![[Photo of Jack McHugh]](/media/images/people/mchugh-j.jpg)
Jack McHugh
Senior Legislative Analyst
Jack McHugh is the Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s senior legislative analyst and editor of MichiganVotes.org, a unique Web site that puts the activities of the Michigan Legislature at citizens’ fingertips. Since the site was launched in 2001, McHugh has written or edited concise, plain-English descriptions of every bill, vote and amendment in the state House and Senate: 12,000 bills; 10,000 roll call votes; 8,000 amendments; and 2,400 new laws. These can all be searched and sorted on the MichiganVotes.org Web site.
McHugh’s experience prior to joining the Center is wide and varied. He has been a floor trader in the treasury bond and gold futures “pits” of the Chicago commodity exchanges, writer and real estate developer. He entered the Michigan political and public policy scene in 1994, spending six years as a legislative chief of staff in the House of Representatives.
McHugh has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree in political science from Central Michigan University (where he completed two highly relevant research projects, “Analyzing Michigan House Voting Records Using the ‘MichiganVotes.org’ Database” and “Analysis of Appropriations to Michigan’s Public Four-Year Universities, with Recommendations”).
Jack McHugh’s essays on public policy issues have appeared in The Detroit News, the Detroit Free Press, The Oakland Press, The Grand Rapids Press and many other newspapers. He is also co-author of a book on Midwest mountain bike trails.
Tools
By Jack McHugh
Oops! $300k School Super Under-Reports Pay
Today's Grand Rapids Press adds important details to a story Michigan Capitol Confidential reported on Oct. 13 about Kevin O'Neill, superintendent of the Coopersville School District, whose annual compensation totals $311,034. … more
Good News on Natural Gas Threatened by Regulatory Overreach
An amendment that would have banned revolutionary new natural gas drilling technology in Michigan received 16 Democratic "yes" votes in a party-line vote in the state Senate last month. Party-line roll call votes usually say more about caucus discipline than lawmakers' sincere policy preferences, and Democrats hardly have a monopoly on seeking burdensome new environmental regulations and mandates, but it's still disappointing that not one savvy Democrat — including ones generally considered "moderate" rather than anti-business or anti-energy — recognized this outright ban proposal as extremist. … more
Bare-Knees-Over-Broken-Glass to Vote for Local Tax Hikes?
The National Taxpayer's Union has just released a 2010 election guide called "The Taxpayer's Perspective" that lists every local millage election in the states by county. Each is given a "plus" or "minus" sign rating based on whether it "could lower taxes or control government" or "raise taxes or expand government." But maybe Michigan voters really don't mind local tax hikes, and instead have a "strong appetite for taxes." … more
Governor Describes Film Subsidies as Jobs Program, so "Why Not Give Them Spoons?"
The headline of a story today's Detroit Free Press characterizes Gov. Jennifer Granholm's understanding of the state film production subsidies' role like this: "Goal of film tax credit is jobs, not more revenue." This reminds one of the late economist Milton Friedman's question upon seeing a U.S. taxpayer-funded public works project in a poor country where thousands of men with shovels were moving dirt one spadeful at a time. … more
Governor Describes Film Subsidies as Jobs Program, so "Why Not Give Them Spoons?"
