LANSING - Energy companies have no authority to compel the Department of Environmental Quality to use their preferred permit requirements, the Court of Appeals said Wednesday in an unpublished decision that put Midland Cogeneration Venture power company on the losing end of a case it filed against the DEQ. Midland Cogeneration originally won its plea
LANSING - With Governor Jennifer Granholm's signatures Wednesday, Michigan became the last state to ratify the Great Lakes Compact and arguably became the first of the Great Lakes states to fully implement the proposal to limit withdrawals from the basin. With all eight states now on board, the language has to be adopted by Congress
WASHINGTON - In an extraordinary move, the Bush administration plans to publish a document Friday listing various ways to control global-warming gases, while simultaneously disavowing the document's conclusions and warning that new regulations could lead to a ?command-and-control? regime covering a broad range of commercial and household activities, including factories and power plants but also
MIDLAND - Rohm & Haas Co. has agreed to be bought by Dow Chemical Co. in an all-cash deal of $15.3 billion, signaling a consolidation wave in the chemicals industry may be afoot. And as part of the deal, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. will buy $3 billion in convertible preferred securities, with the Kuwait Investment Authority
LANSING - With an anticipated fight over whether the controversial Reform Michigan Government Now! ballot proposal appears on the November ballot, both sides are preparing with some of the top names in political and legal consulting in the state. How a fight will proceed is still somewhat speculative because the formal process to determine if
LANSING - One hundred twelve proposals seeking $475.7 million were submitted to the Michigan Economic Development Corp. in the spring 2008 round of the 21st Century Jobs Fund. Trouble is, only $30 million is available from the state, making the selection process very rigorous. The biggest determining factor will be the ability of the applicant
ANN ARBOR - U.S. companies that offshore customer service may save money on labor costs, but they also pay the price in terms of unhappy customers, University of Michigan researchers contend. "Firms are increasingly offshoring front-office functions such as customer service call centers and back-office functions such as information technology to manage their operations and
LANSING - Reform Michigan Government Now! filed just shy of 500,000 signatures Monday with the Department of State, and already some of the state's top constitutional and elections lawyers are looking for holes that could keep the issue off the ballot. Though no committee has been formed to oppose the measure that would make a
LANSING - Though recent legislative action leaves their place in question, alternative energy suppliers are still pushing to maintain a place in Michigan's electric market. In particular, that place appears to be in renewable power. Members of the Customer Choice Coalition, at a media roundtable Wednesday, urged legislators when they return in two weeks to
LANSING - The state has created a web site to help consumers find ways to save money on commuting, household energy use, college tuition, health care and other avenues as food and gas prices eat up a greater share of household income, said Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who also said the state should consider lowering the