April 9, 2008 - Michigan residents are currently struggling in the treacherous economy and are exerting full efforts to stay afloat. Governor Granholm has explained that there is an urgent need to assist the working citizens and help them stay in their homes, as this will help to stabilize the housing market. MSHDA (Michigan State Housing Department) has announced that Michigan’s home foreclosure rate is double that of the national average and Detroit leads the nation in foreclosures. In attempt to keep the citizens of Michigan in their homes, Governor Granholm has signed legislation on an initiative called “Save the Dream.” Executive Director of the MSHDA, Michael R. DeVos has proclaimed that the goal of the initiative would be to assist the citizens facing foreclosure, to prevent more foreclosures, and to prevent others falling victim to fraudulent vendors. With this goal in mind, the bill is designed with two new refinancing options, which will be offered to home owners who are currently struggling to make their payments and are on the brink of foreclosure. One option is ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) Refinance Program that will help citizens obtain a low interest, fixed-rate mortgage. Senator Tupac A. Hunter has explained the bill he has proudly sponsored as offering an option of the Rescue Refinance Program, which will be offered to those who can no longer make their steep payments. The initiative will also offer counseling and advice to Michigan citizens in hopes to educate them and raise awareness of foreclosure, Hunter described.

Introduced by Senator Cropsey and signed by the Governor on April second of this year, many are anticipating the calm after the storm once the bill is in full effect. Senator Tupac A. Hunter has placed a lot of the blame of the turbulent housing market in Michigan on the adjustable rate mortgages that were being too frequently handed out. Hunter has determined that these loans were being given to people whom normally would not have been granted such a loan. With the adjustable rate, these citizens can not keep up with the increasing interest rates and often times end up facing foreclosure. Hunter explained on February 27th that bills like Save the Dream and the Refinancing Programs should help homeowners be able to lock in low interest rates and have a more affordable monthly payment. Hunter, along with his colleague Senator Buzz Thomas (D-Detroit) hopes that this bill might be able to provide citizens with protection from fraudulent lenders, and to spread knowledge on lending and finances. Hunter has also announced that with this legislation Michigan homes will be able to remain occupied with consumers, which will in turn help boost the state’s economy and will also help to improve the housing industry. Hunter expressed his belief that it is imperative to keep families in their homes, or it is very likely that there will be fewer new jobs in the state of Michigan and the economy will have no chance to make progress.

Republicans Reply to State of the State Address
BY THOMAS TERRILL, JULIE KANIFF, AND DAVID WALKER

February 20, 2008 - In the wake of a chaotic near-government shutdown over budget disputes and with the state suffering an unemployment rate of over 7% in 2007 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics; the Republican legislative reply to Governor Granholm’s State of the State address was dominated by a call for bipartisanship and clearly delineated cures for economic woes. Senate Majority leader Mike Bishop began his address with praise for the Governor Granholm’s leadership and support for the goals of the agenda lain out in her State of the State address: energy policy, health care reform, education, the environment and road infrastructure. Bishop called upon both parties to work together in a positive manner to further these goals.

Sen. Bishop also voiced ideas to revitalize the State’s sluggish economy. First, Bishop recommended cutting the size of government. Secondly, he suggested policies designed to make Michigan more business-friendly be adopted; the governor’s recent pledge not to raise taxes being an important and commended part of this strategy. Lastly, administrative reforms such as the Public Employee Health Care Reform of 2007 and the recently established government efficiency and government mandate commissions and are in Sen. Bishop’s opinion a key to future prosperity. Sen. Bishop believes the ideas these commissions will gather ideas from non-government sources to streamline government.

These are the ways long term gains must be made according to Sen. Bishop; he does not want them merely patched over with federal handouts. Concluding his speech with a final motion of reaching across the aisle, Bishop called on the governor to fix the state with the aid of the legislature. He demanded from Governor Granholm a concrete plan, coupled with strong leadership and restraint from implementing new government programs the state cannot afford on Governor Granholm’s part to turn the dismal economic situation around.

Protecting Michigan’s Water
BY THOMAS TERRILL, JULIE KANIFF, AND DAVID WALKER

March 19, 2008 - At the standing committee meeting on the Great Lakes and the Environment which was held on March 5, 2008, the passage of legislation involving the topic of preserving Michigan’s water was a controversial topic. Representative Rebekah Warren opened the session by thanking the groups for the hard work they put into coming up with a “package that really does what’s best for Michigan… to protect water.” At this point in time, about 90% of the legislation had been agreed upon between the Senate and the House packages, Warren said, noting that they were almost there. Warren also stated that continuing to keep the politics out of this issue would be best to allow them to stick to the policy itself.

Michael Sak was called upon to speak about the legislation first. Sak, a representative of Grand Rapids, started off by saying “[w]ater culturally defines us in the state of Michigan.” Sak stated that everyone was committed to the protection and preservation of “our great waters.” Trying to further sway the committee members, Sak said “I believe each and every one of you, as committee members and legislators, are committed to doing the same thing.” After Mike Sak’s introduction speech ended, Representative Robertson brought up the fact that some of the people/associations Sak cited in his speech as being supporters were actually opposed to the legislation that was before the board today. Sak rebutted by saying he is aware that ten percent of the legislation is still being heavily debated, but in Sak’s opinion, we should look at the parts we can agree on and get those moving. Sak assured the committee members he is willing to work with those individuals on the ten percent of still debated legislation in the future. “There will be ongoing debates until the last minute,” Sak said to show that opposition will always be present no matter what issue is at hand.

To help clear up exactly what differences there were between the Michigan Farm Bureau and the legislation as it stood, Rep. Warren requested Matt Smego and Scott Piggott to speak at the meeting in representation of the Farm Bureau. Scott said that there were three major differences: requiring permits at threshold levels of less than two million gallons a day, the idea of some involvement or extension of the public trust for ground water, and the idea of how protective the state is going to be with respect to cold water streams. One of the other representatives, Kat Ebli, asked why the Farm Bureau urged members to vote no on everything even though there were only a small number of items that they disagreed with. Matt replied saying that there was a “difficulty with the packet being tie bared together [connected].” Matt said that since they are tie bared, their objection reflects the “bill package as a whole.” Scott then commented on how it can be difficult to tell which bills are “connected, and they can’t support some without others.” When asked by Rep. Ebli whether or not they thought it made sense to get the legislation moving now and resolve the differences later was a good idea, Scott said “the bills are all linked;” since the Farm Bureau had some objections to the bill, they had to reject the whole thing. Otherwise, Scott continued, it would be difficult to “parse out” the “facets” they did not agree with in the future.

In the end, House Bill 5065, containing some of the parts objected to by the Farm Bureau, was voted on. It received eight yes votes, seven nays, and zero pass votes. House Bill 5056 was reported with recommendation to the House.

State Legislature The Service Tax is Repealed
BY KENT BOERSMA

December 4, 2007 - The service tax is a tax that would tax certain services in the state of Michigan by 6% tax on the payment of services. The services chosen to tax by the state legislature back on October one during the whole budget crisis goes from janitorial services and security guard services to baby shoe bronzing services according to the information I was given by the Ax the Tax collation. The money gained on this tax would help alleviate the budget crunch in Lansing.

The Associated press article by Tim Martin on December One, called the service tax "a widely unpopular tax on some services in Michigan" . Also Ax the Tax collation was already circulating petitions to urge the legislature to repeal the service tax since November when they had a press conference. And if the tax was not repealed the signatures they got on their petition would go for a ballot innitive so that the citizens of Michigan would be able to vote on this service and whether to repeal the service tax or not.

The state legislature finally repealed the service tax on December one the day that the service tax would have gone into effect. The State legislature decided to replace the tax with a 21.99% surcharge on the taxes the business will already pay under the new business tax to keep the revenue that would have been gained through the service tax according to Tim Martin of the Associated press. This is a victory for the business owners in Michigan who according to Tim Martin " Are facing a challenging economy and Michigan's unemployment rate continued to lead the nation in October, when it hit 7.7% unemployment. Detroit Regional Chamber employee sarah Hubbard said " If we are going to turn this around we need to develop a better legislative process then waiting to the last minute to deal with theses issues." According to the article on Woodtv, com named "Lawmakers, Granholm get job done- barely" on December 2, 2007.

