SELF-FUNDERS COULD MAKE SPLASH IN SENATE PRIMARIES

Probably 17 of the 29 Senate seats where no incumbent is running for re-election this year because of term limits will be decided in the August primary due to their strong Democratic or Republican lean, and campaign finance reports filed this week indicate self-funding candidates could be a force.

BERNERO TO MAKE ANNOUNCEMENT ON GOV. RUN MONDAY

Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero will visit Detroit, Grand Rapids and then Lansing on Monday to announce his decision on whether he will run for governor.

COULOURIS OFF TO D.C. FOR DOW LOBBY JOB

Rep. Andy Coulouris, who announced last month he would not seek a third and final term, went public this week with the news he is stepping down from office in May to take a job in Washington, D.C., as the public affairs manager for Dow Corning.

MINORITY CAUCUSES OUTRAISING MAJORITIES RARE

Since 2000, the number of times a minority caucus in the House has outraised its majority counterpart can be counted on two hands, according to a Gongwer News Service analysis.

MICH. SOMEWHAT READY FOR OFF-SHORE WIND DEVELOPMENT

The Michigan Great Lakes Wind Council is preparing draft legislation to strengthen the state's process for reviewing off-shore wind projects as one lawmaker already has a bill in the hopper placing a temporary moratorium on such developments.

PANEL URGES HOME-GROWN BUSINESSES

Governor Jennifer Granholm is pushing over the next year for a jobs initiative that would attract more business to the state, but a panel at a recent forum by the Michigan State University Institute for Public Policy and Social Research said the program should focus more on helping individuals start new businesses than on bringing in large operations from other states and countries.

SURVEY: S.O.S. LACKING DETAILS, HELP FOR DEMS

Governor Jennifer Granholm did not put nearly enough, particularly dollar figures, in her State of the State Address, and what she did have did not help Democrats in their hopes to retain her post in the November election, according to a poll released Friday by Denno-Noor Research in partnership with The Rossman Group and The Perricone Group.

COX, HOEKSTRA WORK TO BLOCK CARP

Attorney General Mike Cox and U.S. Rep. Peter Hoekstra both announced efforts this week to try to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes. Mr. Cox asked the U.S. Supreme Court for a rehearing of its decision last month to allow locks connecting the Chicago Sanitary and Shipping Canal to Lake Michigan to remain open. Mr. Hoekstra introduced federal legislation that would allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers supercede the state of Illinois in overseeing the region and the efforts to keep the invasive fish out of the lakes.

CITY UNEMPLOYMENT RATES FLUCTUATING

Highland Park and Pontiac still had unemployment rates of more than 30 percent in December, according to data kept by the Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth, but the rates were down from near stratospheric rates they endured during the summer of 2009.

CARP

In preparation for the summit between Governor Jennifer Granholm, President Barack Obama and other Midwest leaders regarding Asian carp in the Great Lakes, House Democrats have created a website calling for the Chicago locks to be closed ( http://www.noasiancarp.com ).

Source : Gongwer News Service : Michigan Report, Volume #49, Report 24, February 5, 2010. Full access requires a subscription or a visit to a subscribing library such as the Michigan State University Main Library.

STATE OUTLINES RULES ON NEW CORPORATE POLITICAL ACTIVITY

Corporations and unions wanting to make independent expenditures on behalf of political candidates still have to meet campaign filing and disclosure rules, the state said Thursday in posting an explanation of how the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United affects the Michigan Campaign Finance Act.

CASSIS PREPARING ALTERNATIVE PLAN TO FUND PURE MICHIGAN

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.

LEGISLATURE SENDS DETROIT BONDING BILL TO GRANHOLM

Detroit would be able to use long-term bonds to cover most of its accumulated $300 million deficit under a bill that cleared the Legislature on Thursday.

BERNERO TO MAKE DECISION ON RUNNING SOON

Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero is expected to make a decision soon on whether he will definitely run for the Democratic nomination for governor, and several sources said they expect his decision will be to go for the bid.

LOCAL BONDING FOR HOME ENERGY IMPROVEMENTS MULLED

Local units of government could issue bonds to pay for the energy efficiency improvements of residential and commercial properties under legislation being considered by the House Great Lakes and Environment Committee.

NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION BEGINS TO OUTLINE POWERS

At its first meeting under the new Department of Natural Resources and Environment, the Natural Resources Commission began to outline its authority, but also where it expected continued reports on issues and programs that might affect its authority.

