Michigan Supreme Court Wrong on FOIA
WJSM in Benton Harbor, MIRS and the Lansing State Journal are reporting that the Michigan Supreme Court let stand a lower court’s ruling in a key case involving the Freedom of Information Act. … more
Annual Missed Votes Report from MichiganVotes.org
The Detroit Free Press and The Saginaw News both reported on the “Missed Votes Report” assembled by MichiganVotes.org. There were 23 legislators who did not miss a vote during the 2009-2010 session, and 18 who missed more than 100 votes each. … more
Show and Tell
Putting more information online and requiring fewer written reports would help increase Michigan government’s transparency and accountability, according to one Mackinac Center analyst. … more
Editorial Cites Center Analyst on Teacher Insurance
Today’s Detroit News editorial cites research by Mike Van Beek, education policy director, regarding teacher health insurance plans, saying “All teachers will have to contribute to the costs of their health care benefits to help (the) state recover.” … more
When Is an Emergency Not an Emergency?
St. Clair County fire departments that want firefighters to accompany ambulances on nonemergency medical calls will end up straining already fragile budgets, Fiscal Policy Director Mike LaFaive told the Port Huron Times Herald. … more
Center Suing Kent County Schools, Unions Over 'No-Privatization' Contract Language
The Grand Rapids Press and WOOD-TV are reporting that the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation will file a lawsuit against the Kent County Intermediate School District, nine other school districts and several Michigan Education Association union affiliates over “no-privatization” language included in collective bargaining agreements. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of five Kent County taxpayers. … more
Privatize the University of Michigan?
AnnArbor.com is reporting that a budget document that discusses potential ways to cut state spending includes a recommendation to “privatize University of Michigan over 5 years.” Mackinac Center analysts recommended the same thing six years ago. … more
Center Analyst Addressed MEA Pay
Education Policy Director Mike Van Beek was a guest today on “The Frank Beckmann Show” on WJR AM760, where he discussed the expanding payroll of the Michigan Education Association teachers union. … more
Columnist Cites Center Study on Union Disclosure
A columnist in The Washington Examiner Sunday cited a 2004 Mackinac Center study that showed only 42 percent of union members believed that union funds are spent “helping workers get better pay, benefits and working conditions.” … more
Blueprint for Success
Senior Environmental Analyst Russ Harding wrote an Op-Ed that appeared in The Oakland Press today, outlining the points made in his new study titled “Environmental Regulation in Michigan: A Blueprint for Reform.” … more
Bid for Support, Planning Ahead, Par for the Course
WNEM TV-5 and The Saginaw News have picked up Kathy Hoekstra’s discovery that the Saginaw-based company GlobalWatt is far from on-track to fulfill its job-creation promises but is instead reselling India-made solar panels on eBay. … more
An Appealing Appeal
The Detroit News and other media outlets have reported on the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation’s appeal Wednesday of the day care unionization case to the Michigan Supreme Court. … more
Teacher Tenure Law Needs Changed
Jarrett Skorup, research associate for online engagement, was a guest today on “The Ron Jolly Show” on WTCM-AM1270 in Traverse City, where he discussed an article he recently wrote for Michigan Capitol Confidential about teacher tenure reform. … more
Harding Addresses Regulatory Concerns
Senior Environmental Analyst Russ Harding was interviewed on Michigan Public Radio today about the state’s regulatory regime and its negative impact on business. … more
Editorial: End PLAs
An editorial in The Detroit News calls for Gov.-elect Rick Snyder to issue an executive order after taking office that would put an end to project labor agreements, which use a tactic that drives up prices for government construction projects due to the “prevailing wage.” … more
Overton Window Cited by Columnist
A column in The Oakland Press talks about the role of the “Overton Window of Political Possibility” as it relates to tax cuts and federal spending. … more
Property Rights Come in Many Forms
Property rights ranging from natural gas recovery to urban development are the focus of two recent media citations for Mackinac Center analysts. … more
Government Spending Over Par, Overpriced
Michael LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, was cited in two separate stories Saturday about fiscal irresponsibility at the local government level. … more
Littmann: Don't Extend Unemployment Payments
Senior Economist David Littmann told the Detroit Free Press and Lansing State Journal that an extension of federal unemployment payments will not help the economy. … more
Center Analyst Debunks School Funding Myths
Education Policy Director Michael Van Beek authored Op-Eds on school funding myths, including the claim that public school funding is “unstable,” that appeared recently in The Oakland Press. … more
Littmann: Hold Fed Accountable
Senior Economist David Littmann recently wrote in a Detroit News Op-Ed about the need to hold the Federal Reserve Board accountable for the damage it has done to the American economy. … more
Jack McHugh Cited on 'Political Careerists'
A Lansing State Journal editorial today calling for term limit reforms cites Senior Legislative Analyst Jack McHugh, who wrote after the Nov. 2 elections that 86 percent of new legislators are already “political careerists.” … more