Michigan could say “Go Green!”
BY NEVIN COOPER-KEEL

December 4, 2007 - Again there is the distinct possibility of some change in the Michigan State Constitution. Among the many busy activities to been seen going on around the Michigan State Legislature at the moment is the movement of a constitutional amendment that would legalize medicinal marijuana in Michigan. This particular amendment has made it’s stride into the realm of possibility by way of petition by the people. This is not the first time that an attempt has been made to get the required 300,000 plus voter’s signatures on a petition to legalize marijuana in some form. However, it appears that Michigan residents have just seen the first successful attempt at getting the required amount.

On November 20th, 2007 the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care turned in 496,000 petitioned signatures to state election officials, according to the Detroit Free Press. This was overwhelmingly more than the required 304,000 registered voter signatures required by Michigan law to put the initiative to vote. The state Board of Canvassers will now be reviewing the signatures to determine whether enough of them are from valid voters, and then will announce if the measure qualifies for the ballot, according to the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).

Assuming there is enough valid signatures, which, over 450,000 is a very comfortable margin according to stopthedrugwar.org, the state legislature will have a chance to enact this initiative. If the bill is passed in the state legislature it must be signed by Governor Granholm before it can be added to the Constitution. Should the Legislature fail to pass this bill it would be put on the ballot in 2008 for the citizenry of Michigan to vote to ratify.

There are conflicting opinions on whether the bill will even be touched by the legislature. Matt Mardsen, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, said he expected Senate leaders to wait to see whether the group collected enough valid petition signatures, but the fact that the Legislature could have taken up medical marijuana legislation at any time but did not suggests there may not be much interest in it, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The Democrats at their last annual state convention unanimously endorsed a resolution stating “that licensed medical doctors should not be criminally punished for recommending the medical use of marijuana to seriously ill people, and seriously ill people should not be subject to criminal sanctions for using marijuana if the patient’s physician has told the patient that such use is likely to be beneficial,” according to the Michigan chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). This statement is the essence of what the marijuana initiative states. This type of statement from the whole Democratic Convention indicates a great possibility of action within the legislature on this amendment. However, a spokesman for House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, declined any immediate comment on the issue to the Detroit Free Press.

The most audible opponents of the bill appear to be to be law enforcement officials. This could be quite controversial because it appears there will be stiff resistance from law enforcement, as their state of livelihood depends on drug laws not being revised and remaining in their current form.
Macomb County Sheriff Mark Hackel said he opposes the Michigan proposal.

Hackel said regulating distribution, like weeding out valid prescriptions from fake ones, would be challenging. And determining "what is legitimate versus what is not" during traffic stops or home raids would be "cumbersome" for law enforcement agencies, he said according to the Detroit Free Press. Jointogether.org also reports that on the issue of medical marijuana, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said “this is an attempt to legitimize marijuana, nothing more.”

When a legal scholar at Cooley Law School who wished to remain anonymous was informed of Sheriff Hackel’s comments and other similar stances being taken by law enforcement personnel, his response was that “if they cant accomplish the requirements of their job, we should replace them with people who can, and any unwillingness by employees [law enforcement] in carrying out their duties as they have been commanded by their employers [the citizens of Michigan] is certainly grounds for dismissal.”

This is an issue that the people will decide either through their elected representatives, or by a direct vote taken by themselves. Once again democracy is showing it’s beauty at the state level. The ensuing discussion to take place in the legislature is sure to be a headline grabber and will certainly be worth listening to,n so as to make an educated decision on supporting or opposing the medical marijuana bill.

State Legislature Privatizing the DHS a solution to Budget problems
BY KENT BOERSMA

October 30, 2007 - The state of Michigan is facing yet another budget crisis as the temporary budget which was passed last month is going to end October 31, 2007 at midnight and the sate could face shutdown again. WOOD TV is calling it the "Countdown to Shutdown" during there coverage of this budget plan. But there seems to be less shouting and more agreements being made then there was a month ago.

The main disagreement in the budget plans is that the republicans in the State Legislature led by State Sen. Bill Hardiman want to privatize more of the Department of Human Services programs such as adoptions, foster care, and housing juvenile offenders according to WOOD TV.

State Sen. Bill Hardiman, a Republican from the 28th district, told WOOD TV that it costs the state $550 dollars a day to house each juvenile offender in a state run program called the W. J. Maxey Boys Training School. Sen. Hardiman added that it would only cost the state around $225 to $250 a day if the juveniles were housed through private companies according to WOOD TV. Sen. Hardiman also added " We need to move forward in this area. The money we save, we can spend in other needed areas" According to the article on WOOD TV website.

Gov. Granholm, a Democrat, is opposed to the plan to privatize more of the Department of Human Services because the plan would make state workers who are union lose their jobs to private agencies according to WOOD TV. State Sen. Bill Hardiman also told WOOD TV that private agencies already provided 40 percent of such services to Michigan children.

The article on WOOD TV states that negotiators from the democratic majority state house and the republican majority state senate have agreed on handing more Department of Human Services programs over to private companies. But Gov. Granholm could still veto the bill and then the state legislature is back to the drawing board on trying to fix the budget.

Legislature unable to pass budget, Government shutdown looms
BY BRANDON HALL

October 30, 2007 - After already suffering an embarrassing shutdown earlier this month, the Michigan legislature is poised for another. The legislature has until Halloween to iron out its differences on how about 500 million dollars in cuts for the state budget should be dispersed, according to The Detroit Free Press. If no deal is reached by 12:01 am on November 1, a partial shutdown of government will be underway.

As was the case before, no essential services will be on hold. The agencies shutting down will be what Gov. Jennifer Granholm has deemed “non-essential.”
The battle centers on two issues: which Michigan Department of Human Services should be privatized, and how much assistance should go to college students who attend private schools, according to the AP.

Proponents of further privatization say the state will save enough to avoid any major cuts in health or education; opponents say its too risky to turn over things like adoption and juvenile justice programs to for-profit businesses, according to the AP. The governor and state employees strongly oppose any further privatization, according to The Detroit Free Press..

“Some things can just be done more efficiently and cheaper when they are done by the private sector,” State Rep. Arlan Meekhof (R-West Olive) said. “It’s disappointing to see some want a government big just to have big government.”

Kevin Blanding, Principal of a Grand Haven elementary school, said that private enterprise is not trustworthy.

“Their primary purpose is to make a profit,” Blanding said. “They’ll cut corners as much as possible to the detriment of their service if they aren’t turning in enough cash. Also, what happens when a contract is up and the company jacks their prices up? It would cost the state a lot to have to totally restructure an entity if they totally disband it in favor of a private system. Privatization is only a short-term solution.“

David Perriloux, a junior at Aquinas College, is far more concerned with another legislative hot potato: grants to private school students.

“The money I get for this program is a primary factor in how I can afford to come here,” Perriloux said. “I would have to take out some hefty loans, private loans, to make up the difference. Those really add up on people, they can cripple their earnings well into their 40’s and 50’s.”

Governor Granholm shares Perriloux’s concern over the grants. However, she’s the one who wants to cut them, and in turn be able to give the state’s colleges a 1% increasing in funds, according to the AP.. According to The Detroit News, Granholm’s forthcoming veto of private-school grants has enough votes for an override from the legislature.

Blanding is skeptical a comprehensive and fair deal will be reached.

“I really think after the last embarrassment, partisan politics will play less of a role. Then again, the media doesn’t encourage partisanship, they love a good showdown, and maybe we’ll see a rise in partisan tensions because of the never ending election cycle we seem to have.”

The Eleventh Hour
BY NEVIN COOPER-KEEL

October 30, 2007 - Once again Michigan is in the eleventh hour of a budget crisis with no solution to a statewide shutdown on November 1st. The state of Michigan was in this position one month ago, where several tax increases were passed in order to get the Governor to sign a month long budget extension. Partisanship and bickering has been taking place within the state legislature and between the Governor and the Legislature. These squabbles are not petty, with the ability of the state government to reasonably serve citizens being at high risk of discontinuing.