SENATE OKS SECOND HORSE RIDING BILL

Despite criticism from Democrats and the Natural Resources Commission that the move jeopardizes federal money, the Republican-led Senate passed another bill Thursday that would direct the state to allow people to ride their horses on state trailways. The bill (HB 4610) passed 23-13 with three Democrats - Sen. Jim Barcia of Bay City, Sen. John Gleason of Flushing and Sen. Gretchen Whitmer of East Lansing - joining all 20 Republicans in attendance in support. Sen. Michael Switalski (D-Roseville) said the bill would jeopardize $25 million in federal money.

HOUSE OKS ROLLOUT OF S.O.S. BRANCH FUNDING

The $72.4 million appropriated in the current fiscal year for Department of State branch offices would be more detailed than the line item it is in the current budget under legislation quickly passed by the House on Thursday. The chamber discharged HB 5649 from the Appropriations Committee, where it was introduced in December, and immediately took a vote with the bill passing on a nearly party-line 65-41.

MORTGAGE FRAUD

The Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation had the website for Kenneth and Doyle Financial taken down this week as an unlicensed mortgage company and likely identity theft scam. Officials said there were several complaints filed about the site, http://www.kennethdoylefinancial.com , that spurred an investigation.

WAR OF 1812 BICENTENNIAL

Phil Porter, head of the Mackinac Island State Parks Commission, has been named by Rebecca Humphries, director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, as chair of Michigan's Bicentennial Commission for the Commemoration of the War of 1812. The commission, formed in 2008, is charged with encouraging, planning, and developing activities, events, programs, observances and services to commemorate Michigan's role in the War of 1812.

JURY SERVICE

Full-time college students could postpone serving on a jury while enrolled in classes under legislation introduced by Rep. Mark Meadows (D-East Lansing) on Thursday (HB 5883).

SUBSCRIBERS PLEASE NOTE

The number of state workers not represented by unions reported in Wednesday's report was incorrect. The actual number is more than 15,000 state workers.

A story in the Wednesday Michigan Report should have indicated that the scrap tire program is funded by a $1.50 fee on vehicle title transfers.

Source : Gongwer News Service : Michigan Report, Volume #49, Report 23, February 4, 2010. Full access requires a subscription or a visit to a subscribing library such as the Michigan State University Main Library.

Key points

Economy
• Form Michigan Small Business Financing Alliance to lend money to more than 2,100 new companies. Average loan amount: $20,000.
• Expand Michigan Economic Development Corp.’s entrepreneurship training.
• Create Project Phoenix, which will inventory large industrial tracts and factories that have closed and find ways to reuse them. State would make up to $100,000 available per redevelopment project for planning and study purposes.
Education
• Restore Michigan Promise Grant college scholarship in next year’s budget.

Government
• Eliminate state legislators’ lifetime health care benefits.

Tourism
• Continue “Pure Michigan” ads.

For the full article, see Scott Davis, "State of the State: Many in mid-Michigan could be impacted", Lansing State Journal, February 4, 2010.

For an argument in favor of repealing term limits, see Richard Cole, professor and department chair at Michigan State University who served as press secretary and later as chief of staff to Gov. James Blanchard in the 1980s, Repeal limits: Experience is not an evil thing, Detroit Free Press, February 4, 2010.

For an argument against, see Patrick L. Anderson, author of the 1992 term-limit amendment to the Michigan Constitution, is now the CEO of Anderson Economic Group, LCC, with offices in East Lansing, Chicago and Los Angeles, "Keep limits: Longer time in office won't fix state",Detroit Free Press, February 4, 2010.

GRANHOLM SAYS WAY FORWARD FOLLOWS PATH STATE HAS SET

Michigan is fully committed down the difficult path of renewal and rebirth, having endured some of the most heart-wrenching and painful economic times in history, and it will continue to a newly diversified economy to replace the industrial economy that has gone, Governor Jennifer Granholm said Wednesday in her final State of the State address.

REPUBLICANS: GRANHOLM OFFERED NOTHING

Legislative Republicans said Governor Jennifer Granholm failed to propose any kind of a substantive agenda in her final State of the State speech and especially chided her for failing to use the moment to explain her plan for the $1.6 billion deficit.

GOV. CANDIDATES WATCH WITH EYE ON GRANHOLM'S JOB

The Republican candidates for governor said Democratic Governor Jennifer Granholm served up more of the same in her final State of the State address - middling proposals with little detail - and said the good initiatives she did offer came too little, too late.

