Michigan in Focus

The Michigan Supreme Court declined to say whether the government can use drones to spy on people without a warrant. The unanimous Friday ruling follows a 17-year dispute between residents Todd and Heather Maxon and Long Lake township officials who say the 5-acre residential property is being used as an illegal junkyard. The 18-page  ruling  written by Judge Brian Zahra affirmed the Court of Appea...

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed two bills requiring high school coaches to maintain valid certification for CPR and automated external defibrillators in case of cardiac arrest.  The legislation requires schools to have a cardiac emergency response plan if a student-athlete collapses on the field because of a cardiac issue. House Bill 5527 , sponsored by state Rep. John Fitzgerald, requires schools to...

Michigan’s top business group says “we can’t get” to the 100% clean energy standard by 2040 without nuclear energy. The Michigan Chamber of Commerce, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, bipartisan lawmakers and organized labor support restarting the 800-megawatt Palisades nuclear plant on Lake Michigan’s Eastern shore, expected to return online in 2025. Edward Kee, CEO and founder of the Nuclear Economics Cons...

The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded Michigan $159 million in solar subsidies for low-income households. The Inflation Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund will be administered through the MI Solar for All program, which aims to increase access to affordable solar energy for eligible families. The Michigan Department of Environment, great lakes, and energy will invest 159 milli...

A new report found Michigan school districts spent their COVID-19 funds similarly to their general budget, with nearly half spent on employee compensation and benefits. A Mackinac Center for Public Policy report shows how school districts have spent $2.5 billion of the $6 billion in federal pandemic aid between the 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years. To help address the challenges of the go...

 Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced 13 felony charges against former House Speaker Lee Chatfield, 35, accusing him of stealing political funds for personal use. The state accused Lee of illegally taking political money for personal use from the 501(c)(4) Peninsula Fund, his own electoral political action committees, The Chatfield Majority Fund, The Chatfield Majority Fund 2 and the st...

The Department of Justice has weighed into the Line 5 pipeline dispute, saying Enbridge Energy has been trespassing for more than 10 years. The 70-page brief filed in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals says about 12 miles of Line 5 crosses the Reservation of the Bad River Band in northern Wisconsin. The 645-mile pipeline stretching from Superior, Wisconsin to Sarnia, Canada, pumps about 540,000...

Michigan Republicans are calling for accountability within the Michigan Economic Development Corp. after taxpayers reportedly bought an $11,000 flight to Budapest and a $4,500 coffee maker. Metro Detroit businesswoman and MEDC executive committee member Fay Beydoun received a $20 million grant for her company Global Link International to attract international business. The Detroit News reported th...

 Twenty-five Michigan lawmakers oppose President Joe Biden administration's electric vehicle mandate through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA rules for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles phased in from 2027 through 2032 will require about 67% of new car sales to be electric by 2032. Republican lawmakers said the mandate will destroy auto jobs in Michigan responsible for 19% of U....

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed nine bills into law to legalize surrogacy contracts. Michigan is the last state to legalize surrogacy contracts. Democrats say that nine bills, House Bills 5207, 5208, 5209, 5210, 5211, 5212, 5213, 5214, and 5215, will help more people get children born through surrogacy or in vitro fertilization. The bills will regulate surrogacy, ensure surrogates are fairly...

The federal government will give a $1.5 billion loan to restart the Palisades nuclear plant. The loan follows Michigan shuttering coal plants at a record pace while chasing a 100% renewable energy standard by 2040. In 2022, renewables comprised 12% of Michigan's electricity net generation, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com...

New analysis shows Michigan school districts are underperforming against districts in other states. Launch Michigan, a nonprofit public education organization, released a dashboard showing how Michigan school districts compare to similar districts in top-performing states in reading and math proficiency, graduation rate, and other metrics. Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/s...

 Rep. Mike Harris, a retired police sergeant, opposes bills that aim to allow murderers, rapists and other violent offenders to reduce their prison sentences. The House Criminal Justice Committee held a hearing on House Bills  4556 ,  4557 ,  4558 ,  4559 , and  4560 . The “Second Look Sentencing Act” aims to allow sentence reconsideration for eligible prisoners who have served at least ten years...