The headline of a story today's Detroit Free Press characterizes Gov. Jennifer Granholm's understanding of the state film production subsidies' role like this: "Goal of film tax credit is jobs, not more revenue." This reminds one of the late economist Milton Friedman's question upon seeing a U.S. taxpayer-funded public works project in a poor country where thousands of men with shovels were moving dirt one spadeful at a time. … more
Government Subsidy Deal Off for Competitor to Lansing Restaurant Owners
Existing, home-grown restaurant owners in the area — who pay their taxes in full and get no special privileges from the government — are no doubt relieved that they won't have to compete with a politically favored and subsidized outsider. … more
Horse Racetracks Are Beneficiaries and Victims of State's Gambling Schizophrenia
Horse racetrack owners complain that the state is schizophrenic about their industry, erecting statutory and bureaucratic barriers to it operating profitably while throwing special favors at particular tracks in the form of subsidies and selective tax breaks. … more
Bad Week for Michigan Corporate Welfare Machine
On Thursday the plug was officially pulled on a monumentally hyped film endeavor in Allen Park called "Unity Studios." There were no press releases from the Governor's office or the Michigan Economic Development Corp. announcing the evaporation of the mirage. … more
Bad Week for Michigan Corporate Welfare Machine
On Thursday the plug was officially pulled on a monumentally hyped film endeavor in Allen Park called "Unity Studios." There were no press releases from the Governor's office or the Michigan Economic Development Corp. announcing the evaporation of the mirage. … more
Life is Good for State Employees
State employees get a 3 percent pay hike this Friday, because lawmakers in the House and Senate failed to veto it earlier this year. This will be the 11th raise they've received since 2002. In addition, individual employees are constantly getting "step" or seniority pay hikes, longevity boosts, and more. … more
Would Tea Partiers Favor Wealth Redistribution Without the Bureaucracy?
The Gongwer Michigan Report (subscription required) recently did a story on the status of welfare programs today compared to past recessions. The Mackinac Center's Jack McHugh was quoted in the piece, and here he "revises and extends" his remarks to explain that welfare doesn't just redistribute wealth, but imposes bureaucratic micromanagement on the lives of recipients. Further, he believes that most Americans, including Tea Partiers, may object more to the destructive effects of this futile micromanagement than to some level of wealth redistribution. … more
State Budget Deal Kicks Can Down the Road to New Guys
The fiscal 2011 budget appears done. It contains no systemic reforms or program reductions. Meanwhile, with the end of federal stimulus subsidies, revenue projections for the following fiscal year fall off a cliff. … more
Phony 'Sandbox Party' Uses Taxpayer Dollars to Lobby for More Goverment Spending
A government entity that received $14.6 million of taxpayer money in the current state budget organized a publicity stunt to lobby for more government spending, called the "First Ever Sandbox Party Convention" in East Lansing. … more
Tea Partiers, Conventions, Politicians and Real Change
Tea Partiers are expected to play a big role at the Michigan Republican convention Saturday, but they cannot change the political establishment by playing nice with it. … more
This Time It’s Liquor Distribution
It's hard to imagine how the current state liquor distribution system could be made worse, but according to MIRS News, Gov. Jennifer Granholm has discovered a way. She apparently wants to make this partial monopoly into a complete one, selling the lucrative privilege to just one outfit. … more
Michigan Legislature No Slouch at Fiscal Malpractice
The Michigan Legislature may be on the verge of passing some of gimmicks to deceive taxpayers (and bond buyers) about the magnitude of the state's spending and liabilities. … more
Analysis: Plagiarism, Flawed MSU Studies, and the People vs. the Ruling Class
Alleged plagiarism in a study by an MSU scholar matters more than just as a violation of academic standards. The deeply flawed study wildly exaggerates the amount that could be saved by consolidating Michigan school districts, which will divert attention from the real solution to funding problems in Michigan public schools — scaling back outsized employee compensation and benefits. This is the second time in the last year that a flawed study was produced by an MSU professor that serves the interests of government employees and their unions. … more
Plagiarism, Flawed MSU Studies, and the People vs. the Ruling Class
Alleged plagiarism in a study by an MSU scholar matters more than just as a violation of academic standards. The deeply flawed study wildly exaggerates the amount that could be saved by consolidating Michigan school districts, which will divert attention from the real solution to funding problems in Michigan public schools — scaling back outsized employee compensation and benefits. This is the second time in the last year that a flawed study was produced by an MSU professor that serves the interests of government employees and their unions. … more
Michael LaFaive, Ralph Nader: Separated at Birth?