DEMS: GOV. HITS RIGHT NOTES ON BUDGET, ECONOMY

Legislative Democrats who watched Governor Jennifer Granholm give her last State of the State address said she laid out what will be her legacy of working to diversify the economy in the face of a stunning recession, particularly in the auto sector. They also said her vision of completing a 2010-11 budget by July 1 should hit the right note with the public.

GROUPS STILL WAITING FOR DETAILS AFTER S.O.S. REVEALS LITTLE

While most business and community leaders were in agreement with Governor Jennifer Granholm's State of the State address on Wednesday, especially its optimistic but somber tone and its focus on helping entrepreneurs, the speech seemed more symbolic than revealing, they said.

S.O.S. ONLINE: THE TWEETS WEREN'T SWEET

The often bipartisan applause for Governor Jennifer Granholm in the House chamber during her final State of the State address was missing online, as evidenced by the social media networks. Republicans and long-standing critics of the governor gave up on restraint in calling her "fraudulent" and a "harlot" and warning that her proposals meant tax increases, while Democrats and other supporters praised her efforts at diversifying the state's economy.

PROTESTERS BATTLE TO SEND MESSAGE TO GRANHOLM

While Governor Jennifer Granholm gave her final State of the State address on Wednesday, protesters outside the Capitol battled for her attention in the hopes of influencing her policies over the next year.

NON-REPRESENTED WORKERS COULD LOSE 3% RAISE

A recommendation on whether to not provide a 3 percent pay increase to the state's non-unionized workers is expected on Thursday.

HOUSE TO VOTE ON ETHICS REFORMS

The House will likely vote on two measures boosting the ethical standards for lawmakers and candidates for office yet this week, following action on Tuesday banning health care benefits for retired legislators.

CONTRACT ARBITRATION CHANGES STILL UNDER NEGOTIATION

Discussions over changes to the state's binding arbitration laws for emergency services employee contracts are going well, so the Senate Reforms and Restructuring Committee held off acting on the bills making those changes for another week.

SENATE PANEL OPENS TESTIMONY ON HEALTH CARE OPT-OUT

Proposed constitutional amendments designed to block national health care reform legislation received a hearing Wednesday in a Senate committee where supporters said the measures would protect Michigan against bad proposals. The proposals (SJR K, SJR R) would allow residents to opt out of the federal legislation and guarantee their rights to pick their own health plan and physician. It's unclear whether a state constitutional amendment - which would require two-thirds majorities in the Senate and House and then voter approval - would override federal law if Congress and President Barack Obama can agree on a bill.

OAKLAND U. MED SCHOOL WINS BIG STEP TOWARDS 2011 START

Oakland University officials announced Wednesday that their new medical school won preliminary accreditation and remains on track to open in 2011.

COURT: HOMELESS SEX OFFENDERS DO NOT HAVE TO REGISTER

Convicted sex offenders who are homeless do not have to register as sex offenders because the law applies to only those with a fixed place of residence, the Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.

PROGRAM CUTTING SCRAP TIRE PILES

The state's scrap tire program is on its way to meeting its goal of eliminating scrap tire piles in the state by the end of 2012, but it also needs an ongoing funding guarantee to prevent new piles from being created, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment said in a report issued Wednesday.

COURT REINSTATES DRAM SHOP LAWSUIT

The Supreme Court has allowed lawsuits to go forward against two of the three the places that might have sold alcohol to Andrew Gillespie before he killed Alysha Salt and Robert Bolanowski in a drunken driving crash.

Source : Gongwer News Service : Michigan Report, Volume #49, Report 22, February 3, 2010. Full access requires a subscription or a visit to a subscribing library such as the Michigan State University Main Library.

Lifetime benefits for lawmakers would be banned under a bill passed Tuesday in the state House.

The bill would amend the Michigan Legislative Retirement System Act so only legislators elected before Jan. 1, 2007, would be eligible for retiree health insurance coverage.

Currently a representative is vested in the health insurance portion of retirement benefits after six years, the maximum under term limits for the House. The coverage becomes available when the individual reaches 55 years of age -- a controversial benefit Gov. Jennifer Granholm said last week should be cut.

The bill originally would have banned the benefit starting with this year's freshman legislators. An amendment proposed by Rep. Marty Knollenberg, R-Troy, grandfathers in current legislators.

For the full article, see Karen Bouffard, "Bill would scrap lifetime benefits for Michigan lawmakers", Detroit News, February 3, 2010.

