Briefs

GOP bills aimed at public sector unions moving through Legislature

BY: - December 6, 2018

Two GOP bills aimed at public sector union employees in Michigan passed out of a House committee hearing this morning.

Former El-Sayed policy director behind ‘Green New Deal’

BY: - December 6, 2018

Rhiana Gunn-Wright, who served as Abdul El-Sayed's policy director for his 2018 gubernatorial campaign, has moved on to the national stage.

Unions fight GOP effort to seize power over schools

BY: - December 5, 2018

As the frenzied-pace Lame Duck session continues, state GOP lawmakers are looking to maximize their power and influence over schools before Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is sworn in. But teacher unions are fighting back.

Former lawmaker leading economic opportunity nonprofit slams GOP-led Lame Duck assault

BY: - December 5, 2018

A former longtime state lawmaker who now leads a nonprofit policy institute focused on economic opportunity is dismayed by the frenetic Lame Duck session.

Snyder scales back constituent relations for transition

BY: - December 4, 2018

Gov. Rick Snyder’s constituent relations team is scaling back certain features it offered during the transition to Democratic Gov.-elect Gretchen Whitmer, but the office is still open, according to his spokesman.

‘I’m insulted’: Service industry worker berates Michigan lawmakers over minimum wage, sick time maneuvers

BY: - December 4, 2018

Longtime service industry worker Tracy Pease told House members on Tuesday morning that she was “insulted” by GOP maneuvering to override citizens who supported a minimum wage increase via ballot proposal. The comments came during a hearing of the GOP-led House Competitiveness Committee, in which members voted along party lines to advance legislation that would […]

Koch think tank leads legal push with big implications for Great Lakes

BY: - December 4, 2018

A conservative think tank founded and led by one of the Koch brothers is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on a case that could determine whether people have the right to walk along Great Lakes shorelines.

New bill could trash part of Milliken’s environmental legacy

BY: - December 4, 2018

The “bottle bill” was a key part of GOP former Gov. William Milliken’s environmental legacy.

Fish out of water: ‘Soapy’ Williams was an environmentalist before it was cool

BY: - December 4, 2018

G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams, the lanky, bow-tied, Michigan governor of the late 1940s and 1950s, is generally remembered as a progressive who supported civil rights and fought for the “little guy.”

U of M prof: Insurance cost hikes might convince people of global warming

BY: - December 4, 2018

For many people, climate science may not seem real until it hits their wallets, a University of Michigan professor says.

Michigan is one of 16 states with lower tax revenue than before the Great Recession

BY: - December 4, 2018

Gov. Rick Snyder is fond of bragging about Michigan’s “comeback” since the Great Recession, but one key economic indicator continues to lag.

Trump report: Rising temps could hurt Michigan farmers, Great Lakes

BY: - December 4, 2018

A new report from the Trump administration says rising temperatures over the next century will pose serious consequences for the United States and the world.