When it comes to targeted government "economic development" programs, Ralph Nader and Michael LaFaive agree. … more
City's 'Free Land' Offer Not Quite a Modern 'Homestead Act'
The Muskegon Chronicle is reporting a new twist on Michigan's growing corporate welfare empire: The coastal city is offering to give free land to job providers who occupy space in a pair of government-owned industrial parks. … more
'Bail Out Irresponsible Unions Act' Proposal Getting 11th Hour Push in Congress
Unions have begun a full-court lobbying press to get a bill that would bail out multi-employer union pension funds passed this year. … more
'Laid Off Teachers' a Fiction
President Obama, Gov. Granholm and much of the political class are misleading the public by leaving out key information when they say that the $26 billion state budgets bailout bill signed into law yesterday will reverse "thousands of teacher layoffs." … more
Michigan Primaries a Tea Party Failure?
A number of pundits here and nationally have pointed to recent primary results as evidence that the Tea Party movement is ineffective or a failure. These analyses are flawed, because they are based on a conventional Republican vs. Democrat electoral politics worldview. This misses the Tea Party’s rejection of the entire ruling class establishment, including the major political parties as currently constituted.… more
Angelo M. Codevilla — Our Era's Tom Paine?
Here's how important I think Angelo M. Codevilla's American Spectator article is: It makes me think of Thomas Paine's Common Sense.
Excerpt: "Our ruling class's agenda is power for itself. While it stakes its claim through intellectual-moral pretense, it holds power by one of the oldest and most prosaic of means: patronage and promises thereof." … more
Excerpt: "Our ruling class's agenda is power for itself. While it stakes its claim through intellectual-moral pretense, it holds power by one of the oldest and most prosaic of means: patronage and promises thereof." … more
About Those Companies Getting All the Electric Car Battery Subsidies ...
A123 is one of two companies written about recently in Capitol Confidential for each being the recipient of at least $100 million in cash subsidies from Michigan taxpayers. … more
New Teacher’s 'Hybrid' Pension Label a Phony Political Confection
Last spring, the Legislature adopted a largely-gutted version of a modest school employee pension reform. One of its features was a retirement plan labeled a "hybrid" between defined-benefit and defined-contribution.
The term "hybrid" is bogus. It's a political label, not anything real. … more
The term "hybrid" is bogus. It's a political label, not anything real. … more
Angelo M. Codevilla — Our Era's Tom Paine?
Here's how important I think Angelo M. Codevilla's American Spectator article is: It makes me think of Thomas Paine's Common Sense.
Excerpt: "Our ruling class's agenda is power for itself. While it stakes its claim through intellectual-moral pretense, it holds power by one of the oldest and most prosaic of means: patronage and promises thereof." … more
Excerpt: "Our ruling class's agenda is power for itself. While it stakes its claim through intellectual-moral pretense, it holds power by one of the oldest and most prosaic of means: patronage and promises thereof." … more
Cost to Revive Economy With Battery Plant Subsidies: $5 Trillion
Yesterday, President Barack Obama and Gov. Jennifer Granholm came to Holland bearing gifts: cash subsidies for an electric car battery plant owned by the Korean firm LG Chem. The federal contribution is $151 million in "stimulus" money, and Michigan taxpayers are kicking in another $100 million. This means that each of the plant's approximately 400 jobs will cost taxpayers $625,000. At this rate, it would cost $5 trillion to provide employment to the approximately 8 million Americans who lost have their jobs in the current downturn. … more
Cost to Revive Economy With Battery Plant Subsidies: $5 Trillion
Yesterday, President Barack Obama and Gov. Jennifer Granholm came to Holland bearing gifts: cash subsidies for an electric car battery plant owned by the Korean firm LG Chem. The federal contribution is $151 million in "stimulus" money, and Michigan taxpayers are kicking in another $100 million. This means that each of the plant's approximately 400 jobs will cost taxpayers $625,000. At this rate, it would cost $5 trillion to provide employment to the approximately 8 million Americans who lost have their jobs in the current downturn. … more
Michigan Taxpayers Writing Check to Second Electric Car Battery Maker for $100 Million
The owners of another Michigan electric car battery plant, A123 Systems, will receive a $100 million cash subsidy from the state for a 75-acre facility the company has leased in Romulus. … more
An Apology
Reasonable people may disagree with my position, and fair enough. But I should not ascribe their personal motivations to anything other than good will, and was wrong to say something that sounded like I was doing so. … more
Michigan Taxpayers to Write $100 Million Check to Korean Battery Maker
Last week the the Michigan Economic Development Corp. upped the ante on a $100 million "refundable" business tax credit approved by the Michigan House and Senate for a subsidiary of the South Korean battery maker LG Chem. The MEDC in effect converted the credit into an outright cash subsidy from Michigan taxpayers by granting the plant's 120-acre site in Holland "renaissance zone" status for 15 years. … more
Gutted School Pension 'Reform' Could Come Back to Bite Schools
A modest school pension reform proposed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm earlier this year was mostly gutted by the Republican Senate, and subjected to more savagery in the Democratic House, but it nevertheless crawled out with a provision requiring employees to contribute an additional 3 percent to the cost of their retirement benefits. The amended statute contains no language requiring that money be used to ease the budget challenges facing school districts, however. … more
Yeah, That's How to Boost Confidence in Detroit's Finances (NOT)
From MichiganVotes.org:
2010 House Bill 6274 and 6275 (Allow Detroit pension funds to loan to city)
Introduced by Rep. Bettie Scott (D) on June 22, 2010, to allow the Detroit police, fire and other employee pension funds to lend up to 20 percent of their assets to the city at a discounted interest rate.
