LANSING - The Michigan Senate did not meet the March 7 deadline to pass legislation calling for a statewide vote in the May election that would increase or change the distribution of the sales tax to put more money toward funding the state's roads, but there is still the potential for a special election or
LANSING - Whether the state will be able to use Natural Resources Trust Fund grants to pay for dredging projects appears to hedge on the Legislature's latitude in defining development. Legislation discussed Thursday in the Senate Outdoor Recreation Committee (SB 229 ) would define dredging as a development activity and allow the trust fund board
LANSING- The Michigan Economic Development Corporation Thursday announced the application deadline is April 26 for the Downtown Development Planning Grant program. The program is aimed at helping Michigan non-entitlement communities develop plans to increase the viability to improve a property, create economic opportunities to revitalize and stimulate job creation and investment within the downtown. ?Improving
LANSING- Governor Rick Snyder said if employers and workers are agreeing to contract extensions prior to the right-to-work law taking effect March 28 without "significant economic benefit," it would concern him. Speaking with reporters after an event Wednesday, Snyder was asked about Republican legislators threatening to punish school districts and public universities in the appropriations
LANSING - Macomb Chief Circuit Judge David Viviano will become Michigan's 108th Supreme Court Justice after he was named Wednesday by Governor Rick Snyder to succeed disgraced former Justice Diane Hathaway. Viviano, 41, was praised by Snyder for being a "rule of law" judge - "which is critically important" - and for playing a major
LANSING - Those released on bail for certain crimes could be required to wear a tracking device and the state's drunken driving law would remain as it is under legislation reported Wednesday from the House Criminal Justice Committee. Anyone charged with an assaultive crime could be required to wear a geosynchronous positioning system-based tracking device
LANSING - The statewide 4-year graduation rates for Michigan students expected to graduate last spring increased to 76.24 percent, up 1.9 percent from the 2011 rate of 74.33 percent, according to data released Wednesday by the Michigan Center for Educational Performance and Information. ?These numbers reflect the highest rates we have seen since we started
LANSING - Governor Rick Snyder's proposal to increase the gasoline tax and vehicle registration fees is not likely to see any traction the Senate, but the idea of an increase in those areas in a different form is still open for debate. Snyder has proposed increasing the fuel tax to 33 cents per gallon from
LANSING - The Michigan Economic Development Corporation has not issued any credit certificates for either the cell manufacturing tax credit nor the MEGA tax credit awarded to LG Chem Michigan in 2009, though technically LG Chem has not yet filed for them. "LG Chem Michigan was awarded cell manufacturing and MEGA tax credits for its
LANSING - Michigan's election systems and performance scored well in a study by Pew Charitable Trusts, which placed the state sixth in the nation when measuring categories like ease of voting, accuracy of systems and completeness of data. The study reviewed the election performance of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Wisconsin scored