“There have been months of ineffective negotiations, which is why we sit here in the same position as last March,” reported gophouse.com of House Republican Caucus Leader John Proos several days before the brief shutdown on October 1st. However, after approximately four hours of a statewide shutdown in the early morning of October 1st, the state legislature had passed enough tax raises to decrease our budget deficit to 435 million dollars. This pailed in comparison to the $1.75 billion we owed at the initiation of the shutdown, according to the Detroit Free Press. This was necessary to do, because Governor Granholm would not sign a budget extension to keep state services running and postpone a shutdown without the legislature finally taking steps to balance the budget, as stated on her radio address on September 28.

There has been resentment among Republicans this sort of tactic by the Democrats. Senate bills 772 and 773, which were passed on October 1st to extend the budget for one month after our state had already shutdown, were initially introduced to the Senate by Three Oaks Republican Ron Jelinek on September 17th, as is listed on legislature.mi.gov. Representative Daniel Acciavatti has even introduced legislation to repeal HB4882, which was one of the last minute tax raises the legislature enacted on October 1, according to gophouse.com.

There are still high hopes about shutdown being avoided. Rep. Paul Opsommer (R-DeWitt) stated on gophouse.com on October 26th, “I am pleased to report that work this week has seen tentative agreements reached for almost all department budgets, with primarily only DCH, DHS, and DNR appropriations still part of major negotiations.”

Janice Keel, a person employed by the Department of Human Services, said this about her departments situation: “They (Democrats) are going to cave in and privatize juvenile justice, foster care, and adoptions. That’s what the sticking point is with Human Services. That’s what the Republicans are complaining about. However, in the areas they [the legislature] are looking like they will privatize, it is going to cost the consumers more in the long run.” Jan continued that cutting state jobs in adoption and foster care to delegate the tasks to private organizations would initially take a bit of a tax burden off the state, but in the long run would end up costing the people of the state more from the fees associated with privatization.

At present no agreed upon plan to solve the remaining $435 million budget deficit for the 2007-08 fiscal year. Only time will tell if another shutdown, which could be much longer and far reaching into hundreds of thousands of lives, will happen. Once again, the legislature has waited until the eleventh hour and still counting.

The Michigan FairTax Proposal proposed by Rep. Sheen
BY KENT BOERSMA

October 2, 2007 - For the past few weeks the citizens of the state of Michigan have been witness to their state being threatened to shutdown do to no consensus on a balanced state budget. the whole budget crisis and potential shutdown of our state government should lead the citizens of Michigan to ask if there is another option for tax policy other than just raising and cutting taxes? Yes, this alternative tax policy is called the Michigan FairTax. This policy is called the Michigan FairTax Proposal. The FairTax proposal for Michigan has been introduced by State Rep. Fulton Sheen a republican in the 88th district which encompasses most of Allegan County.

The FairTax Proposal is an Idea to revolutionize the State of Michigan’s tax code by enacting a state sales tax rate that would be 8.58 percent according to the fair tax proposal press release from State Rep. Fulton Sheen’s office.

The Michigan FairTax Proposal would also require a state Constitutional Amendment eliminating the Michigan income tax, personal property tax, and Single Business Tax. The Amendment would not allow the state to reenact any of the taxes just mentioned or raise the new Fair tax sales tax without the vote of the citizens of Michigan. This is one of the noted details in the FairTax Proposal press release.

The FairTax works by taking a 8.58 percent sales tax on every thing bought in the State of Michigan. Some people have said that the fair tax is regressive because the Fairtax would tax food, and needy families could not afford to buy food. What the Fairtax has written into it is a monthly prebate that would offset what the sales tax would cost the citizens of Michigan up to the poverty level which for example is considered to be $25,000 for a family of four so that the families are compensated for all cost of living expenses of the sales tax.

The Michigan FairTax Proposal if enacted would be a radical change in tax policy. The Michigan FairTax proposal is a truly revolutionary tax policy that seems to bring the power to govern back to the citizens and away from unions and corporate lobbyist. If you want to get more information or details on the Michigan Fair tax proposal go to State Rep. Fulton Sheen’s website www.fultonsheen.us\michiganfairtaxproposal .

Michigan Avoids Shutdown
BY NEVIN COOPER-KEEL

October 2, 2007 - October 1st, 2007 was a near miss from a lethal blow to the legislatures members. October 1st is the start of the new fiscal year and the legislature has known all year that there would have to be budget changes made due to the $1.75 billion budget deficit. Like a bunch of college students, they waited until the last minute to accomplish their task. As a matter of fact, our state services were shut down for approximately four hours which in its self is a failure on our legislatures part. At approximately 4:20 A.M. the shutdown that had begun at 12:01 A.M. was called off and congress had bought themselves another month of time before the inevitable happens again.

That thing that is inevitable is necessary decision making. Our legislature has had a long time to foresee and make these decisions to spare a lot of people a great deal of anxiety. Allegan County Community Resources Coordinator Janice Keel informed me that the shutdown would have been drastic. She said “The whole Allegan Department of Human Services normally has 65 people to cover all aspects of the department, which in the event of a shutdown would have been reduced to 6 people. One would be the director to oversee the department, three child protective services emergency investigations, two people on staff to be a receptionist to refer any need to the appropriate agency for food, utility shutoff, etc.” Keep in mind this sort of thing would be happening in every county in the state to nearly all government services. Of the states 53,000 employees, 35,000 were temporarily laid off during the shutdown.

On the night of the shutdown, the congress was in session until about 4 a.m. at which point they passed legislation sufficient to meet Governor Jennifer Granholm’s requirements to resume full state government operations. “This budget agreement is the right solution for Michigan,” said Governor Granholm in a statement released shortly after the shutdown ended.

There had however been hope all along that the shutdown would be averted. Everybody knew it was avoidable, it just had been a slow process of political awakening. It took a number of bills to be passed to avert the state wide shutdown. Raising the Michigan income tax from 3.9% to 4.35% is one method they used. There were also changes made to teachers health insurance to make things more profitable for the state. The congress even initiated a wider application of the 6% sales tax in some areas of service. Why the congress waited until the last minute to do all of this is one of the many important questions Michiganders now face. Do we have the appropriate amount of competence in our states capitol?

The later question has yet to be answered. With all the measures passed over the shutdown, we still have not solved our budget crisis. Even though Granholm was pleased enough with the tax hikes passed to sign a 30-day budget extension to keep the shutdown from continuing, we still have over $400,000 in a budget deficit that needs to be accounted for by the end of October or we will have another shutdown shoved down our throats. Lets hope this can be accomplished before the last minute this time.

Embattled Legislature reaches compromise after state government shuts down
BY BRANDON HALL

October 1, 2007 - Despite having eight months to render a budget, the state legislature was unable to each an agreement before the beginning of the new fiscal year. As a result, at 12:01 a.m. on October 1, the non-emergency services of Michigan government shut down, booting campers out of state parks and closing rest areas across the state, according to Senior WOOD TV 8 Political Analyst Rick Albin.

The shutdown would end before sunrise, as the legislature fostered a budget that Governor Granholm met with approval around 4 a.m., according to the Grand Rapids Press.

The budget brought concessions from both sides. Governor Granholm was successful in expanding the sales tax into new fiscal horizons, as well as raising the income tax from 3.9% to 4.35%, according to the Grand Rapids Press. However, key Republican backed education reforms such as increased teacher co-pay for healthcare, and accountability and competition for the Michigan Education Association’s healthcare program MESSA, dealt a huge blow to the governor and one of her key constituencies, according to Rep. Jack Hoegendyk. Hoegendyk, (R-Kalamazoo) blogged live from the house floor, keeping interested parties updated with real-time voting and budget negotiation updates.

Grand Haven Area Public Schools Superintendent Keith Konarska applauded the legislature for avoiding a total government shutdown.

“Overall, the work of our legislature last night was good for this State and its future,” Konarska said. “The sales tax and income tax increases were absolutely necessary to fund critical programs key to economic recovery. Also, the reforms for the Teacher Retirement System and Health Care were critical in keeping that program solvent.”

State representative Arlan Meekhof (R-West Olive) disagrees, calling the budget “fiscally irresponsible.”

“This is not what Michigan needs, to tax and spend more,” Meekhof said. “The state needs to live within its means. “

Meekhof believes the budget hurts economic expansion efforts.

“The budget is going to further drive business out of the state,” Meekhof said. “It puts us on less competitive footing with other states.”
Granholm spokeswoman Liz Boyd disagrees.