Referred to the House Banking and Financial Services Committee on June 22, 2010. … more
2010 House Bill 6274 and 6275 (Allow Detroit pension funds to loan to city)
Introduced by Rep. Bettie Scott (D) on June 22, 2010, to allow the Detroit police, fire and other employee pension funds to lend up to 20 percent of their assets to the city at a discounted interest rate.
Referred to the House Banking and Financial Services Committee on June 22, 2010. … more
You Can't Make This Stuff Up (MichiganVotes Edition)
Reportedly the bill was introduced after a Northern Michigan man who broadcasts the action at his bird feeder on his website was served with an arrest warrant by the Department of Natural Resources because deer sometimes are seen eating the fallen seeds. … more
Isn't Lottery Money Supposed to Be for Public Schools?
Lansing political newsletter MIRS News (subscription required) reports that some legislators are steamed about a decision by state Lottery Commissioner Scott Bowen — a former Grand Rapids city council member — to burn $40,000 in lottery money that otherwise would be available to fund public schools by giving it to Grand Rapids for a fireworks display. The Lottery Commissioner serves "at the pleasure of the governor," so this one may well be looking for work starting next January. Bowen unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination as Attorney General candidate in 2006, and has been mentioned as a potential candidate for the state Senate or Congress. … more
'Administration of a Tax': The Big Lie Behind Government Secrecy on State Corporate Welfare Checks
Ms. Granholm, tear down this wall of government secrecy! … more
Legislature to Tea Party's Unfunded Liability Concerns: "Whatever"
The Michigan Senate is poised to pass House Bill 5241, which would boost the pensions of approximately 50 Michigan State Police retired command officers by $530 to $760 annually, costing taxpayers some $800,000 over a 25-year period. The bill has already passed the House in a 107 to 0 vote. … more
Film Subsidy Rationale Revealed: Pixie Dust!
It's hard to find a reputable, independent economist willing to argue that transferring millions of tax dollars from households and businesses to filmmakers is a rational, plausible economic development strategy. Most scratch their heads at a program that pays 42 percent of the expense of producers who make a movie here and 25 percent to developers who install a film production facility. … more
Analysis: 'Jungle Primary' Proposal Won’t Get Michigan Out of the Woods
Efforts to break the political stranglehold by rearranging the institutional furniture at best consumes energy better spent striking at the real root of our problems. … more
'Jungle Primary' Proposal Won’t Get Michigan Out of the Woods
Efforts to break the political stranglehold by rearranging the institutional furniture at best consumes energy better spent striking at the real root of our problems. … more
Blowing the Lid off Film Subsidy Duplicity
The Grand Rapids Press has captured the essence of what concerns people about a potential $10 million taxpayer subsidy for the investors in the "Hangar42" film studio project that Gov. Jennifer Granholm has boasted of. The 25 percent "capital investment" subsidy is based on a $40 million purchase price for the property claimed by the deal's promoter. The same building, however, was listed for sale at just $9.8 million as late as February. … more
Clear the Farms to Promote Hunting and Gathering?
