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Enbridge says it doesn’t need state panel’s sign off on Line 5
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 23, 2020
Updated, 8:42 a.m., 4/23/20 with comments from the AG’s office With a unanimous vote Wednesday afternoon, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) resolved to move forward on clarifying a legal issue that could impact which regulatory body has the authority to move the controversial Line 5 tunnel project along. Electronic comments on Enbridge’s request may […]
AG joins 13 states, NYC in suing Trump admin over energy rules
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 22, 2020
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has joined 13 other attorneys general and New York City in a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s administration over revisions to its energy emissions rules, Nessel’s office announced Wednesday. The April 14 lawsuit argues that parts of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) recent revisions to its process rule, a 24-year-old […]
Whitmer to FEMA: Waive all cost-share requirements during COVID-19
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 21, 2020
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, citing the strain on state resources resulting from Michigan’s COVID-19 outbreak, has requested that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) waive all cost-share requirements for federal assistance in Michigan be waived. Since President Donald Trump granted a major disaster declaration in late March, state, tribal and local recovery efforts have been supplemented […]
Breaking: 9 inmates at Baldwin immigrant prison test positive for COVID-19
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 20, 2020
Updated, 9:32 p.m., 4/20/20, with Monday’s numbers for the Milan facility and comment from No Detention Centers in Michigan Nine inmates at Michigan’s only private, for-profit federal immigrant prison have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). DHHS spokesperson Lynn Sutfin said all nine of the cases […]
‘Everything is an emergency, all the time’: What Dana Nessel’s life as Michigan AG looks like now
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 18, 2020
Like many Michiganders, Attorney General Dana Nessel is working from home — office cat included. It’s exhausting, but she’s grateful that she’s able to as Michigan continues to reel from one of the deadliest COVID-19 outbreaks in the nation. “We’re lucky that my wife and I have jobs; we can work from home … and […]
State OKs revised DTE 15-year plan beefing up energy efficiency
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 17, 2020
Updated, 6:53 p.m., 4/17/20, with comment from DTE Two months after a state regulatory body rejected its first try, Detroit-based DTE Electric Co. saw its revised 15-year energy resource plan approved Wednesday afternoon. The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) had rejected DTE’s original plan in February, after many months of sustained criticism from environmental groups, […]
California loans 50 ventilators to Michigan
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 16, 2020
More than four dozen ventilators from California are scheduled to arrive in Lansing Wednesday, as a loan from California Gov. Gavin Newsom to aid Michigan in its COVID-19 response. California, an early adopter of restrictive policies to fight the disease’s spread, has had signs that it’s bent the curve. The state also has sent ventilators […]
Whitmer: Protesters flouting social distancing could ironically cause a longer stay-home order
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 15, 2020
“I support your right to free speech, and I respect your opinions. I just urge you: Don’t put yourself at risk, and don’t put others at risk, either,” Whitmer said as she addressed the public during her latest Michigan COVID-19 update at Lansing’s Romney Building on Wednesday afternoon. Just across the street, hundreds of protesters […]
After crush of unemployment claims, state says it’s upgraded servers
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 14, 2020
The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) website saw higher traffic Monday night than any other time in the last few weeks, according to Director Jeff Donofrio. Donofrio gave a video press update Tuesday on how the department is dealing with the historic number of unemployment claims after a slew of complaints from […]
Michigan reports 27K COVID-19 cases, 1,700+ deaths
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 14, 2020
There are now 27,001 positive cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by a new coronavirus, in Michigan as of 3 p.m. Tuesday, although state officials believe the actual number of cases is much higher. This is an additional 1,366 cases since Monday. A statewide coronavirus hotline is open 7 days a week from 8 a.m. […]
Breaking: 3 staffers at Baldwin immigrant prison test positive for COVID-19
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 13, 2020
Updated, 5:53 p.m. with Monday’s numbers for the Milan facility. Three employees at a federal immigrant prison in Baldwin have tested positive for COVID-19, the Advance confirmed Monday. A spokesperson for the owner of the private prison, Florida-based GEO Group, said that no inmates have tested positive at the North Lake Correctional Institute, although it […]
New: Hunger strike at Baldwin immigrant prison enters 5th day
By: Laina G. Stebbins - April 10, 2020
A group of at least 10 inmates at Michigan’s only private, for-profit immigrant prison are on day five of a hunger strike to protest against what they describe as inhumane living conditions and discriminatory treatment from staff. Letters and phone calls to advocacy groups, which have been obtained by the Advance, describe concerns from at […]