Podcast 83

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth, Davis Grimm and Maci Main of MAC Topics: In its most recent legislative update episode, MAC’s Podcast 83 team goes on the campaign trail to see what is happening in state legislative races that may have escaped attention amid the avalanche of advertising for U.S. Senate and the governor’s race. “I think on the state House side, it's kind of up in t...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Andy Hetzel of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Topic: The newest episode of Podcast 83 explores the complex answer to a simple question: Why do county health insurance costs keep rising? To answer that, Andy Hetzel of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan joined host Stephan Currie for an extended review of health care realities in 21st century Michigan. “I want to grou...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth, Davis Grimm and Maci Main of MAC Topics: What didn’t happen, or has yet to happen, in Lansing highlighted this week’s Podcast 83 discussion. MAC’s Davis Grimm explained how discussion of a gas tax holiday ― and a resulting $800 million hole in the budget ― rose and then faltered at the Capitol. “So, you know, it was very concerning for (the County Road...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth, Davis Grimm and Maci Main of MAC Topics: MAC’s Podcast 83 discussed what appears to be a shrinking legislative work calendar and how that affects remaining county priorities in 2026 in a new episode. “We had a little bit of legislative activity last week, and it’s probably going to be spotty going forward now until at least till the election, but let&ap...

Hosts: Stephan Currie and Deena Bosworth Guest: State Rep. Julie Rogers (D-Kalamazoo) Topics: State Rep. Julie Rogers of Kalamazoo County discussed her county service and legislative efforts on courts, state support for counties and more in the newest “Legislator Spotlight” episode of MAC’s Podcast 83. “My very first dipping into county world was serving on our Kalamazoo County Brownfield Redevelo...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth, Davis Grimm and Maci Main of MAC Topics: County commissioners attending the 2026 Annual Conference were urged to contact their legislators regarding key court funding in a special “live” episode of Podcast 83 taped on Sept. 11, 2026. The MAC team of Executive Director Stephan Currie, Governmental Affairs director Deena Bosworth and governmental affairs...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Bill Burke and Richard Carpenter of Rehmann Topic: MAC’s Podcast 83 hosted staff from Premier Partner Rehmann to discuss how Michigan’s changing minimum wage could affect mental health services in a new episode. “The minimum wage is changing in 2027,” noted host Stephan Currie. “So, tell us a little bit about what's happening, why it matters to counties, and what...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Sarah Kline and Paul Bragenzer of Acrisure Topic: A new episode of Podcast 83 explores the growing human resources challenge in county government and features a MAC Corporate Partner positioned to help members address it. Keying off a presentation made at the MAC Legislative Conference in April, Acrisure’s Sarah Kline and Paul Bragenzer spoke with host Stephan Currie a...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Shawn Vaughn and Austin Brown of CoProPlus/PPIM Topic: Helping county staffs address the conundrum of rising prices and limited procurement budgets is the focus of Podcast 83’s newest episode. Shawn Vaughn and Austin Brown of PPIM/CoProPlus joined MAC’s Stephan Currie for a discussion on how their firms can help you keep the bills in check and the proverbial shelves st...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Ken Kelbel and Greg Watson of Nationwide Topic: A changing retirement landscape, both in business circles and government regulations, makes the role of in-state team of advisers even more important for county governments and their employees, said two representatives of Nationwide Retirement Solutions in a new episode of Podcast 83. “There have been a lot of changes in...