The definition of progress seems to be moving backward in this state. It used to be that structures erected on property were called "improvements." Yet last week, the Michigan Senate passed a package of bills authorizing property tax breaks for "urban agriculture" in Detroit. … more
MIRS Reports Huron Valley Schools Super Paid More Than $400k in Final Year of Employment
"I question which individuals and bodies are responsible for this use of tax dollars and whether the Legislature and the public are aware that this is happening. Given the considerable concern over public expenditures in the current economic climate, I believe the facts of this case signal a need for legislative scrutiny." … more
'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Michigan Film Office
The Michigan Film Office makes a breathtakingly broad claim of official government secrecy regarding a massive taxpayer money giveaway program, especially one that has proven in other states to be fertile ground for corruption. … more
The Right's Partisan Oil Spill 'Gotchas' Misguided and Counterproductive
It's pure mindless partisanship, and merely promotes the ideological hubris that Big Government (and the president) is God and and fix any problem. It (and he) are not: As Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said in quote repeated in the Wall Street Journal, "The government doesn't have everything we need to solve this problem." … more
New Type of "Renaissance Zone": Real Estate Development Bailout Zones
From MichiganVotes.org:
2010 House Bill 6180 (Create "uncompleted subdivision" renaissance tax break zones)
Introduced by Rep. Jim Slezak (D) on May 18, 2010,to authorize the extensive tax breaks and exemptions of a “renaissance zone” for up to 10 particular subdivisions started before the subprime/housing crash, that benefited from a local property tax special assessment levied to pay debt service on money borrowed by the local government to build infrastructure for the subdivision, and which now are only 20 percent completed. “Renaissance zone” status means that businesses and individuals within the zone are essentially exempt from all state and local taxes. See also House Bill 6181, which creates a state revolving loan fund to bail out the local governments that aren't collecting the special assessment revenue they were counting on to pay the debt on the infrastructure projects. The bill is cosponsored by Reps. McDowell, Denby, Rogers, Marleau, Walsh and Daley. … more
2010 House Bill 6180 (Create "uncompleted subdivision" renaissance tax break zones)
Introduced by Rep. Jim Slezak (D) on May 18, 2010,to authorize the extensive tax breaks and exemptions of a “renaissance zone” for up to 10 particular subdivisions started before the subprime/housing crash, that benefited from a local property tax special assessment levied to pay debt service on money borrowed by the local government to build infrastructure for the subdivision, and which now are only 20 percent completed. “Renaissance zone” status means that businesses and individuals within the zone are essentially exempt from all state and local taxes. See also House Bill 6181, which creates a state revolving loan fund to bail out the local governments that aren't collecting the special assessment revenue they were counting on to pay the debt on the infrastructure projects. The bill is cosponsored by Reps. McDowell, Denby, Rogers, Marleau, Walsh and Daley. … more
'Why would investors allocate capital in a state that deprives them of their rights?'
"If the Michigan Legislature is going to interfere to deprive shareholders of the option to remove directors of public companies domiciled in Michigan whenever their boards are challenged, why would investors allocate capital in a state that deprives them of their rights?"
Press Release from Biglari Holdings, as reported by MIRS News
Maybe the lawmakers who voted "yes" on 2010 Senate Bill 1174, now Public Act 61 of 2010, have an answer: Senate Roll Call Vote, House Roll Call Vote.
The bill changed the rules of corporate governance in the middle of the game so as to benefit the politically well connected president of a Michigan insurance company against the will of a majority of the shareholders. Legislators may not know how to respond Bigliari's question ("We're sorry?"), but these comments from Larry the Liquidator suggest that he and other investors will know: … more
Press Release from Biglari Holdings, as reported by MIRS News
Maybe the lawmakers who voted "yes" on 2010 Senate Bill 1174, now Public Act 61 of 2010, have an answer: Senate Roll Call Vote, House Roll Call Vote.
