Michigan Utility Orders, Ohio Medical Rules, and Missouri Cannabis Study

Michigan's utility regulator approved a Consumers Energy natural gas rate increase, Ohio's medical board finalized new rules on pronouncing death, and Missouri regulators published the state's first cannabis market study. The collection day logged 398 items combined across federal and state sources, with 16 states contributing records.

Why it matters: Michigan utility filings, Ohio's licensed health professions, and Missouri's cannabis regulators each have a new agency record from the collection day to read.

What moved

• MPSC Commission Orders and Decisions - October 15, 2026 (Michigan): The Michigan Public Service Commission issued a news release covering several regulatory decisions, including approval of Consumers Energy's natural gas rate increase of $139.2 million, which is 42 percent below the amount requested, alongside enhanced infrastructure replacement and leak detection programs. It also covers a workgroup review of billing practices, a public hearing set for November 9 on critical care customer shutoff protections, approval of AT&T Michigan's extended performance measures plan, updated PURPA avoided cost rates for Consumers Energy, and approval of DTE Electric solar projects totaling 360 megawatts. Status is listed as adopted. The actions involve Consumers Energy, AT&T Michigan, and DTE Electric.

• 4731-14-01 Pronouncement of death (Ohio): The Ohio State Medical Board finalized amendments specifying which licensed healthcare professionals may pronounce death, effective October 31, 2026. The authorized list now expands beyond physicians and osteopathic physicians to include certified nurse-midwives, certified nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, registered nurses, physician assistants, and podiatrists. The rule also addresses when a physician may pronounce death without personally examining the body.

• Notice of Rule Development - 11R-1.001 - Establish procedures for domestic and foreign terrorist organization designations and petitions for removal (Florida): The Department of Law Enforcement's Domestic Security Division published a notice of rule development for proposed rule 11R-1.001, intended to establish procedures for designating domestic and foreign terrorist organizations and for processing petitions seeking removal from such designations. The item is at the rule development stage; the record does not specify a next procedural step beyond this notice.

• First cannabis market study published for Missouri (Missouri): The Division of Cannabis Regulation published Phase 1 of a market study finding that regulated dispensaries capture over 90 percent of cannabis purchases statewide, that sales are evenly distributed, and that cultivation and manufacturing transfer activity has stabilized without excessive concentration. The study concludes it is not necessary to issue additional licenses at this time, and the division will continue monitoring the market, including after new microbusiness licenses roll out.

By the numbers

• Federal regulations: 133 entered the record, against a trailing 30 day weekday average of about 76, nearly twice its trailing pace for a weekday (across all days of the week the average is about 66).
• Federal court opinions: 128 entered the record, against a trailing weekday average of about 84.
• States combined contributed 137 items across 16 states; the federal total was 261.
• Florida added 37 regulations, close to its trailing weekday average of about 43.
• Ohio added 28 items, 24 regulations and 4 opinions, above its trailing weekday average of about 20.
• Alaska added 26 regulations, above its trailing weekday average of about 15.
• California added 26 opinions, above its trailing weekday average of about 17.
• Michigan logged 6 items, 5 regulations and 1 opinion, against a trailing weekday average of about 2; the last comparable day was October 2, a data-load day.

Bill actions

No tracked bill carried an action dated October 16 among tracked bills.

Methodology

"Collected" means the date OmniLegislation's pipeline processed a record, not the date it was filed or issued. Counts are deduplicated processed records from OmniLegislation's own pipeline, and item descriptions come from the pipeline's own summaries of each record. Baselines are trailing 30 day daily averages for the same kind of day, weekdays against weekdays, excluding known bulk-load days; highest single-day counts are measured since tracking began on April 5, 2026, and include load days, which are labelled. Bill actions cover tracked bills only. This post covers October 16, 2026. Bill records originate from LegiScan; court opinions from CourtListener, a Free Law Project service; federal regulations from the Federal Register.