LANSING - A plan passed by the House to fund the Pure Michigan advertising campaign through assumed increased revenue in sales tax collections that come from tourism-related expenditures is faulty, the lead senator on tax policy said Thursday. Sen. Nancy Cassis (R-Novi), chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said sales tax revenues continue to decline
LANSING - Attorney General Mike Cox moved toward claiming frontrunner status in the Republican gubernatorial race as campaign finance reports filed Monday reflecting fundraising activity in 2009 showed him dominating in donations and leading the field in cash on hand. Cox's fundraising - he raised $1.83 million and had $1.47 million on hand - combined
LANSING - When Gov. Jennifer Granholm delivers her final State of the State address to the Legislature and a live television audience, she will face the challenge of meshing her proposals for 2010, framing her legacy and expressing gratitude to her family and staff, said Gleaves Whitney, former Governor John Engler's long-time speechwriter. "A farewell
LANSING - Michigan's entire congressional delegation has signed a letter to three key federal officials urging rapid completion of a plan to keep the Asian carp out of the Great Lakes. The letter came out at the end of the week that saw the U.S. Supreme Court refuse to take a case calling for locks
LANSING - After nearly a year of reviewing a proposal to add a high-speed railway that would travel between Detroit and Lansing, workgroup members announced on Tuesday that they would urge the Legislature to go ahead with the proposal, although not without cautionary notes. Chair of the Interstate Traveler Taskforce, Rep. Bill Rogers (R-Brighton), said
LANSING - Senate Republicans placed a bull's-eye Tuesday on public employee pay and benefits as the centerpiece of their efforts to restructure the cost of government, calling for government workers to take a 5 percent pay cut and pay 20 percent of their health insurance premiums. The sweeping plan, which would accomplish the pay cut
LANSING - Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder said Wednesday that if elected he would replace the Michigan Business Tax with a 6 percent flat corporate income tax, "untying the hands of job creators" by slashing their tax burden by an estimated $1.5 billion annually. Snyder said that while his plan would raise much less than
LANSING ? Michigan lawmakers wrapped up a flurry of legislation in December, but bills from taxes to texting while driving and out-of-state trash still await members when they return next week. Taxes will likely be a huge focus in the New Year given the state's loss of hundreds of millions in federal stimulus dollars in
LANSING - As Governor Jennifer Granholm signed legislation Monday designed to make the state eligible for as much as $400 million in federal grants, state union officials were urging caution to their local districts being asked to agree to related reforms. The legislation was a part of the application for federal "Race to the Top"
LANSING - Schools will have to live with the cuts approved in the 2009-10 budget, but they may not see the pro-ration cuts Gov. Jennifer Granholm had issued shortly after the budget was signed. But the state is also going to have to look again at its tax system to be sure schools and other