The bill changed the rules of corporate governance in the middle of the game so as to benefit the politically well connected president of a Michigan insurance company against the will of a majority of the shareholders. Legislators may not know how to respond Bigliari's question ("We're sorry?"), but these comments from Larry the Liquidator suggest that he and other investors will know: … more
Opinion: 'Evil Party and Stupid Party' at Work on School Pension Reform
There are good reasons why so many Americans are disgusted by the current state of politics, and a story in today's MichiganCapitolConfidential.com captures many of them. It describes progress in the Legislature of a modest school employee pension reform proposed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Here's the gist: Most Democratic and many Republican lawmakers are self-interestedly serving the system, not the people.… more
Michigan Pension Fund Shortfall $11.5 Billion, Not $51.3 Billion
News reports often refer to the larger figure in the headline as the amount of underfunding in Michigan state and school employee pension funds. … more
'Detroitification' Threatens Los Angeles — and Michigan Public Schools
Los Angeles' looming bankruptcy was caused by the same process of "Detroitification" that plagues Michigan: A political class progressively hollowing out the private economy to prop up the perks and privileges of an unsustainable government establishment. … more
MEA Wounds Governor’s School Pension Reform
This year, Gov. Jennifer Granholm proposed requiring that school and state employees contribute an additional 3 percent of their pay into their traditional "defined benefits" pension fund, in return for a 6.6 percent early retirement pension benefit "sweetener." This week, the House of Representatives passed its version of the proposal, Senate Bill 1227, which was loaded down with "poison pills" and costly giveaways to unionized school employees, presumably extracted by the politically powerful Michigan Education Association union. These may cause the measure to actually increase school expenses over time, even with the higher employee contributions. … more
Mackinac Center Policy Staff Discuss 'Texting While Driving' Ban
Today the Michigan House of Representatives is expected to take up the Senate version of legislation that would create a specific new "driving while texting" traffic offense. The measure had already passed the House with an important provision that was stripped out by the Republican-controlled Senate: It now would be a "primary" offense, meaning a driver could be stopped just because a police officer sees him or her texting.
With a secondary-offense only provision, I would be agnostic on the ban and not view it as per se unreasonable in the way of seatbelt or motorcycle helmet mandates, which infringe on my right to wrack my own body as I see fit (but not others').
So I asked my Mackinac Center colleagues whether I have turned into a squish on nanny-statism. … more
So I asked my Mackinac Center colleagues whether I have turned into a squish on nanny-statism. … more
Analysis: Fewer 'Shell-Shocked' Financial Panic Survivors at 2010 Tea Parties
As mentioned in a related article published in Michigan Capitol Confidential ("Analysis: What's Next for Michigan Tea Parties?" April 20), although Tea Party rallies held across the state and nation last week had mixed results in turnout, the movement itself appears strong, according to recent polls, including a Rasmussen one showing that 24 percent of U.S. voters now say they consider themselves a part of the Tea Party movement.
My own observations at several Tea Parties suggest that whatever the exact attendance figures, there appear to have been far fewer of those "shell-shockedm" middle-aged, middle-class people who swelled the turnout a year ago, and who described themselves as being frightened at was happening in Washington, and had never previously been involved in any political activities. … more
My own observations at several Tea Parties suggest that whatever the exact attendance figures, there appear to have been far fewer of those "shell-shockedm" middle-aged, middle-class people who swelled the turnout a year ago, and who described themselves as being frightened at was happening in Washington, and had never previously been involved in any political activities. … more
Analysis: What's Next for Michigan Tea Parties?
Tax Day Tea Party rallies were held across the state and nation last week, with mixed results in turnout. Regardless of the exact attendance, the movement represents a potent new force on the American political landscape. Its leaders and members are currently focused on changing the composition of Congress in November, but their real challenge will be finding ways after the election to pressure the political class — especially Republicans — to stick to the fiscal restraint promises made in the heat of the campaign. … more
Analysis — 'Up North' Grass Roots v. MI GOP Establishment: Echoes of 1992 in Stupak Seat Race
In 1992, incumbent Republican Congressman Bob Davis chose not to run for re-election in the Michigan 1st District because he was one of the top five politicians implicated in the House “check kiting“ scandal. Davis had represented the district covering the northern Lower Peninsula and the entire Upper Peninsula since 1978. Poor decisions made then by a state Republican establishment alienated many grass roots “true believers” in the district, opening the door for a former one-term Democrat state Representative, who won and went on to an 18-year Congressional career.