“This historic budget agreement protects Michigan’s most vulnerable citizens, and avoids deep cuts to health and education,” Boyd said. “The Republican plan of massive cuts was not in the best interest of the state, and in the end, courageous lawmakers from both sides put Michigan on sound financial footing.”

House Democrats Reject Republican Budget Action
BY PETER VANKUIKEN

April 10, 2007 - On Thursday, April 5th, in yet another attempt to pass legislation to help balance the current budget crisis facing Michigan, House Republicans offered, House Concurrent Resolution No. 18. Shortly after being presented, House Democrats quickly moved the piece into the Committee on Government Operations. This piece of amended legislation, sponsored by Rep. Jack Hoogendyk, would help save the state $227 million, by placing a pay freeze on 53,000 state employees.

“We put a proposal on the table that would not have cost any jobs, not cut any vital programs and would have saved millions of dollars… The Legislature is considering cutting precious resources for local communities and schools, it is only fair that we all make sacrifices,” said Rep. Jack Hoogendyk.

House Concurrent Resolution No. 18 would ask the Governor to require the approximately 53,000 state employees to forgo the scheduled pay increase as well as contribute more to the cost of their fringe benefits in the 2008 fiscal year. According to Republicans sponsoring this bill, it would allow the state to reallocate $227 million in funds to other more pressing issues.

“It’s a no-brainer to save the state money.” Said Hoogendyk. “Democrats seem more interested in raising taxes on working families than in finding common sense solutions for Michigan.”

House Democrats later blasted the Republican plan for failing to offer any real solution to reform state government. According to House Speaker, Andy Dillon, “Cuts without reforms will not fix the state’s fiscal crisis… As usual, my Republican colleagues are short on solutions, and the only reason they’re lashing out is to draw attention away from the fact that they have no plan to get Michigan back on track.”

According to the state budget, Michigan is facing a $1 billion dollar deficit in 2007, which will balloon to $3 billion in 2008. Speaker Dillon stressed that, “We must act right now and get our fiscal house in order. Education and job creation programs are key to turning our economy around. Democrats are going to look at the big picture –not one time fixes and political gimmicks- to build a Michigan that is second to none.”

iPOD’s for Michigan Students?
BY KARA SCHREUR

April 16, 2007 - IPOD’s for Michigan Students? That is a question that has spun a string of “criticism and ridicule” according to a WZZM13 News website article, Plan to Give iPods, MP3 Players to Students Gets Resistance, posted on April 12, 2007 on wzzm13.com. The article continued on saying, “The idea first surfaced last week, when state House Democrats mentioned during a news conference on the state budget that they wanted to spend money on iPods because they can help students learn.” The WZZM13 article goes on to say, “Democratic leaders behind the proposal are under scrutiny because Apple, which makes iPods, at least partly paid for their trip to the company's headquarters in California earlier this year.” A follow up article on WZZM13 News website posted on April 13, 2007, on wzzm13.com said, “Michigan legislators said Thursday that the state will not give iPods to schoolchildren, and three lawmakers will reimburse iPod-maker Apple $1,700 for a March trip to California.”

Controversy over the iPOD plan also led to State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Mike Flanagan, to issue a statement regarding the iPOD controversy on Michigan.gov/mde, the state of Michigan’s Department of Education‘s page. Flanagan said that “any recent controversy over proposed funding in the state’s school aid budget for education technology does not diminish its need in the state’s classrooms.

We need the infusion of education technology into our classrooms. Whether it’s iPods, or Zunes, online learning, or distance learning from Michigan Virtual High School, we need this. It’s not a brand name issue. It’s a learning issue.”

Michigan citizen Carla Schreur said, “While I think it’s important to have technology in the classroom, buying iPods for students would be crazy. This is just like when they wanted every 6th grader in Grand Rapids Public Schools to get a laptop computer. It would be a waste of money.”

House Republicans Reign In On Overspending
BY PETER VANKUIKEN

March 21, 2007 - After repeated failed attempts to pass legislation holding all state agencies accountable for overspending, Michigan House Republicans announced the State Spending Reform Act. Republican Vice Chairman of Appropriations Daniel Acciavatti, said. “It is a simple, straightforward plan to ensure the state only spends the money it has and holds officials responsible when taxpayer dollars are mismanaged or wasted.”

The State Spending Reform Act is the Republicans first major step towards dealing with the State’s current fiscal crisis. In contrast to Governor Granholm’s recent budget proposals and tax increases, the Republican Legislature has yet to reveal any budget plans for the state of Michigan. They have however decided to reign in on state over expenditures after it was reported three Michigan Government agencies ran over their 2006 budgets by $70 million. "Just think of all that could have been done with $70 million… That's enough to hire 600 state troopers or 1,750 new teachers. It's past time to hold these officials accountable,” said Republican Leader Craig DeRoche.

In order to help manage and prevent over expenditures, the State Spending Reform Act would:

Require the governor's office to report to the Legislature on June 1 of each year if a department is on track to spend more than is budgeted.
Require a department to report within five days any overspending to the Legislature.
Require the state budget director to take immediate action to stop overspending by imposing a hiring freeze, halting purchasing and contracting activities and setting monthly spending limits for a department.
Allow the governor to fire any appointed or hired state official who violates this act.

Republican Vice Chairman of Appropriations Daniel Acciavatti later went on to defend his party’s position by saying, “Before we tackle the budget problems we face as a state, we have to agree that when a budget is written, passed and signed into law, it won't be ignored."

State Budget Still Unbalanced
BY KARA SCHREUR

March 19, 2007 - A battle between Republicans and Democrats over the state budget is brewing in Lansing. Governor Jennifer Granholm is challenging Republican lawmakers to come up with their own solution, after they rejected her plan to fill a large deficit in the 2006-2007 budget. Governor Granholm’s plan according to the official state of Michigan’s website, Michigan.gov, “combines spending reductions with governmental reforms and tax restructuring.”

Republicans have rejected Governor Granholm’s plan, according to Fox 17 news website, fox.trb.com. Republican Senator Mark Jansen, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee responded by saying, “I wish the governor would have consulted with us before presenting her executive order. We have to work together to find a fair way to balance the state’s budget without increasing the burden for Michigan’s hardworking families.”

According to Fox 17 news website article posted on March 18, 2007 on fox.trb.com, Granholm will meet with state legislators this week while they try to balance Michigan’s $900 million budget deficit. The Fox 17 article goes on to say, “This Thursday, Governer Granholm will propose another executive order involving state spending cuts. The plan relies heavily on a new two percent service tax, which the GOP opposes. It is still unclear if a deal will be reached.”

Republicans Differ on Service Tax Proposal
BY PETER VAN KUIKEN

February 12, 2007 - For lawmakers in Lansing its time for definitive action when it comes to solving Michigan’s Budget Crisis. Last week during Governor Granholm’s State of the State Address, she summed up our state’s economic woes on a combination of being behind in the changing global marketplace, fiscal irresponsibility in abolishing the Small Business Tax, and the rising costs of living. With a tone of urgency Michigan’s Madam Governor asked the legislature, “Will we invest in our people so they and their children can compete and win in the new world economy?”

Without mentioning any fiscal details of her plan for Michigan, the Governor spoke on the importance of education and the diversification of our economy. By raising our schools standards and offering free college education for the people that need it the most, her plan would prepare Michigan’s workforce for the economy of tomorrow. She also asserted that the government would need to set the climate for high tech businesses. With a crumbling auto industry, Michigan would need to invest in new and emerging technologies in order to compete in the world.

In the Republican Response immediately following the State of the State Address, Rep Tom George from Kalamazoo blasted Granholm’s Plan as, “Merely being a bandage.”

Dr. George further went on to propose a new Best Economic Stimulus Tax, or BEST for short. Without mentioning a single detail the Republicans wanted to assure this state’s population that they also had a plan.

Two days after the State of the State Address the Governor released her budget and the specifics of how she hoped to balance the budget and fund her initiatives. To get Michigan moving forward we would need to cut useless government spending, reform government programs, and change the means in which the government would collect its revenue. What she meant by revenue was the Service Tax proposal. The Service Tax would be a two percent tax on all service based businesses. It would generate hundreds of Millions for not only her Education proposals, but it was also assist in helping new and emerging business’ in the High Tech field.