Hohman: State Employee Pay, Benefits Costly
Governor-elect Rick Snyder will have to sort through “conflicting information” as he attempts to convince state employees to scale back wages and benefits that are out of line with the private sector, according to an article in MiTechNews.com that originally appeared in the Gongwer News Service. … more
Harding: Regulatory Reform Needed
An Op-Ed in Sunday’s Lansing State Journal by Russ Harding, senior environmental analyst, highlights the points he has made in a new study titled “Environmental Regulation in Michigan: A Blueprint for Reform.” … more
Editorial: Reform Teacher Pay, Benefits
A Detroit News editorial Sunday said that merit pay for public school teachers would “connect pay more closely to the quality of instruction, but also said that teacher benefits is a “better place to find cost savings,” and urged teachers and their unions to lead the reform. … more
Rothwells Good Choice for Snyder, LaFaive Says
Sharon and Doug Rothwell, former Engler administration veterans with corporate experience, are a good choice to head up Gov.-elect Rick Snyder’s transition team, Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, told the Detroit Free Press recently. … more
Editorials Draw From Michigan Capitol Confidential
Editorials in both the Port Huron Times-Herald and Livingston Daily Press & Argus about the changes in the Michigan Legislature due to term limits cite research by Senior Legislative Analyst Jack McHugh that first appeared in Michigan Capitol Confidential. … more
School Transparency Laws Finally Catching Up With Mackinac Center Analysts' Research
Teacher salaries and school district spending transparency are the focus of two Detroit News articles today that rely on the expertise of Mackinac Center analysts. … more
Littmann on GM IPO
Senior Economist David Littmann is the primary source for a Detroit Free Press article today regarding GM’s IPO, saying it is in “fine shape.” … more
Hangar42 Investor in Court Today
The lead investor in the Hangar42 movie studio deal was in court today for a preliminary exam, according to The Grand Rapids Press. … more
Labor Files
Labor Policy Director Paul Kersey was a guest recently on "The Greg Marshall Show" on WMKT-AM1270 in Charlevoix, where he discussed how taxpayers foot the bill for public-sector union dues, the need for right-to-work protections in Michigan and how unions spend a fraction of the dues they take from workers on collective bargaining. … more
David Littmann on Gas Prices
David Littmann, senior economist at the Mackinac Center, is cited in The Detroit News today in a story about rising gasoline prices. … more
MSU Continues Plagiarism Investigation
Michigan State University continues to investigate potential plagiarism by one of its professors in a school consolidation study, according to the Student Free Press Association. … more
Minimum Wage Hypocrisy in Congress
Michigan Business Review reports on a recent Michigan Capitol Confidential story about members of Michigan's Congressional delegation who voted for an increase in the federal minimum wage law but offer unpaid internships in their offices. … more
Story Broken by Michigan Capitol Confidential Becomes Front-Page News in Lansing State Journal
A story Friday in Michigan Capitol Confidential about a CATA bus driver who made $140,000 last year provided the impetus for a front-page story Saturday in the Lansing State Journal. … more
Getting Railroaded?
There are renewed calls and more pressure in metro Detroit to build a light-rail from the Oakland County suburbs to downtown Detroit, according to The Detroit News. … more
Beast of Burden
Michigan's economy can recover if government places fewer burdens on business, Mackinac Center President Joseph G. Lehman told Fortune Magazine today. … more
GM IPO Raises Questions
As General Motors finalizes plans to begin selling stock again, questions surround the government takeover of the automaker that could affect the share price, according to David Littmann, senior economist. … more
DHS Funding Continues for Forced Unionization
Funding will continue in fiscal 2011 for the Michigan Department of Human Services to operate the Michigan Home Based Child Care Council, according to the Livingston Daily Press & Argus. … more
MEA Ignoring Membership
USA Today notes that a recent article in Michigan Education Digest reports that even though a high percentage of members consider themselves "conservative," the Michigan Education Association has endorsed Democrats in 111 of 114 races statewide. … more
Lehman Cited in National Review on Elections
Mackinac Center President Joseph Lehman is quoted in the November 2010 issue of National Review about the upcoming elections … more
Government Benefits Outpace Private Firms
A new study by Mackinac Center Adjunct Scholar Rick Dreyfuss shows the pension and retiree health care benefits given to public school and other state of Michigan public-sector employees are "out of line" with those offered in the private sector, according to MIRS Capitol Capsule. … more
How to Create Jobs
Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, suggests some alternatives for creating jobs after several years of government failure on that front in this Detroit Free Press Op-Ed. … more
GlobalWatt Finds Colorado Partner
A Saginaw company under fire for problems associated with its application for tax subsidies in Michigan says it will partner with a Colorado company on a solar module project, according to WJRT-TV 12 in Flint. … more
Con-Con: No Pros, Just Cons