Fast forward to 2010: The 1st District seat has once again become open due to a misstep by the incumbent, that once little-known Democrat who won the seat in 1992. His name, of course, is Bart Stupak, and the misstep was his vote in favor of President Barack Obama’s health care bill. And once again, members of the Republican establishment are making moves that could diminish grass roots support for the party’s eventual candidate in the November general election, potentially leading to the ascension of yet another Democrat “dynasty” in the 1st District. … more
Fast forward to 2010: The 1st District seat has once again become open due to a misstep by the incumbent, that once little-known Democrat who won the seat in 1992. His name, of course, is Bart Stupak, and the misstep was his vote in favor of President Barack Obama’s health care bill. And once again, members of the Republican establishment are making moves that could diminish grass roots support for the party’s eventual candidate in the November general election, potentially leading to the ascension of yet another Democrat “dynasty” in the 1st District. … more
Analysis: Government Employee Political Clout Obstructs Budget Reform
The Legislature returns today after a two-week break to take up perhaps the greatest challenge facing state government since 1983: an estimated $1.5 billion budget shortfall. Making this all the more difficult is the apparent inability of lawmakers to adopt what most struggling private-sector workers and small-business owners view as modest reductions in state employee pay and benefits. That failure was highlighted in three separate events just before the break. … more
New Research Suggests 'Reforming' Rather Than Closing Failing Schools a Forlorn Hope
To make the state eligible for $400 million in federal "Race to the Top" grants, last December the Michigan Legislature passed a package of school reforms, one of which creates a state "school reform/redesign officer" and office in the Department of Education, with the authority to take over the management of 5 percent of the lowest achieving public schools statewide. The office would then implement one of four strategies specified in the RTTT guidelines: a "turnaround" model, a "restart" model, a "transformation" model or a "school closure" model.
A new report from the Brookings Institution suggests that the state should rely primarily on the last, "school closure." … more
A new report from the Brookings Institution suggests that the state should rely primarily on the last, "school closure." … more
Let the Sun Shine In
This week, the Michigan House and Senate are both holding hearings on the Michigan Economic Development Corp. after a convicted embezzler on parole duped the Michigan Economic Growth Authority into offering his company a $9.1 million tax credit. The real issue they should examine is not whether the occasional criminal wins an "incentive" deal, but the lack of transparency that characterizes this entire operation. … more
Legislature's Most Persistent Targeted-Incentives Booster to Run Hearings on Embezzler's Tax-Break Deal
In the wake of the news that the Michigan Economic Growth Authority awarded a $9 million tax break/subsidy deal to what appears to be a "shell" company created by a convicted embezzler, Sen. Jason Allen, R-Traverse City, has been assigned the task of managing Senate hearings on the vetting procedures used by MEGA and its parent agency, the Michigan Economic Development Corp. During his 11 years in the Legislature, Allen has become perhaps the most ardent promoter and defender of selective tax breaks and subsidies for particular firms and industries. Since 2001, Allen has introduced at least 60 bills in this category, many of them thinly disguised favors benefiting specific companies. Here are concise descriptions of a selection of these bills, from MichiganVotes.org: … more
This Just In: Spending More on Higher Education Hurts, Not Helps, State Economy
The state higher-education establishment and its lobbyists argue that spending more tax dollars on their system will improve Michigan's economy.
The very latest research on this issue, performed not by self-serving beneficiaries of government spending, but by disinterested scholars, finds that "increased spending on higher education generally exhibits a relatively large negative effect" on a state's economy. … more
The very latest research on this issue, performed not by self-serving beneficiaries of government spending, but by disinterested scholars, finds that "increased spending on higher education generally exhibits a relatively large negative effect" on a state's economy. … more
"Fighting for School Reforms" — Against Whom?
