2023
Alpena Power Company 1,270,715 2017 - 2023
City of Bay City 1,565,992 2017 - 2023
City of Crystal Falls 86,771 2019 - 2023
City of Dowagiac 84,449 2020 - 2023
City of Gladstone 187,837 2018 - 2023
City of Hart 83,212 2018 - 2023
City of Norway 166,379 2017 - 2023
City of Petoskey 396,440 2017 - 2023
City of St. Louis 151,446 2017 - 2023
Consumers Energy 140,977,974 2017 - 2023
Croswell Light & Power Department 53,711 2020 - 2023
DTE Energy 168,661,798 2017 - 2023
Great Lakes Energy Cooperative 7,811,273 2018 - 2023
Hillsdale Board of Public Utilities 460,193 2017 - 2023
HomeWorks Tri-County Electric Cooperative 1,712,354 2018 - 2023
Indiana Michigan Power Company (AEP) 9,952,331 2017 - 2023
Lowell Light & Power 91,208 2017 - 2019
Marshall Electric Department 353,629 2017 - 2023
Midwest Energy Cooperative 2,457,437 2017 - 2023
Negaunee Department of Public Works 149,283 2017 - 2023
Newberry Water & Light Board 106,536 2017 - 2023
Niles Utilities Department 531,857 2017 - 2023
Northern States Power Company -Wisconsin (Xcel) 688,113 2017 - 2023
Presque Isle Electric & Gas Co-op 2,542,216 2017 - 2023
Thumb Electric Cooperative 914,203 2017 - 2023
Union City Electric Department 115,026 2017 - 2023
Upper Peninsula Power Company 3,424,343 2018 - 2023
Village of Baraga 58,653 2017 - 2023
Village of Clinton 15,786 2017
Total ............................................................ $345,838,652
Source: Annual MEAP Reports from the MPSC
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Table 2
Total Amount of MEAP Funding by County
County Amount Distributed
Alcona $482,806
Alger 1,263,062
Allegan 2,422,253
Alpena 1,167,381
Antrim 714,699
Arenac 1,065,453
Baraga 950,321
Barry 1,268,776
Bay 2,620,925
Benzie 677,455
Berrien 3,606,118
Branch 601,657
Calhoun 8,524,923
Cass 992,482
Charlevoix 426,392
Cheboygan 1,044,726
Chippewa 1,114,780
Clare 2,378,364
Clinton 1,038,911
Crawford 460,280
Delta 2,378,650
Dickinson 481,501
Eaton 1,485,810
Emmet 564,393
Genesee 26,474,166
Gladwin 1,445,317
Gogebic 1,179,049
Grand Traverse 935,479
Gratiot 1,502,350
Hillsdale 1,380,425
Houghton 2,616,984
Huron 478,802
Ingham 3,610,683
Ionia 1,193,366
Iosco 1,246,646
Iron 1,130,785
Isabella 1,442,418
Jackson 7,210,126
Kalamazoo 8,435,077
Kalkaska 865,051
Kent 11,734,709
Keweenaw 166,617
Lake 1,417,103
Lapeer 916,886
Leelanau 177,039
Lenawee 1,335,435
Livingston 1,107,689
Luce 353,133
Mackinac 402,072
Macomb 11,476,662
Manistee 1,212,422
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Total Amount of MEAP Funding by County
County Amount Distributed
Marquette $4,321,650
Mason 1,177,621
Mecosta 1,673,957
Menominee 1,116,644
Midland 2,862,659
Missaukee 896,980
Monroe 1,721,831
Montcalm 1,946,387
Montmorency 302,566
Muskegon 8,770,585
Newaygo 4,038,911
Oakland 12,196,178
Oceana 1,668,419
Ogemaw 1,278,932
Ontonagon 787,135
Osceola 1,008,295
Oscoda 580,925
Otsego 790,867
Ottawa 2,155,207
Presque Isle 329,088
Roscommon 1,345,344
Saginaw 16,503,789
St. Clair 5,294,722
St. Joseph 990,959
Sanilac 1,218,219
Schoolcraft 588,004
Shiawassee 1,748,648
Tuscola 854,636
Van Buren 1,385,634
Washtenaw 4,161,556
Wayne 141,678,094
Wexford 2,015,796
Total $356,588,850
Source: Annual MEAP Reports from the MPSC
*Amounts between Table 1 and Table 2 differ due to the inclusion of Federal Low-Income
Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding that is not remitted by electric service
providers.
Fiscal Analyst: Nathan Leaman
John P. Maxwell
Cory Savino, PhD
SAS\S2324\s879sa
This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official
statement of legislative intent.
Page 4 of 4 Bill Analysis @ www.senate.michigan.gov/sfa 879/2324
Statutes affected: Senate Introduced Bill: 460.9