The newest episode of MAC’s Podcast 83 delves into the wins for counties out of the Legislature’s mad dash to a fiscal 2027 budget right before the holiday weekend. “The overall budget, I believe, was less than previous year budget, correct?” asked host Stephan Currie. “It was pretty much flat, with a $14.1 billion General Fund. That's what we look at. We look at the General Fund, because tha...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Tony Raffa of Savi Topics: With major changes coming to federal student loan programs on July 1 , this week’s Podcast 83 episode features a MAC partner that aids counties and their employees in navigating loan repayment rules. Savi is now operating in nine Michigan counties to aid county employees, or even all of a county’s residents, navigate the dizzying rules of loan...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Deena Bosworth of MAC Topics: The Michigan Legislature is another week closer to a statutory deadline for approving a fiscal 2027 budget and it’s not clear what is going on, reported MAC’s Podcast 83 team in a new episode. “What is the latest on the budget?” asked host Stephan Currie. “What we're hearing is that they worked really hard all weekend to come up with a...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Deena Bosworth of MAC Topics: The state’s fiscal 2027 budget faces a July 1 deadline, but it’s not clear what that actually means for what will be in the document, say MAC’s Podcast 83 team members in a new episode . “First and foremost, the budget, we've got an artificial deadline. I call it an artificial deadline. It is an actual statutory deadline of July 1, but...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Deena Bosworth of MAC Topics: In a brief episode this week, MAC’s Podcast 83 team reviewed the state of play in Lansing on a variety of county issues, including a bid for statewide septic code, issues with a new marijuana wholesale tax and distribution of dollars used for substance abuse prevention. Host Stephan Currie, who was traveling to the Upper Peninsula to visit...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Amy Dolinky of MAC Topics: The release of a long-awaited state list on unallowed spending items and the expansion of MAC’s consulting services for opioid settlements highlight comments from MAC’s opioid services leader in a special Podcast 83 episode. “We have the new document that was released by the (Attorney General’s Office) which is really what we would call an ‘un...

Massive changes to Michigan’s property tax system continue to create concern among MAC’s policy advocates in a new Podcast 83 episode. “Deena, we are coming off of a week last week where we had a lot of session days, some committee meetings, but some pretty significant legislation passed that we've been following and tracking and have some concerns about. The property tax legislation passed l...

MAC’s Stephan Currie and Deena Bosworth discuss positive news coming out of the State Capitol in the newest episode of Podcast 83. First, a key state panel determined on May 15 that lawmakers will have slightly more money in the fiscal 2027 General Fund than was expected in January. “We anticipated a slight decrease in the General Fund availability for fiscal year 27,” said Bosworth. “The good new...

In a special episode of Podcast 83 , Scott Adkins of American Fidelity talks with host Stephan Currie about how counties can use information to win the contest to attract and retain quality employees. “American Fidelity … provides employer cost-saving solutions and supplemental insurance business benefits to industries,” Adkins said. “But we're more than just an insurance company, Steve. Our...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Deena Bosworth of MAC Topics: Fresh off their first live taping at the 2026 Legislative Conference, MAC’s Podcast 83 team reconvened in their regular Zoom “studio” to discuss increasingly bright prospects for counties in the State Capitol. “Budgets are getting done earlier than we've ever expected or would have thought so far out of the chambers, and a huge, huge w...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth and Jimmy Johnson of MAC Topics: MAC’s Podcast 83 made a bit of history this week, taping a new episode before a live audience at the 2026 Legislative Conference in Lansing on April 28. Host Stephan Currie and panelists Deena Bosworth and Jimmy Johnson were introduced by MAC President Antoinette Wallace before they dove into a sweeping review of a legisl...

Host: Stephan Currie Guests: Deena Bosworth and Samantha Gibson of MAC Topics: With the Legislature back from spring break, attention in Lansing has turned to budgets, reports MAC’s Podcast 83 in a new episode. “We're starting to see some movement on budgets, in a significantly earlier time frame, I would say, than last year,” said host Stephan Currie, “which, fingers crossed, is a good sign...

Host: Stephan Currie Guest: Stephanie Leiser of CLOSUP Topics: Michigan counties are leaving the era of COVID-prompted aid with good balance sheets, says a University of Michigan researcher in a new Podcast 83 episode. But with that federal assistance winding down, the role that property taxes play in county operations becomes every more paramount, noted Stephane Leiser, director the Center for Lo...