When the state begins considering the governor's budget proposal within the next couple of weeks, we all expect more gloomy news about Michigan's finances.

As co-chairmen of the Legislative Commission on Governmental Efficiency, we have spent 18 months examining state government and know the state has a massive structural budget problem driven by cost pressures, a revenue system that is out of step with the economy and spending priorities reflecting a different era.

Our commission's recommendations chart a path through these difficult issues and toward real fiscal reform. And they demonstrate that both Democrats and Republicans can together craft common-sense solutions to the state's budget problems.

We achieved consensus in most areas by looking at the root causes of the budget issues and looking for opportunities to take costs out throughout the system. We asked hard questions about which units of government should be doing what work and looking for opportunities to achieve savings within -- and among -- the 1,800 local units of government in Michigan.

Some of our recommendations on higher education and corrections have already been implemented in whole or in part.

Other recommendations that could be just as valuable include:

• Changing the formula for local government revenue sharing to ensure certain basic services like police, fire and sewers receive aid, guaranteeing a level of funding to give localities some budgeting certainty while giving local governments an incentive to consolidate services.

• Helping school districts save money by providing "early out" retirement incentives and aiding district consolidation either through incentives or letting the state superintendent order consolidations if he or she can prove the move would result in at least a savings of 5 percent.

• Evaluating opportunities to reduce benefits costs for all governmental units by pooling health care plans across levels and units of government.

• Conducting a five-year work force supply and demand forecast to better align the number of state personnel with the expected demand for services.

• Adopting a "pay as you go" budget process to ensure that any new spending commitments can be financed and long-term fiscal forecasts to illuminate the trajectory of the state's budget.

Finally, the Legislature should examine the state's tax system. As an example, reducing even a portion of the $35 billion of annual tax credits and loopholes could reduce the size of the structural budget deficit and cut overall corporate, personal income and/ or sales tax rates, similar to what Republicans and Democrats at the federal level achieved with the Tax Reform Act of 1986.

The path forward exists. It's up to state leaders to find common ground and make the tough decisions that will allow Michigan again to invest in areas that create jobs and improve our quality of living. It is up to us, as citizens, to reward those leaders who provide such leadership.

Jim Curran and Kevin Prokop are co-chairmen of the Legislative Commission on Governmental Efficiency, a commission established as part of the 2007 budget process

For the full letter to the editor, see Jim Curran and Kevin Prokop, "Spending, tax fixes provide bipartisan fiscal solutions", Detroit News, February 3, 2010.

HOUSE WEAKENS BILL ENDING LEGISLATIVE HEALTH CARE

The House overwhelmingly passed legislation Tuesday ending the health care benefits lawmakers receive once they reach age 55, but Democrats backed away from earlier statements that the bill would affect those currently serving.

SNYDER SPENT $107K ON MACKINAC CONFERENCE

Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder spent almost $107,000 during the party's September Mackinac Policy Conference when he won the event's straw poll of the gubernatorial candidates.

BALLOT DRIVE POSSIBLE ON GRADUATED INCOME TAX

Saying the state needs finally to fix its fiscal and revenue system, spokespersons for a number of groups warned that if the Legislature did not put a proposal for a graduated income tax on the ballot, they would consider a petition drive to put the issue before the voters.

GOVERNORS USE S.O.S. SPEECHES TO FIGHT GROWING CYNICISM

With governors around the country still locked in a battle to shore up their state's economy, many used this year's State of the State address as time to fight a growing sense of cynicism from voters and to ensure residents that they can and will work together to bring back jobs to their states.

C.R.A.M.: RETURN TO GRAVEL ROADS GROWING

The number of road commissions reverting paved roads to gravel, and the number of miles of such roads, increased last year, the County Road Association of Michigan said in a report issued Tuesday.

CABLE COMPETITION GROWS IN SOME COMMUNITIES

Changes to cable television regulations have meant more communities with competitive programming providers, but also more communities with no provider, according to a report released Tuesday by the Public Service Commission.

ELECTRIC CHOICE INCREASED IN 2009

Both Consumers Energy and Detroit Edison saw increases in customers seeking power from competitors sufficient to bring the utilities to the statutory caps on competition during the past year, the Public Service Commission said in a report issued Tuesday.

ROBERT JONES FACES TOUGH PRIMARY FOR SENATE

Rep. Robert Jones was thought by Senate Democrats to have a clear shot at the Democratic nomination in the critical 20th District in Kalamazoo County, but campaign finance reports filed this week indicate he has a big fight on his hands.

