by David Sheldon
August 27th, 2017 – New Petition Aimed at Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette Asks Him to Enforce Existing Laws Against ‘Smart’ Meters.
We are calling on all of you who have issues with smart meters – whether it be for privacy violations, health violations or reckless disregard for our safety from lightning and fires – to join our NEW PETITION TO MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL BILL SCHUETTE. He is our state’s chief law enforcer and he has so far ignored the Fourth Amendment violations, Michigan’s own felony surveillance statute, and a state law mandating that utilities deliver safe energy. He has stood idly by while senior citizens have their electricity shut off for resisting this new technology – even when they have doctor’s letters and their very lives are placed at risk.
This man is reportedly planning to run in the Republican primary as the party’s next candidate for Governor. Let’s let him know he won’t have our support if he continues to fiddle while Michiganders suffer!
Here is the petition, started by John Kurczewski: Click Here
michiganstopsmartmeters 
State Senator Patrick Colbeck has also thrown has hat into the ring for governorship. He is actively working against smart meters, unlike any other Michigan politician I am aware of except for some of the co-sponsors of the Analog Meter Choice Bill (HB 4220). Now we need a Democrat also working against smart meters and running for governor!
Your attack on Schuette is unfair. Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette argued to suspend Consumers’ smart meter program, saying the costs to customers outweigh the benefits. Schuette filed an appeal of the MPSC order to the Michigan Court of Appeals in 2013. He took our side against DTE in the DTE opt-out case and in the Consumers Energy general rate case. “No net economic benefit to ratepayers.” Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette. http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2015/07/consumers_energy_fees_to_opt_o.html
In arguing these points before the MPSC Mr. Schuette was playing in a rigged game. The MPSC was never going to buck the utilities on smart meters and their decisions on substantive issues cannot be overturned by the Court of Appeals so long as they keep their proceedings procedurally correct. But the optics were good for Schuette to file briefs that he had to know would not succeed. Meanwhile he failed to enforce a statute that could have stopped the whole smart meter rollout in its tracks. His defense for not enforcing Michigan’s felony surveillance law was “First (his chief of staff says), smart meters are not surveillance devices, and second, even if they are you consent to them when you sign up for electric service.” But, of course, smart meters ARE surveillance devices and they were being installed everywhere by force or by duress. And Mr. Schuette looks the other way – even when elderly people resisting a smart meter installation, and who need electricity for medical devices have their power turned off by DTE bullies.
Online petitions are not considered worth much by those in power. It is easy to click your mouse, then take 30 seconds to fill out a petition. And the biggest problem is, those who sign an online petition often think they have done all they need to do to make change happen.
If people who sign this or any other petition think they have done all they need to do, they are much mistaken. It is only a first step, but it IS a beginning. It needs to be followed by phone calls to legislators and efforts to educate and engage as many people as possible. Only then will change happen.
My son’s electricity was cut and tied off at the pole last year because he had a lock on his meter. It was in the high 80’s, and my son was on his oxygen at the time. Also, my 5 year grandson was home. No one bothered to knock on door to have him unlock it, they just climbed the pole, cut and tied off. Humiliating for neighbors to see this because it appears they didn’t pay bill which was not the case. The company DTE hired was from out of state (I’m sure DTE linemen wouldn’t be too happy about). It took days to turn back on, therefore ruining everything in their freezer/fridge, and flooding basement. I have pictures of lines cut and tied off at pole, and water all over kitchen floor from fridge. I didn’t go in basement to see it flooded from sump pump not working. But what absolutely infuriates me the most is that my five year old grandsons memories of his first day of school, (yes kindergarten), are not of sleeping in his own bed, waking up, getting ready with his new backpack, and leaving from his own house, rather it’s mom going to their house and getting his new school clothes,backpack, shoes, toothbrush, lunchbox, pajamas, etc, and bringing them to grandma’s. It’s not getting off of the school bus at his own house (he was so excited about riding the school bus), because he, mom, and dad had to stay at grandmas (I loved it,but that’s not the point). It was traumatizing for all of them, getting my son’s oxygen set up here, etc. You get the picture. Those are memories that can never be replaced. I am furious over this kind of treatment. And it appears that DTE was on a mission in our township, because another family had a three day old baby and new mom just home from hospital it happened to. No notice, no knocks, no calls, just cut and tied off at pole.Of course it took days to turn back on because of it being CUT AND TIED OFF at pole.DTE should be ashamed, but they aren’t. DTE doesn’t give a damn about anybody. I have the pictures, the dates the times, and the names. I HATE DTE for stealing my grandsons memories and putting my their lives at risk. There’s so much more, but I think you’re got the picture.
The meters belong to the utility providing the service, and customers have no business putting a locks on them. However, proper notice should be given before cutting power – and probably was. The possibility of this happening is clearly stated in the Terms of Service
Doubting Thomas, Locks are placed on the meter housing, which is the property of the homeowner. The purpose of the lock is to prevent trespass to the home by a utility that has no business installing a ‘smart’ meter without the homeowner’s knowledge and consent. If utilities such as DTE and Consumers Energy sought permission before installing these devices, there would be no need to place a lock on the owner’s meter housing. The fact is that the utility, in the absence of any federal law, state law or MPSC regulation that would authorize such action, is using brute force to install a device that violates the homeowner’s rights