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Gas and electricity just seem to be getting more and more expensive, and they could keep going up because of President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs. 

Last month, Trump announced 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Then he raised tariffs on China. He then excused tariffs on U.S. automakers, plus some other Canadian and Mexican goods.

But that’s not the end of the story, because our trading partners are still retaliating. China announced retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agriculture exports that will hurt farmers in Michigan.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford also announced that the province will charge 25% more for its electricity, which 1.5 million Americans use, including here in Michigan.

Dan Scripps, chair of the Michigan Public Service Commission — which regulates utilities including gas and electricity — joined The Metro on Tuesday to help us understand how much gas and electricity prices might increase as a result of the tariffs. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

You’ve probably heard the saying “small businesses are the backbone of the economy.” 

It’s true, and they’re also so much more, including places to connect with the community.

Locally-owned businesses can only succeed if people shop local. Nowadays, that often means choosing not to shop for convenience or bottom dollar bargains from mega-stores and companies like Amazon, Walmart or Target.

With all this in mind, some people are using their wallets to show where they stand. The grassroots group The People’s Union USA urged people to participate in an “economic blackout” last week, with the goal of uniting Americans to ​​regain control of the economy, the government and the country’s future, according to its website.

Today on The Metro, we’re talking to local small business owners about the importance of supporting local economies and independently owned stores. 

Guests: 

• Catharine Batsios: Member-owner/community programmer at Book Suey Bookshop Co-op in Hamtramck.
• Rachel Lutz: Founder/owner of The Peacock Room, a place where you’ll find dresses, accessories, jewelry and so much more in inclusive sizes.
• Dan Radomski: He leads Centrepolis Accelerator at Lawrence Technological University. The program supports small to mid-sized manufacturers and people creating hardtech – products that combine hardware and software to solve a problem.

We also asked listeners:

“How often do you shop at locally-owned businesses? Is it a question of cost, convenience, or something else?”

Alberta in Detroit said: “My first priority is to shop Detroit and to shop Black Detroit. Anything else is akin to cutting my nose to spite my face. We must support where we live.”

Use the media player above to listen to the full conversation.

Also on The Metro, we revisited conversations with local businesses in Detroit: 

• Source Booksellers owners Janet Webster and Alyson Jones Turner joined the show in January to talk about the bookstore’s programming, author discussions and other events where avid readers and new readers can connect. Listen to the conversation below at the 01:41 mark.

• Temple Bar owner George Boukas joined The Metro to discuss the restoration process after the popular community spot partially collapsed in May. Temple bar reopened in December.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

The Ontario government announced it’s charging an extra 25% on all electricity exports to the U.S. Monday.

The provincial government says that’ll impact 1.5 million homes spread across Michigan, Minnesota, and New York. Ontario said that could cost up to $400,000 each day the surcharge is in place, blaming tariffs from the Trump Administration for the move.

Despite Ontario naming Michigan in its announcement, state regulators expect the move could more likely be felt on a regional scale.

“While the vast majority of Michigan’s electricity is either produced by the electric utilities or purchased under long-term power contracts, the imposition of these tariffs could have some impact on prices in the regional energy markets, though the ultimate impact on Michigan customers is likely to be small,” a written statement from the Michigan Public Service Commission read.

The agency cast doubt on whether any utilities in the state actually purchase electricity from Canada to begin with.

In a written statement, DTE Energy, one of the state’s largest utility companies, said it was prepared to mitigate any pricing concerns.

“DTE continues to monitor the evolving tariff policies with Canada.We self-generate the majority of electricity required to serve our customers’ needs, with the small amount that we do purchase coming from the United States.” DTE Energy said.

The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) said “the vast majority” of the state’s electricity is produced by the state’s utilities themselves or through long term contracts.

The MPSC is warning, however, that Michigan’s electric grid is tied to several other states and one Canadian province, Manitoba. It said Michigan’s regional operator and Ontario’s regional operator coordinate that flow of electricity.

“Any action to limit or disrupt these flows would remove a layer of protection and make all of us – Canadians and Americans alike – more vulnerable to grid-scale outages,” the MSPC statement said.

Brandon D. Morris is with the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which operates Michigan’s electric grid.

“MISO is still reviewing Ontario’s recent decision to apply an export tax on electricity, which will be collected on the Canadian side of the border,” Morris said in a statement.

President Trump will give a speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, his first address before Congress since returning to office.

The speech comes as the Trump administration is making swift and dramatic cuts to the federal government, while the Republican-led House and Senate have done little to curb them.

According to the White House, Trump is expected to lay out his achievements since returning to office, and appeal to Congress to provide more money to finance his aggressive crackdown on immigration.

“It’s an opportunity for President Trump, as only he can, to lay out the last month of record-setting, record-breaking, unprecedented achievements and accomplishments,” senior adviser Stephen Miller told the Associated Press.

WDET will carry NPR’s special coverage and analysis of the president’s joint address, as well as the Democratic response from Michigan U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, beginning at 9 p.m. ET at 101.9 FM and at wdet.org.

Watch NPR’s livestream of the address below.

–Associated Press White House Correspondent Zeke Miller contributed to this report.