Republicans around the state greatly differ on this new business tax and its impact on our state’s economy. State Sen. Roger Kahn, Rep-Saginaw responded by saying, "I have a hard time seeing how more taxes will create more jobs."

State Rep. David Law said, “raising taxes is not the solution…The state needs to reduce costs, slow spending and cut the fat out of the budget."

With the Republicans rallying against the Governor’s plan, it is starting to become more and more evident that there will be much debate to come over the state’s budget.

A Two Percent Tax on Services?
BY KARA SCHREUR

February 10, 2007 - According to WOOD TV 8 Grand Rapids newscast, “Granholm said Tuesday in her State of the State speech that Michigan's taxes need to be restructured to end its recent string of budget deficits. The state faces a shortfall of more than $800 million this year.”

State Budget Director Robert Emerson presented Governor Jennifer M. Granholm's 2008 Executive Budget to a joint session of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees. According to the official state of Michigan website, Michigan.gov, Jennifer Granholm presented as a part of her 2008 budget, “A two percent tax on services, excluding education and health care services. As the economy has shifted from producing goods to providing services, in order to stay competitive, we must shift our tax system to reflect the changes in the economy.”

Senator Mark Jansen, Republican, responded to Granholm’s plan by saying "It's not going to get past me, at least the way it stands now.” He continued on to say, “The economy right now is awful, and the citizens would have to pay for this plan. It's not a business tax, and that's what we were looking for."

Gaines Township resident, Carla Schreur, responded to Granholm’s plan by saying, “Jennifer Granholm’s request for this tax increase won’t work, the economy needs to be stabilized and this increase won’t help the economic condition. She keeps saying that she‘s bringing all these jobs to Michigan, yet we are not feeling the positive effects she talks about. The economy needs help.”

A New Business Tax
BY JULI DE LEEUW

December 12, 2006 - The Small Business Tax is due to expire December 31, 2007. This means that Michigan legislature has a little over a year to create a new plan of action. When asked about the Small Business Tax, Rick De Young, the owner of Alger Heights Foods, a small grocery store, said simply, “I hate it.” He is happy that the tax is going to be illuminated because his business has been suffering from it. He hopes that he will no longer have to pay such high taxes under the new plan. This will, however, all depend on the Michigan legislature, and Governor Granholm.

Granholm has created a plan which she believes with help to stimulate the economy although she seems wary about having to change the original tax. According to the article, “Tax Plan Improves Mix for Business,” from the Detroit Free Press, Granholm believes that being competitive on taxes is not necessary for helping the economy. In fact she believes that changing the tax structure will hurt Michigan’s economy. However, the SBT must go, and she must be the one to sign a new law to make up for the $1.9 billion which will be lost.

According to, “Small Business: Mom and Pop Shops; Get Ready for a New Tax”, by Chris Christoff and John Gallagher of the Detroit Free Press, Granholm mentioned that under her new tax plan 111,000 small businesses will end up paying less in taxes and only 30,000 will end up paying more. Gallagher and Christoff also noted that the changing of tax plans is making many business owners nervous. Many business owners who do not currently pay a state tax on their companies, will now have to, and they are not happy about this.

One of the most effected groups of Granholm’s proposed “Michigan Business Tax” (as she is calling it) will be the insurance industry. The article, “Tax Plan Improves Mix for Business,” mentions that this industry is not happy with Granholm’s plan because it will cause them to lose credits, and raise their premium taxes.
Granholm’s plan may, or may not, work, however, it will inevitably be the State Legislature who writes the bill. Granholm is urging the lame duck legislature to write the bill before they leave office at the end of the year. Republicans were the ones who pushed to get the SBT out, so in her mind it should be these Republicans who should write the new bill.

According to “Granholm’s Tax Challenge Shows Poor Leadership” (an article from the Detroit Free Press) expecting the lame duck legislature to write a new bill to replace the SBT is ignorant. According to this article, Granholm should have come up with a plan months ago. The fact that she is expecting legislature to, in only two weeks, write an entire, comprehensive, new business tax plan is unreal. Not only do the legislatures most likely not care about the bills they write, as they are “lame ducks,” but two weeks is simply too short a time for anyone to fix a problem as large as the one the SBT has created.

Most likely the Republican Legislature will not write a new bill before their “lame duck” session is over. The new legislature will have to be responsible for this. The question is, will the new law help to bring Michigan’s economy back to life, or not?

Is a Higher Minimum Wage Helping?
BY JULI DE LEEUW

October 31, 2006 - Minimum wage has finally increased in Michigan. According to the article, “Granholm Calls Minimum Wage Increase a Team Victory,” which can be found online at http://www.michigan.gov/gov/0,1607,7-168--139986--,00.html, minimum wage was scheduled to increase from $5.15 to $6.95 an hour on October 1, 2006. It will then increase two more times by July 1, 2008, until Michiganders make $7.40 per hour. This article also mentioned that this is the first time in nine years the minimum wage for Michigan’s citizens has gone up.

Well, October 1st has come and gone. Citizens in the Great Lakes State are now required by law to receive $6.95 per hour from their employers. A few questions have risen from this new minimum wage law. One of these was addressed in “Support a Higher Minimum Wage” (http://www.higherminimumwage.com/faqs.html). “Will raising the minimum wage hurt small businesses?” According to this article, no. According to one small business owner, the answer was yes.

When Rick De Young, owner of Alger Heights Foods (a small, five isle grocery store), was asked what his thoughts on the new minimum wage increase were he said simply, “It sucks.” Mr. De Young said that he has had to fire the assistant “meat guy” because he can no longer afford to keep him on. He believes that the increase in minimum wage will cause inflation, and he has already seen this in his store. He also said that “raises won’t go up” for people already employed at the store. He did, however, have hope that some good would come out of the increase. De Young said, “We will probably get older people [applying for jobs because] at $6.95 they will probably want to work” He also explained that “we’re not going to hassle with little kids [if we have to] pay them [so much.]”

However, Mr. De Young was generally skeptical about the increase. According to him, “You won’t notice it in a few months [because] prices will go up. [Lansing] should have just kept it the same.”

Now it is for the citizens to decide. In a few years will we be better off, overall, financially then we are now?

Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce presents plan to replace SBT to state legislature
BY EDGARD PORTELA

October 3, 2006 - The Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce presented a plan on September 29th to replace the now defunct Single Business Tax (SBT), saying that their proposed alternative would lower taxes on business and allow the manufacturing sector to have the tools it needs for a rebound. The plan was created in a committee in which representatives from West Michigan’s largest companies were represented, and it has won the support of business people and state legislators alike.

The new tax would be called the Michigan Business Activity Tax and it would tax businesses on a percentage (temporarily set at 0.75 percent) of their gross revenues. The tax would be calculated by taking away from revenues the cost of raw materials or inventory bought for resale, leasing or manufacturing. Companies with revenues of less than $350,000 a year would only pay a flat fee of $150. The proposal would also eliminate the state’s personal property tax, which is a tax based on the value of equipment and machinery of companies. Michigan is one of thirty states in the United States to have such a tax. The proposed plan would free manufacturers of the heavy burden they acquire from such tax, the chamber says. "We want brick and mortar here in Michigan. We want corporate headquarters here in Michigan," said Jared Rodriguez, the chamber's vice president of public policy and government affairs, to the Grand Rapids Press on September 30th, 2006 in an article titled “Chamber proposes tax plan”.

Final numbers have yet to be worked out, but Rodriguez said to the Grand Rapids Press that the proposal would replace from 75 to 90 percent of the $3.9 billion brought by the SBT annually. Local governments that depend on the revenue brought in by the personal property tax would receive a portion of the business activity tax directly. To account for the lost revenue, Medicaid reform and local government and school consolidation was suggested.

"We are at a crossroads right now in Michigan," Rodriguez said to the Grand Rapids Press on September 30th, 2006 in an article titled “Chamber proposes tax plan”. "Some of these tough choices have to be made."

More proposals have been presented throughout the state to replace the SBT, which will officially die Jan. 1, 2008, after the state legislature voted to kill the tax without installing a substitute tax in place. The Detroit Regional Chamber has proposed a business license fee based on a firm's Michigan total sales and retains the personal property tax. Others have suggested increasing the state sales tax to help replace the revenue lost by the killing of the SBT tax.