Mackinac Center President Joe Lehman explains why a constitutional convention is not the answer to Michigan's fiscal, labor and regulatory problems in this Op-Ed in the Detroit Free Press today. … more
Fees and Thank You
This recent Michigan Capitol Confidential story by Managing Editor Ken Braun formed the basis for this editorial in The Detroit News. … more
L. Brooks Patterson at Center Event
Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson was the keynote speaker Thursday night at an event sponsored by the Mackinac Center in metro Detroit. … more
Center Files Motion in Forced Unionization Case
WPBN-WTOM Channels 7&4 in Traverse City is reporting that the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation has filed a motion for reconsideration with the Michigan Court of Appeals in an effort to end the illegal, forced unionization of home-based day care operators. … more
Lack of Transparency at MEDC, MEGA
The Washington Examiner and San Jose Mercury News both recently cited Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, about the need for transparency within government-run economic development programs. … more
Constitutional Convention Not the Answer
Voters who favor Proposal 1, calling for a constitutional convention, on the November ballot as a way to solve Michigan's problems are misdirecting their anger, according to a Mackinac Center analyst. … more
Beacon of Truth
In an Op-Ed in the St. Louis Beacon, Christine Harbin of the Missouri-based Show-Me Institute argued that "Tax credit programs are not as effective as advertised" and used Mackinac Center research to help make the case. … more
GlobalWatt Media Coverage Goes National; MEDC Gives Texas Different Story
Following up on a Mackinac Center investigation, the Corpus Christi Caller-Times reports that the Michigan Economic Development Corp. "didn't check [GlobalWatt's] claims" on its application for tax credits, despite the agency's insistence that it thoroughly vetted the company. … more
GR Press Cites Mackinac Center Study on Public School District Consolidation
A school district consolidation study done by Andrew Coulson, Mackinac Center adjunct fellow, was cited Thursday in The Grand Rapids Press. … more
Michigan FY 2011 Budget Ignores the Problem
A columnist in today's Detroit News cites research by Center scholars on the disparity between the wage increases in the public sector and wage decreases in the private sector in Michigan over the last decade. … more
Politician Embraces Center Idea
Tim Greimel, D-Auburn Hills, of the Oakland County Board of Commissioners recently wrote in an Op-Ed for The Oakland Press that he embraces the Mackinac Center's transparency initiative and wants Oakland County to post expenditures online. … more
Big Savings With School Contracting
The Oakland Press and Macomb Daily reported recently that school privatization of noninstructional services increased over last year. … more
Hangar 42 Issues Unresolved
Legal problems and a family squabble continue to surround the failed film studio known as Hangar42, according to The Grand Rapids Press. … more
Court of Appeals Dismisses Forced Unionization Case Again
The Michigan Court of Appeals for a second time dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation on behalf of three small-business owners who object to being forced into a union, according to the Livingston Daily Press & Argus. … more
Legislators Realizing Center Scholars Were Correct
Michigan lawmakers are considering a package of bills that would reverse an anti-competitive energy policy that Mackinac Center scholars warned about in a study more than two years ago, according to The Detroit News. … 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
Court of Appeals Must Explain Itself
The Michigan Supreme Court ruled unanimously Wednesday that the Michigan Court of Appeals must explain why it rejected a lawsuit regarding the forced unionization of small-business owners, according to the Detroit Free Press. … more
Bloated Public Sector Hurts Job Growth
Mackinac Center President Joseph G. Lehman addressed the disparity in benefits between the private and public sectors in Michigan as a main reason for the state's economic turmoil at the West Michigan Policy Forum Thursday, according to the West Michigan Business Review. … more
Lawsuit Over Forced Unionization Gets Green Light
A federal district judge in Grand Rapids has ruled that a class action lawsuit brought by the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation aimed at ending the forced unionization of small-business owners can proceed, according to The Grand Rapids Press. … more
Michigan School Privatization Up 8 Percent
WKZO AM590 in Kalamazoo and WSJM AM1400 in Lansing both report that privatization of support services in Michigan public schools is up 8 percent over last year. … more
'Jobs' Fund: More Funds Than Jobs?
A Lansing company that received $2 million in state subsidies three years ago is hoping to expand from 12 employees to 14, according to the Lansing State Journal. … more
Flint Transit Manager: MichCapCon Story 'Accurate'
The director of Flint's Mass Transit Authority disagrees with a recent Michigan Capitol Confidential analysis that shows that cities that buy zero-emission or hybrid buses pay too much money for any resulting environmental benefit, but still calls the story "accurate," according to The Flint Journal. … more
Plagiarism, Credibility Issues for MSU Study
A recent Michigan State University study about school consolidation should be ignored both because of plagiarism issues and because its methodology is flawed, according to an Op-Ed by Education Policy Director Michael Van Beek in Sunday's Lansing State Journal. … more
Worth the Wait?