NUMBER OF JOBLESS IN DETROIT MARKET CONTINUES TO LEAD NATION

Twenty-one of the 49 markets with a population of one million or more people posted jobless rates of 10 percent or more in December, with southeast Michigan leading the pack, according to jobs data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday.

O.F.I.R. LAUNCHES ADS WARNING OF INVESTMENT FRAUD

The Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation is hoping residents will be wise with their investments and has launched a series of television advertisements to help them be on the lookout for fraud.

NO CONFIDENCE IN ADDRESS

A majority of lobbyists, at least those who responded, see little coming from Governor Jennifer Granholm's State of the State Address on Wednesday.

DAVENPORT/M.D.E. AGREEMENT

Davenport University has agreed to give college credit for all technical and career education classes at any state-approved high school or career and technical center. The agreement between the private university and the Department of Education is the first that would guarantee college credit for a high school course.

INTERNATIONALLY IMPORTANT MARSH

The Humbug Marsh, a target of work by environmental groups for some time as the last remaining natural wetland along the Detroit River, was designated a wetland of international importance under the 1971 Ramsar Convention treaty. Humbug is the first wetland to receive the designation in Michigan. There are 27 such wetlands now in the United States and 1,880 worldwide.

SUBSCRIBERS PLEASE NOTE

A story in the Friday Michigan Report should have said that only new state employees would be subject to the 20 percent contribution to health care premiums.

Source : Gongwer News Service : Michigan Report, Volume #49, Report 21, February 2, 2010. Full access requires a subscription or a visit to a subscribing library such as the Michigan State University Main Library.

The state and a union that represents 17,000 state workers are trying to reach a deal to avoid 10 furlough days this year for those employees.

If no deal is reached, a United Auto Workers Local 6000 spokesman said the union might contest the furloughs because of insufficient notice to employees, as required under the union's contract.

But a state official said notice is not required for a "temporary layoff" or furlough for Local 6000, and that the state has no plans to provide written notice to employees.

For the full article, see Scott Davis, "Union says it might challenge state furloughs; UAW Local 6000 says members didn't get sufficient notice", Lansing State Journal, February 2, 2010.

A budget reform plan that would include cutting all public university employees' salaries by 5 percent for three years isn't sitting well with University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman.

"I am very concerned about any proposal that would threaten the independence of the university," Coleman said at a faculty governance meeting in Ann Arbor Tuesday.

Coleman was referring to a budget reform plan proposed in January by Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester. His is one of several proposals circulating Lansing, leading up to the budget planning process for the next fiscal year. That process is set to begin this month.

For the full posting, with video, see
Senate reform proposal a threat to all public universities' independence, University of Michigan president says, Ann Arbor . com, February 2, 2010.

Even as Michigan makes great strides in transitioning to a green economy, some question whether the state leading the nation in unemployment can deliver enough renewable energy jobs to employ the workers it's retraining.

State leaders and educators are expanding training programs and doling out free tuition to displaced Rust Belt workers looking to make a new start in the state's fledgling renewable energy industry. At the same time, the state is offering tax incentives to green businesses willing to relocate to Michigan.

For the full article, see Christina Rogers, "Michigan pushes workers into green jobs as automotive engine sputters", Detroit News, February 2, 2010.

In the six months since the Free Press reported that one-third of working-age Michiganders couldn't read well enough to get a job that would support a family, the state has crafted the beginnings of a regional adult education system that will help them.

By next year, the state hopes to spend more than $50 million to build centers run by partnerships of community colleges, workforce agencies and adult education providers, including public school districts.

The effort to transform adult learning, which was included in a recent draft of Gov. Jennifer Granholm's upcoming State of the State address, was in response to a 52-page analysis that showed a stunning one in three working-age Michigan adults -- that's 1.7 million people -- read below a sixth-grade level. That bars many from even participating in federally funded job-training programs. The analysis also showed that 44% of all Michigan adults read below a sixth-grade level and that 60% of students entering community colleges require remedial classes before they can start taking the post-secondary courses that lead to jobs.

For the full article, see Rochelle Riley, "State focuses on preparing adults for jobs to come", Detroit Free Press, February 2, 2010.

Plummeting housing prices and record foreclosures are responsible for double-digit declines this year in residential property taxes, which communities use for police and fire protection, jails, senior programs, libraries and other services.

For the full article, see Steve Neavling, John Wisely, and Melanie D. Scott, "Shrinking budgets to force deep cuts for communities", Detroit Free Press, February 2, 2010.