The Michigan Education Association is taking heat even from some of its friends in the media because of the state's failure to qualify for $400 million in competitive "Race to the Top" federal grants. The blame game is afoot, but perhaps the the most curious comment on the exercise comes from the Democratic Speaker of the House, Rep. Andy Dillon: "House Democrats were fighting for major education reforms long before Race to the Top entered the picture." Fighting against whom? … more
I'm Just a Bill Constitutional Amendment
Since December members of the Legislature have proposed 13 amendments to the Michigan Constitution. To become law these must garner a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, and then be approved by voters at the next general election. … more
Michigan Rolling in Dough? Gives Out Raises, Plus Millions in Tourism Subsidies
Two votes in the state Senate on Wednesday may cause residents to question how seriously lawmakers are treating the need to restrain government spending. The first vote was on a resolution rejecting a government employee pay hike. (See previous post on this site.) The second measure would spend $9.5 million on tourism subsidies in the form of advertisements paid for by taxpayers. This despite the fact that the main beneficiaries this spending have explicitly rejected using their own money to pay for the ads, as reported by the Mackinac Center's Michael LaFaive. … more
The Plain Language of the Law: Senate Fails to Reject Government Pay Hike
Excerpts from Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 35, which would have rejected a 3 percent state government employee pay hike for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, 2010:
(Roll Call Vote Details here.) … more
(Roll Call Vote Details here.) … more
"Larry the Liquidator" on Senate Bill 1174
2010 Senate Bill 1174 (Rewrite corporate takeover rules for particular insurance company)
Introduced by Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom (R) on February 25, 2010, to rewrite the rules for corporate acquisitions so as to raise obstacles to the acquisition of a controlling interest in the Fremont Insurance Company (which is located in the district of the bill sponsor) by the Indianapolis-based Steak and Shake Corporation. Specifically, the bill would require a two-thirds supermajority of shareholders to vote in favor of the sale if the current board of directors opposes being taken over.
Larry the Liquidator shares his thoughts. … more
Introduced by Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom (R) on February 25, 2010, to rewrite the rules for corporate acquisitions so as to raise obstacles to the acquisition of a controlling interest in the Fremont Insurance Company (which is located in the district of the bill sponsor) by the Indianapolis-based Steak and Shake Corporation. Specifically, the bill would require a two-thirds supermajority of shareholders to vote in favor of the sale if the current board of directors opposes being taken over.
Larry the Liquidator shares his thoughts. … more
Employment Creation in Michigan Illustrates the Ineffectiveness of the State's Incentives
The latest Business Employment Dynamics numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that from the third quarter of 2008 through the second quarter of 2009, 778,025 jobs were created in Michigan and 1,144,655 jobs disappeared. Among other things, the figures starkly illustrate just how ineffective the state's economic incentive programs are. … more
I Was "Just a Bill," But Now About to Be a Law!
From MichiganVotes.org:
2009 House Bill 5567 (Grant property tax breaks to a particular subdivision)
2009 House Bill 5567 (Grant property tax breaks to a particular subdivision)
- Introduced by Rep. Woodrow Stanley (D) on October 29, 2009, to extend "Neighborhood Enterprise Zone" property tax breaks to the University Park Estates subdivision in Flint, which is less than 10 years old, and is in a "renaissance zone" whose tax-exempt status is expiring soon. Under current law, these particular NEZ tax breaks are for subdivisions built before 1968. They cut the owner's local property tax liability on the structure in half.
- Passed in the House (89 to 18) on December 8, 2009. [Roll Call Vote, Yeas and Nays]
- Passed in the Senate (38 to 0) on February 23, 2010. [Roll Call Vote, Yeas and Nays]
We’re Just Some Bills
Just a few of the 65 bills introduced in the Michigan House in the past couple weeks, as described by MichiganVotes.org: … more
School, Government Employee Unions Drain Their Host
When Doug Pratt and other government union officials talk about raising taxes, what they're really saying is, "You can take a hit to your income and economic security, but don't even think about asking my politically powerful troops to give up a penny of their pay and bennies (including full health coverage for age-50-something retirees). And we have the power to make it stick." … more