A company taking $715 million of taxpayer subsidies is suing the local government for revoking vital water infrastructure for its electric vehicle plant. In October 2023, the Green Charter Township board approved the water line for Gotion, which bought 270 actors of land in Mecosta County in August 2023. In November, voters  ousted  the entire board, claiming it signed non-disclosure agreements to...

Michigan officials traveled to Austin, Texas to speak at the SXSW festival's Midwest House. Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II is featured on a Tuesday panel while Michigan Chief Mobility Officer Justine Johnson will discuss “The Future of Air Travel: Innovation From the Ground Up.” It’s unclear if the Michigan Economic Development Corp. or taxpayers are funding the trip and how much the trip will cost....

House Republican Leader Matt Hall urged House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, to pass reform to records requests during Sunshine Week, which celebrates government transparency. Sunshine Week, observed this year from March 10-16, highlights the need for transparency and accountability at all levels of government. The letter from the Richland Township Repubican said House Republicans in the minority ar...

Repubican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida wants to stop China from flooding the automobile market via state subsidiaries, slave labor and property theft. The Center Square  reported  Chinese automaker BYD, the world’s largest EV maker, wants to build a factory in Mexico for a 2.5% tariff instead of a 27.5% tariff. The new factory follows BYD releasing a $14,000 EV in February that some in the ind...

Michigan Democratic lawmakers want mass transit between Grand Rapids, Detroit and Ann Arbor but don’t know how to pay for it. State Sen. Dayna Polehanki, D-Livonia, majority caucus chair & Education Committee chair, posted on social media that mass transit would prevent young people from leaving the state. Polehanki’s office hasn’t yet responded to additional questions about the funding source, th...

An Alliance for American Manufacturing report called for tariffs to protect the U.S. electric vehicle market from an “extinction-level event” caused by Chinese competitors. The report follows Chinese EV maker BYD, the world’s largest EV maker, releasing a $14,000 EV in February that could “demolish” domestic EVs, often $40,000 more expensive. The report says China uses Mexico's trade relationship...

Former President Donald Trump defeated former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in Michigan’s Republican presidential primary while President Joe Biden cruised to an easy victory on the Democrats' side. The races were called within an hour of polls closing, with the GOP primary determined with about 80% of the vote counted. Biden received more than 126,000 votes while the “uncommitted” spot received...

 The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from Sidney Powell, a lawyer aligned with former President Donald Trump who challenged the 2020 presidential election results in Michigan. The nation’s top court included no comment with the Tuesday rejection. In 2021, a court levied $175,000 of sanctions against Powell and attorney Lin Wood for submitting court documents based on “theories, conjectur...

Detroit placed the U.S. on wheels but if Motor City wants to go electric it faces fierce global competition. Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD outsold Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2023. The foreign automaker said it produced more than 3 million new energy vehicles in 2023 compared to Tesla’s 1.8 million. The Wall Street Journal reported BYD wants to build a factory in Mexico to avoid high tarif...

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says the proposed 2025 budget wouldn't raise taxes but it would dump a 1,200% increase in trash fees onto local taxpayers. The budget aims to raise the landfill tipping fee rate for state landfills from 36 cents to $5 per ton – a 1,288% increase. Whitmer posted on social media: “Have you heard? Our new balanced budget does a whole lot. But it doesn't raise taxes.” Get your Au...

House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, stripped Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, of his committee and office allocation for a social media post. The post claimed that an orchestrated effort called “the great replacement theory” aims to replace White people with people of color through mass illegal immigration. Tate’s spokesperson Amber McCann said Schriver's staff will be reassigned and the $132,000 offi...

 A Southfield-based electric vehicle project will receive $60 million of federal funding for battery research seeking wide-scale EV adoption. The United States Advanced Battery Consortium LLC, a collaboration between General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., and Stellantis N.V., will focus on boosting the performance and manufacturing capabilities of batteries. The funding aims to extend the range of EV...