Updates About People

State Attorney General Dana Nessel has launched a pair of legal challenges in recent weeks aimed at protecting vulnerable residents from abrupt federal policy changes. Most recently, Nessel joined 21 other attorneys general in suing the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over new Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) guidance that she argues unlawfully restricts benefits for thousands of lawful permanent residents. The USDA memo directs states to treat refugees, asylees, humanitarian parolees, and other legally admitted immigrants as permanently ineligible for SNAP, despite federal law explicitly allowing these groups to qualify once standard requirements are met. Nessel warns the guidance would create widespread confusion, risk wrongful terminations, and expose states to major financial penalties due to the USDA’s misapplication of its own rules.

The lawsuit also highlights a procedural issue: USDA claims that states’ 120-day compliance window expired the day after the guidance was released, leaving agencies without enough time to adjust eligibility systems. According to the coalition, this interpretation is impossible under the agency’s own regulations and forces states into an untenable choice to violate federal statute or absorb significant administrative liability. The attorneys general are asking the court to block implementation of the memo to ensure families do not lose critical food assistance because of what they view as unlawful and rushed federal policymaking.

Just a week earlier, Nessel joined another multistate lawsuit, this time targeting the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The challenge centers on sweeping changes to the Continuum of Care (CoC) program, including sharp reductions in allowable spending on permanent housing, new gender-based service limitations, and penalties tied to local homelessness policies. States argue that HUD’s decision to cut traditional funding levels from 90% down to 30% and impose new conditions on housing providers undermines long-standing federal policy, including the widely adopted Housing First model. Nessel and her counterparts contend that HUD enacted these changes without congressional authorization or adequate explanation, and warn the shifts could destabilize housing providers, create uncertainty in local markets, and leave thousands of the most vulnerable at risk of losing long-term housing.

The Michigan Energy giant DTE Gas Co. is asking state regulators to approve an increase in gas rates by 8% for residents and 7.1% for businesses. The company claims they need additional revenue to pay for infrastructure, maintenance expenses, and wage increases. DTE’s 1.3 million gas customers are expected to absorb an increase totaling $237 million starting next October. This amount could be reduced to $163 million if a previously approved infrastructure recovery mechanism surcharge is incorporated into the rates.

This is not the only increase that Michigan consumers have been subjected to in recent history. Last year, DTE raised gas rates by more than $113 million. Attorney General Dana Nessell scrutinized the increases and reaffirmed that her office will work to defend DTE customers. Bob Richard, President and COO of DTE, defended the rate hikes by arguing that the request will allow DTE to continue to invest in the safety and reliability of their energy system while keeping long term costs lower. In early November, DTE’s main competitor, Consumer Energy Co., also raised rates — 8% on residents and 1.4% on businesses.

See Also: AG NESSEL PUSHES BACK ON CONSUMERS ENERGY $436M RATE HIKE PROPOSAL

Recently, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) refused to hear Kim Davis v. David Ermold, where Davis had hoped the Court would overturn a lower court’s decision awarding damages to a same sex couple that Davis refused to issue a marriage license to while working as a court clerk. Davis also requested that the Court overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court case that established marriage equality for same-sex couples.

Among those celebrating the decision was Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is the state’s first openly LGBTQ+ individual elected to a statewide office. In a statement released shortly after the Court announced they would not be taking on the case, Nessel expressed relief but gave a warning: this is only a battle won, and to secure lasting victory against other efforts to overturn Obergefell, Michigan must change the state Constitution to protect marriage equality.