Representatives from Bay City are asking for a moratorium on utility shutoffs and a review by the Michigan Public Service Commission after a 93-year-old man was found frozen in his home on Jan.17.

Local officials said that Marvin E. Schur of Bay City, a WWII vet, died a slow and painful death by freezing after the municipal electric company put a power limiter on his electrical service because he was $1,000 behind in payments.
 
Power limiters shut off all electricity to a house if more than a minimal amount of power is used.

City officials have said that they don’t believe the power limiter was explained to Schur.

“Until we understand this unfortunate situation, we need a moratorium on all electric shut-offs as well as the use of these limiting devices, in order to ensure that this does not happen again,” State Rep. Jeff Mayes (D-Bay City) Chair of the House Energy and Technology Committee said in a statement.

Together Mayes and State Senator Jim Barcia (D-Bay City) are asking the Michigan Public Service Commission to review city shut-off policies and offer recommendations so that Bay City can avoid further freezing deaths.