In an article on a proposed three-day review period for legislation, The Grand Rapids Press cites Center Legislative Analyst Jack McHugh. … more
Free Press Column Riffs on The MC
A recent blog post by James Hohman, fiscal policy analyst, appears to be the impetus for a column in today's Detroit Free Press about job creation in Michigan. … more
Plagiarism Investigation Continues at MSU
A plagiarism investigation of a Michigan State University professor is ongoing, according to The State News. … more
Right-to-Work Is Right for Michigan
Radio host Ron Jolly of WTCM recently wrote about right-to-work protections for employees in the Traverse City Business News, explaining that making Michigan a right-to-work state would lure more job creators to the state while allowing unions to continue operating and organizing. … more
Schools Start to Comply With Transparency Law
Just more than half of the public school districts in Michigan are complying with a new state law aimed at providing better transparency of how tax dollars are spent. … more
State, National Media Report on Possible Plagiarism in MSU School Consolidation Study
State and national media are continuing to report that a school consolidation study commissioned by Booth Newspapers appears to include plagiarism. … more
MSU: 'Full Year' to Investigate Plagiarism Issue
Michigan State University officials said Thursday it could take "a full year" to review 13 pages in a school consolidation study that Mackinac Center analysts believe contain large amounts of plagiarized text, according to The Grand Rapids Press. … more
Center Analyst Alerts Grand Rapids Press to Possible Plagiarism in MSU Study on Which it Reported
The Grand Rapids Press is reporting that a Mackinac Center analyst has raised concerns about potential plagiarism in a Michigan State University professor's study about school consolidation. … more
FOIA Lawsuit Should Continue
The death of a the man who filed a lawsuit seeking copies of e-mails sent among union leaders on government-owned computers in Howell Public Schools should not mean an end to the case supporters say, according to The Detroit News. … more
Michigan Film Subsidy Program Shortcomings
An Op-Ed by Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, in today's Detroit Free Press highlights the failures and costs of Michigan's film subsidy program. … more
Center Analysts at Heart of School Funding Issues
School spending — an area of expertise for Mackinac Center analysts — continues to dominate the headlines. … more
This Economic Engine Needs a Tune-up
Michigan's business, labor and regulatory climate must change if the state's economy is going to recover, Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, explained today on "The Tony Conley Show" on WILS 1320AM in Lansing. … more
Explaining Why Public Schools Are 'Broke'
Michigan Public Radio recently turned to Education Policy Director Mike Van Beek to explain some of the issues surrounding funding for Michigan's public schools, which some seem to constantly claim are underfunded, despite evidence to the contrary. … more
Teachers Should Pay Fair Share of Health Care
Detroit Free Press columnist Stephen Henderson says Michigan needs the money that will come from the so-called 'edujobs' bill, but the state must also tackle the issue of school spending reform. … more
Governor, DHS Disagree on Small-Business Owners They Forced Into Union
Gov. Jennifer Granholm's office and the Department of Human Services appear to be at odds over the classification of some 40,000 small-business owners who were forced into a union. … more
Governor's Role in Forced Unionization Case
Patrick J. Wright, director of the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation, was a guest on "The Frank Beckmann Show" on WJR 760AM this morning, discussing recent findings that point directly to Gov. Jennifer Granholm's role in the forced unionization of more than 40,000 small-business owners. … more
Hangar42 Deal Shows Misguided Incentive Policies
The only way to avoid these problems in the future is to shut down the MEDC and the programs it administers. They don't work, are unfair and open to abuse. … more
Charges Filed in Film Studio Deal
The main investor in a Grand Rapids movie studio that applied for state film subsidy money has been charged with attempted felony false pretenses over $20,000, according to The Grand Rapids Press. … more
School Funding Myths Explored, Corrected
Paul W. Smith, who hosts a talk show from 5:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. weekdays on WJR 760AM, cited a commentary on school funding by Education Policy Director Mike Van Beek in his Detroit News column Saturday. … more
Michigan Capitol Confidential Stirs Radio Discussion
Stories in Michigan Capitol Confidential were the subject of recent radio interviews. … more
No Conversation Allowed
Some economic development officials are complaining of “collateral damage” from candidates and others who publicly discuss reining in Michigan’s generous array of targeted business subsidies and incentives. … more
We Report. They Decide
A recent Michigan Capitol Confidential story about driver license renewal for people with outstanding parking tickets was cited as the source of information for two different newspaper editorials. … more
Michael Moore Film Subsidy Blog Picked Up by Other Media
A recent blog post by Michael Jahr, senior director of communications, about Michael Moore accepting a Michigan film subsidy for a movie of his that railed against government subsidies was quickly picked up by other media, including The Michigan View at The Detroit News and The Houghton Lake Resorter. … more
