LANSING - There is no question that federal stimulus funds spent in the state have been effective, the head of Michigan's recovery office told a Senate subcommittee Wednesday. Republican members of the Senate Appropriations Stimulus Oversight Subcommittee questioned how effective the first round of monies issued and spent under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment
LANSING - Legislation that is part of a package of bills expanding the Michigan Economic Growth Authority credits and providing more transparency finally won final passage Thursday from the Michigan Senate. The Senate relented to the House's insistence on removing a credit for a company creating part-time jobs in passing HB 4922 on a 30-4
LANSING - The current state of the Michigan Business Tax is what legislators enacted, not anything the Department of Treasury created, Treasurer Robert Kleine said in response to recent legislator comments. Sen. Wayne Kuipers (R-Holland) recently told Gongwer News Service that he would not have voted for the MBT as it is being implemented by
LANSING - Encouraged by the Senate's action to eliminate the surcharge on the Michigan Business Tax, some of the largest business groups in the state called on the House to follow the Senate and approve the three-year phase-out. And responding to criticism that the action by the Senate in SB 838 helped businesses at the
LANSING - State and local government in Michigan rely on property taxes more than other states to fund operations, a study released by the national organization the Tax Foundation said. In fact, Michigan is the sixth most reliant state on property taxes in the nation. In contrast, the state relies less heavily on income, general
LANSING - If the state ends up adopting a 2009-10 budget on the lines of that adopted last week by the Legislature, it would go into the 2010-11 budget with a potential general fund deficit of $782.9 million, a memo from the Senate Fiscal Agency said. And to keep the state at that general fund
ANN ARBOR - Business executive Rick Snyder has taken plenty of risks and had success when others deemed his task undoable. That attitude, one of a venture capitalist that sees an investment where others see failure, instead of the thinking that comes with a long career in politics, is one of the biggest reasons Snyder
LANSING - Some of the projects funded with federal stimulus money could come to a halt along with the end of the state's wetlands program, officials confirmed Thursday. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 Acting Director Bharat Mathur urged the state to keep operating its program for at least a few months, even if the
LANSING - Col. James Braden, project manager of the Robotics Systems Joint Project Office at the U.S. Army Tacom Life Cycle Management Command, will soon become director of the Michigan Economic Development Corp. Defense Contract Coordination Center, replacing former Marine General Bradley Lott. The news reportedly came from State Sen. Valde Garcia, who made the
LANSING �?? Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox offered a 92-point blueprint Tuesday on how he would improve Michigan should he win the 2010 governor's race, saying he would cut the income and business taxes while also wrangling savings from government employee benefits. Cox, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination amid a crowded field, said