What plan the state Legislature ultimately will consider is up to a bipartisan House-Senate committee appointed in May. The committee is expected to have a final proposal by Dec. 1.

It is likely that plan will be a mix of different proposals, said Ari Adler, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Ken Sikkema, R-Wyoming. "Everyone thinks their idea's the best," Adler said. "Because there are so many ideas, you will probably see something that is a compilation of different plans. People are coming from different backgrounds."

Health Care Bill
BY JOSEPH MAKUACH

October 3, 2006 - Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed and approved a bill Friday, September 29, 2006 at 7:36 a.m. in Lansing, which offers financial incentives to small businesses that are rewarding their employees for healthy behavior. According to this website http://www.legislature.mi.gov , bill number 848-849, requires health insurers and health maintenance organizations to offer these rebates that will not exceed 10%. It must be made clear, though, that these health organizations are not required to participate in the program. Until now, state law has not allowed rebates for good employee behavior in regards to health. Michigan law currently allows life, auto and home insurers to give rate reductions for actions such as using an antitheft device. The larger companies that are able to insure themselves have offered such incentives for workers to live a healthy lifestyle, but the smaller businesses cannot afford to do this. This bill will help the smaller businesses to run such healthy-living programs. It also allows insurers to offer rebates to individuals buying their own health insurance. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/michigan/
According to Republican State Sen. Tom George of Portage, who was the primary sponsor of the legislation, “The residents of Michigan have a less active lifestyle and smoke more than people in other states.” Therefore, this piece of legislation will ultimately lead to a decrease in insurance costs and medical bills. This law will come into effect next year, 2007.

Keeping Politicians Accountable
BY JULI DE LEEUW

October 3, 2006 - According to the article “Kooiman Pushes Campaign Finance Reforms”, a News Release which was put out by the House Republican Communications Service on September 14, 2006, State Representative Jerry Kooiman and his “legislative colleagues” introduced a multi-bill package to the House. Among this package was House Bill 6129.

According to page one of “House Bill No. 6129”, which can be accessed online at http://67.39.100.122/Bill/bill_text/mi6129.pdf, this bill was created to “amend 1976 PA 388, entitled ‘Michigan Campaign Finance Act’.” House Bill 6129 will make many changes to this act; changes which Rep. Kooiman believes are important to campaign finance reform.

When asked why House Bill 6129 needs to be passed Rep. Kooiman, (R) Grand Rapids, replied “[This bill] seeks to mandate accountability in campaign spending. The bill would shine more light on campaign finances and hold politicians publicly accountable.”

According to Rep. Kooiman, “This particular bill focuses on providing for random audits of nine committees during the general election cycle.” These committees include, “three candidate committees, three ballot question committees, and three independent or political committees.” The bill will also cause “an increase in late fees for candidates who filed late with the Secretary of State.” On top of that it would “[increase] penalties for failure to file a statement of organization, failure to report a late contribution, failure to file a pre-election statement by a ballot question committee, and failure to file a campaign statement. (The late filing fees have not been increased since 1989.)”

“Kooiman Pushes Campaign Finance Reforms” noted that an amendment to Rep. Kooiman’s bill would order the Secretary of State to put a list of all candidates who owe late filing fees on-line for public access. Rep. Kooiman said that House Bill 6129 needs to be passed because, “People should know where the money [for campaigns] is coming from and how it is being used. Auditing ensures that anyone involved in the process can be held accountable.”

The News Release by the House Republican Communications Service states that House Bill 6129 has been approved by the State House of Representatives, and has moved on to the State Senate. However, Kooiman has said that it is difficult to say whether or not the senate will vote on the bill.

Michigan Minimum Wage Laws
BY RACHEL WAITE

April 17, 2006 - According to a workers rights advocacy group, The Michigan State AFL-CIO, It’s been eight years since the minimum wage was last increased and if the minimum wage today was worth what it was in 1968, it would be about $8.50 an hour. The Michigan State AFL-CIO is what resulted when the American Federation of Labor and the Michigan Congress of Industrial Organizations merged in 1958. The Michigan State AFL-CIO position is that Washington is refusing to act, so it’s time that Michigan join the 15 other states that have raised their minimum wage above the federal minimum on their own. According to the Detroit News, the minimum wage Senate Bill 318 that was recently passed, will raise the $5.15 minimum wage to $6.95 in October 2006 and the minimum wage will rise again to $7.15 in July 2007 and $7.40 in July 2008. The Detroit News stated that the Michigan Needs a Raise coalition dropped their campaign to put a proposal on the November 2006 ballot because it got what it wanted with the state Legislature's vote. According to the Detroit News, the ballot proposal would have raised the minimum wage to $6.85 in January and any future increases would have been tied to the inflation rate.

According to the Michigan State AFL-CIO, Michigan needed an increase in minimum wage because forty percent of minimum wage workers are the sole breadwinners in their families. The Michigan State AFL-CIO also pointed out that large proportion of these workers are women and 43% of those who benefited from the last minimum wage increase were women. The Michigan State AFL-CIO, along with other workers rights organizations, supported the House and Senate Democratic proposals to raise Michigan’s minimum wage. The Michigan State AFL-CIO stated raising the minimum wage would benefit at least 464,000 Michigan workers directly, which would be 1 in 5 hourly workers in the state, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

State Legislature Trying to Protect Local Communities Better
BY ANDREW VAN KLOMPENBERG

April 17, 2006 - Local governments are a vital role in protecting the citizens of the United States. Local governments maintain both police and fire departments, whether it is a township, county, or city government. Many local governments pay for these services with the state revenue sharing money that they receive. According to the website www.dowagiacnews.com news article “Revenue Sharing Revisited” Gov. Grandholm has not increased the payments to local governments for the last three budgets. The article also stated that the additional funding local governments would receive would in turn give them the ability to improve community safety overall and implement emergency preparedness strategies.

According to the House Republican Communications Services’ news release “House lawmaker seeks to protect the jobs that protect our communities.” The increase in state revenue sharing payments to the local governments would be $20 million overall, allowing Michigan local governments to earn a minimum of 2-percent increase or a maximum of $2 million. The article also said that House Republicans are asking local government officials to join them in supporting the plan. Also, if local government officials and the House Republicans speak together with one voice through the appropriations process then the plan will be more likely to be signed into law.

Michigan Legislature Takes Action against Unauthorized Sale of Personal Telephone Records
BY RACHEL WAITE

March 27, 2006 - According to the Consumer Affairs website, the practice of obtaining personal information such as telephone records has increased in recent years. This practice is known as pretexting. The Federal Trade Commission reported to a senate committee that an entire industry of companies providing land line and cell phone records has emerged, according to the Consumer Affairs website. These records are usually attained by posing as the costumer, according to the website. The House Democrats website revealed that the one internet blogger admitted to buying the cell phone records of Presidential candidate Wesley Clark from the internet for just under $90.

According to the Official State of Michigan website, Governor Granholm has called for legislation on the unauthorized sale and release of telephone records. The website also said that Granholm has requested that the Michigan Public Service Commission investigate whether telephone service providers in Michigan have allowed the unauthorized release of any records. Democrats in Michigan have answered the Governor’s call and have introduced a five bill package that criminalizes the theft or sale of cell phone records, According to the Michigan House Democrats webpage. A Grand Rapids representative, Michael Sak expressed great concern about anyone having access to our land line or cell phone records.

The Republicans also have concerns about cell phones and privacy rights. According to the Michigan Senate Republican webpage, Senator Bill Hardiman sponsored a bill that would require mobile phone providers to receive written consent from their subscribers before listing them in a national directory. This bill was passed by the Michigan Senate. The concept of having cell phone numbers listed could make it easier for companies to obtain information by posing as the costumer. According to the Senate Republican website, some of the major mobile phone providers have discussed creating a national directory which would potentially included millions of cell phone users. The website also explains that some cell phone users may be at risk for being added to such a directory without their consent because their cell phone contract may have contained a fine print section about this possibility.

State Legislature Votes to Eliminate the Single Business Tax Early
BY ANDREW VAN KLOMPENBERG

March 27, 2006 - With a vote this past Wednesday, March 22nd, the senate passed legislation that would end the Single Business Tax in December of 2007 instead of the original expiration date in late 2009. After the senate voted, it sent the legislation back to the House for final approval. The House passed the legislation the Thursday before. According to the article, ”House votes to repeal Single Business Tax two years early” published on March 17, 2006 in the Lansing State Journal said that House Republicans said that enacting this legislation will help with the state economy, while Democrats say that it will cripple the spending for areas from education to police and fire departments. The same article has Gov. Jennifer Grandholm agreeing that the Single Business Tax is a terrible tax but that there should be something else in place to make up for loses of revenue before the Single Business Tax is eliminated. The same article also has small business owners saying that the tax inhibits them from creating more jobs because it takes into account more than just the profits of the business.

With all these points being voiced, it still doesn’t change the fact that both the House and Senate voted to eliminate the Single Business Tax in December 2007. From the article, “Michigan Senate votes to eliminate business tax” published in the South Bend Tribune on March 22, 2006, even if the Governor vetoes the legislation, a petition drive has started in Oakland County with the same goal of eliminating the tax. With enough signatures, the initiative petition will not go to the governor’s office after being passed by the legislature. These efforts to eliminate the Single Business Tax will just bring an end to the tax earlier than the original expiration date of the tax.

Republican’s reappointment to NRC has unanimous consent of Michigan Senate
BY RACHEL WAITE

February 28, 2006 - At the Senate meeting of the whole on Tuesday, February 21st the Senate voted unanimously to give their consent for the reappointment of Keith J. Charters as chairperson of the Natural Resources Commission. According to the official State of Michigan website, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC) is a public body consisting of seven members. The members are appointed by the Governor and are subject to the consent of the Senate.

Senators of both political parties praised the reappointment of Keith Charters as chairman to the Natural Resources Commission. According to the Republican Senator Jason Allen from Traverse City, Keith Charters is concerned about the environment and the need for habitats to stay in good condition for future generations. According to the Democratic Senator Jim Barcia from Bay City, “His reappointment by Governor Granholm is indicative of the strong bipartisan support he enjoys, and his approval by the Senate will recognize his experience and hard work over the last 12 years.”

Keith Charters is from Traverse City and has been reappointed to the Natural Resources Commission to represent Republicans for a term expiring Dec. 31, 2009, as presented to the Senate. According to the official State of Michigan website, the Natural Resources Commission conducts public meetings once a month in various locations throughout Michigan. The commission encourages citizens to become actively involved in these public forums. Also according to the official State of Michigan website, the commission establishes the general policies for the Department of Natural Resources, hires the Department's Director and the commission also regulates the taking of game. According to Republican Senator Mike Groschka from Brant, “There is no question that he is very committed to the natural resources of Michigan and to be a good steward of our natural resources and of the hunting of animals and of fishing. I have great respect for Keith Charters.” Senator Groschka also commented that he felt Keith Charters has put in an extraordinary amount of time into talking with every day citizens about the issues that are important to them.

Michigan’s Sex Offender Registry, Is It Good Enough?
BY ANDREW VAN KLOMPENBERG

February 27, 2005 - In the United States a major problem is how to deal with sexual predators and keeping the public at large safe. All 50 states have developed laws that would require sex offenders to register and have their names on an official registry according to the article, “Sex Offender Registries Face Legal Challenge” by Kathleen Murphy a staff writer for the website www.stateline.org . Michigan’s law that created the states sex offender registry was discontinued this past June due to being overturned by a federal judge saying that it didn’t allow the people listed a chance to challenge whether they are a danger to society, according to the same article by Kathleen Murphy. Michigan has since changed parts of the sex offender registry laws to allow the person on the registry the chance to a court hearing to give testimony and evidence on why they should not be labeled as a sex offender and have to remain on the registry. In the same article a member of Michigan’s American Civil Liberties Union eluded that not all the people on the sex offender registry are a danger to society but were placed on the registry because of another state law.

The cases that involve people being put on the sex offender registry and may not be a danger to society is a concern of Rep. Van Regenmorter. In the article “Rep. Van Regenmorter to form bipartisan committee on sex offender registry” released by the House Republican Communication Services provided that Van Regenmorter is going to set up a bipartisan subcommittee to look at the many parts of the registry, including how to deal with ‘Romeo and Juliet’ relationship situations, and when a member of a dating relationship breaks age-of-consent laws. The article also states that the subcommittee will report their findings back to the full Judiciary Committee. The article ended by quoting Rep. Van Regenmorter saying that a closer look at how sex offenders are dealt with in Michigan to be sure everything that is possible is done to protect the public from predators.

A Change to the Crime Victims’ Rights Act
BY ANDREW VAN KLOMPENBERG

February 6, 2006 - This past October the state legislature passed legislation that would change the name of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act to the William Van Regenmorter Victims’ Rights Act. According to the Crime Victim Foundation web site Rep. Van Regenmorter wrote the act in 1985 and was approved by the people of Michigan on November 8, 1988 to be added to the Michigan constitution as Article 1, Section 24, the Crime Victim’s Rights Constitutional Amendment. The Crime Victim’s Foundation website also stated that “the Crime Victim's Rights Act was created to: establish the rights of victims of crime and juvenile offenses, provide for certain procedures, establish certain immunities and duties, limit convicted criminals from deriving profit under certain circumstances, prohibit certain conduct of employers or employers' agents toward victims, provide for penalties and remedies.” Because of Van Regenmorter’s work in the area of victims’ rights the House and Senate paid tribute to him by naming the law “The William Van Regenmorter Crime Victims’ Rights Act” according to Rep. Van Regenmorter’s website newswire article “’William Van Regenmorter Victims’ Rights Act’ becomes law.” In a reaction to the tribute the House Speaker Craig DeRoche said that he has long admired Rep. Van Regenmorter as a lawmaker and as a person. He also stated that Rep. Van Regenmorter has set the standard for what lawmakers can hope to accomplish in their job as lawmakers to create laws that protect and benefit the citizens of the state of Michigan. House Speaker Craig DeRoche gave the previous statement to Rep. Van Regenmorter’s website newswire article When asked why he started the long task of writing and enacting the Crime Victims Rights Act Rep. Van Regenmorter said he ”started by being contacted by victims who were having problems with the legal system.” He finished by saying that he “saw a need to fix those problems.” For his work in the field of victim’s rights Rep. Van Regenmorter has been memorialized in the law that he’s worked for even many years after it was passed into law. His work has also been seen on the national level and the now William Van Regenmorter Victims’ Rights Act is serving as a model for the national government and other states to develop similar laws in those governments.

Is out-of-state trash getting out-of-control?
BY RACHEL WAITE

February 6, 2006 - The Michigan House Democrats are at odds with the House Republicans over the issue of imported trash in Michigan according to the Web-Media Center on the House Democrat’s homepage. Michigan has had a problem for the past several years with Canadian and out-of-state garbage coming into the state and this problem threatens to get worse. According to the Michigan House Democrat’s Web-Media Center, Michigan is already the country’s third largest importer of trash and on New Years Day 2006, a ban on new landfills expired. The expiration of this ban gave foreign trash companies an open invitation to continue the large-scale dumping of trash in Michigan. Michigan already attracts Canadian and other out of state trash because of its low dumping cost of 21 cents a ton and its over-abundance of landfills according to the House Democrat’s Web-Media Center. The cost of dumping trash in Michigan is significantly lower compared to other states.

On the House Democrats Web-Media Center, Rep. Kathy Angerer (D-Dundee) who is a sponsor of the Democrat’s anti-trash legislation stated that more landfills will only mean more trash coming into Michigan. Also according to the Web-Media Center, Rep. Kathy Angerer has been one of the main supporters of the anti-trash legislation and she does not believe that her colleagues across the aisle are serious about fighting Canadian and out-of-state trash. She and other House Democrats are upset that the GOP did not shut the lid on new landfills and have not done anything to stop or slow the imported garbage. A special interest group called The Michigan Quality of Life Fund has paid for a website labeled the “trash-o-meter” which calculates the amount of trash in tons that has been imported into Michigan since January 1, 2005. According to the trash-o-meter, more than 6 million tons of Canadian trash came into the Michigan since the beginning of 2005 already, and the expansion of landfills will guarantee this will continue.

According to the House Democrats Web-Media Center, the Democrats have been pushing for anti-trash legislation that includes raising dumping charges to $7.50 per ton, and banning the expansion of landfills until 2010. This would provide a disincentive to dump trash in the state. According to the Web-Media Center the legislation is not supported by the House Republicans. However, the Democrats announced a plan on January 10, 2006 to let the public vote on whether there should be an increase in the dumping costs and a moratorium on landfills in the state until 2010. The House Democrats Web-Media Center also cited House Democratic Leader Dianne Byrum (D-Onondaga) commenting that the Republicans have spent the past year putting the interests of their garbage lobbyist friends above the interests of Michigan citizens. The Web-Media Center explained that Dianne Byrum (D-Onondaga) and other Democrats are arguing that our state needs more jobs, not more landfills. According to the House Democrats Web Media Center, the Democrats have come to the conclusion that it's time to let the people of Michigan decide whether they want to let out-of-state trash destroy our communities.

For more information on the quantity and nature of the trash that has entered the state of Michigan since January, 2005 the public can visit www.trash-o-meter.com . This website was paid for by The Michigan Quality of Life Fund and is supported by the House Democrat’s Web-Media Center.

Trying to Stay WARM
BY RYAN MCGINN

December 8, 2005 - The after effects of hurricanes Katrina and Rita will continue to effect the nation as Natural Gas prices soar by an increase of over fifty percent of last years prices. Around twenty percent of Michigan’s natural gas comes from sources in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Detroit Thomas Edison (DTE) which compared to such states as Florida, which orders almost their entire supply from the coast, will means that Michigan will fare rather well. In fact, according to DTE Energy representative Roger Royer Michigan will have the fifth lowest price in the nation behind Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Alaska. To help residents pay there home heating bills, members of the Michigan House of Representatives, including Michael Sak from the 76th District, have put together a package aimed at, "banning utility companies from shutting off heat services during winter (the 1st of Dec. to the 31st of March), providing additional energy assistance funds (suc h as the Winter Protection Plan [WPP], the Home Heating Credit, Low-Income Energy Assistance Program [LIHEAP], and give residents a tax deduction if they winterize their homes." (Mr. Sak)

In the early 1990's gas prices were around $2 for a thousand cubic feet (Mcf), but had risen to around $10 per Mcf as of last year (DTE). This year Michigan’s price, which is set by the Michigan Public Service Commission, will be around $14.6 per Mcf. In previous years when natural gas prices soared, the Public Service Commission would make its purchase when the price was low and then store that supply inside our soil by injecting it deep into the ground where it could later be released as needed. This technique is unique to Michigan as our land is geologically capable for this procedure. However, many electric companies, including Consumers Energy, have been using natural gas to power their electrical generators and have used up some of that surplus during the summer and did not cause the usual dip in prices. Mr. Royer commented, "I wish I had better news for you guys, but I don’t." at the Winter Assistance Relief in Michigan (WARM) meeting held at St. James Parish on the 1st of December. He continued to point out that Detroit Thomas Edison (DTE) does not profit on the actual commodity price of the gas which composes around seventy-seven percent of the overall price.

Michigan residents who will be most affected by this increase in price include senior citizens and low income households, but there is hope if the proposed legislation passes, according to Mr. Sak. Families that are able to winterize their homes and install energy-efficient appliances will be able to get fifty percent of their expenses back in tax deductions up to $2,500, and it is available to households up to three hundred percent of the poverty level ($58,000 for a family of four). The federal LIHEAP program will get an increase in funds from $1.8 billion to $3.4 billion to help block grants to states that have not increased accordingly with the rate of inflation. Private programs such as THAW, the Heat and Warmth Fund, distributes money through local agencies such as the United Way to provide payment assistance and weather-proofing funds to citizens in crisis. DTE matches all funds THAW raises as well as contributes $60 million to the Michigan Public Service Commission through their Low Income Energy Assistance program.

Mr. Sak believes that, "This is a necessary package to insure our seniors, our parents, and our children will stay safe and warm throughout our long winter season." This package will be funded by the national government and will seek out long term solutions for home heating. Until these funds trickle down from the government Michigan residents must do their best to get through this tough season.

Ban on the Morning-after Pill
BY STEVEN KELLY

December 6, 2005 - A state lawmaker has introduced a bill to ban over-the-counter sales of the morning after pill.

An article written by Gary Heinlein appearing on the Detroit news website (www.detnews.com) on November 25, 2005 called, “Bill would ban over-the-counter sales of the morning after pill,” identifies Rep. John Stahl, R-North branch, as the bill’s main sponsor.

Stahl’s objective for upholding the bill is, he wants to head off an expected loosening of restrictions on the distribution of the drug, which is essentially a high dose birth control pill taken 72 hours after having unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy. He says that he doesn’t think, “There is enough scientific evidence,” for its over-the-counter distribution. He also wants to prevent an increase in sexually transmitted diseases that may result in an increase of unprotected sex.

The House bill comes as Target Corp. on of Americas biggest retailers, defends its policy that its pharmacists may refuse to sell the contraception to customers if it is against their religious and moral beliefs.

Planned Parenthood says that Target’s policy disrespects the customer’s rights, even if the refusing Pharmacist can simply hand the drug to one of the other employees.

According to Heinlein’s article, the bill, pending in committee since last spring, would allow health care workers and institutions to refuse to take part in types of care, such as contraception or sterilization, to which they object on moral or religious grounds.

“We just want to protect them,” said state Rep. Scott Hummel, R- Dewitt, one of the bill’s sponsors. “In other parts of the country, we’ve seen efforts to force (medical Workers) to participate in procedures when they won’t want to.”

Heinlein’s article states that Michigan’s lawmakers have the backing of organizations such as the Michigan Catholic Conference which lists the conscientious objector law of health care workers as one of its key legislative goals. Officials of the Catholic Conference maintain that the right to refuse a procedure that goes against one’s beliefs is an essential part of religious freedom.

The opposition to this legislation comes from those who argue that women should have a right to choose to have a child or not. These groups include the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of Michigan.

An article written by the Center for Reproductive Rights appearing at their website called, “Argument Scheduled for December 20, for Center’s Case against the FDA,” says that the FDA and Michigan’s legislation is putting, “politics before women’s health.”

Jobs Creation for Michigan
BY ABRAHAM DENG

November 29, 2005 - Michigan State is one of the worst among the states that have lost many jobs. But Michigan’s Governor and State legislators are optimistic, asserting that Michigan will be on it feet economically again. The Governor thinks she can make it and is working hard to make the economy keeps growing.
http://www.Michigan.gov/som./o,1607,7-192--130666--,00.html.

On November 21, 2005, Governor Granholm signed a package of bills that will create thousands of new jobs. The bills will invest more than a $ 2 billion in the creation of new jobs that will diversify the state economy. The state will invest more in private investment for life science, advanced manufacturing, alternative energy, and homeland security. The bills will create a 21 st century jobs fund that will be used to invest in new technologies that will drive Michigan’s economy into the future.
http://www.Michigan.gov/som/0,1607,7-192--130666--,00.html.

According to a package of bills passed by the legislature such as alternative energy, advanced manufacturing, life science and homeland security, they will encourage economic diversity and create more jobs in Michigan.
http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2005-2006/billintroduced/house/pdf/2005-HIB-5047.pdf.

As the Michigan’s economy is stagnant, Granholm hopes that things will change for the better. “Today is a turning point for Michigan’s future,” Granholm said. “By investing billions in diversifying our economy, we will create good-paying jobs, high-tech jobs that can’t be out sourced. All the bills that were signed by the Governor will create the following: “Up to $ 450 million venture capital investment fund to help start-up companies succeed; New tax incentives to encourage investor to make and keeps their investments dollars here in Michigan; Improved business climate with lower fees and less red tape for new businesses in Michigan; And New incentives to encourage sciences companies to use Michigan supplies and services.”
http://www.Michigan.gov/som/0,1607,7-192--130666--,00.html.

Granholm is working hard to keep jobs in Michigan. She signed the targeted tax cuts that would help existing manufacturers’ jobs stay right here in Michigan. According to Granholm, by cutting tax fairly, would make Manufacturers and small businesses stay in business as well as in Michigan
http://www.Michigan.gov/som/0,1607,7-192--130666--,00.html

21st Century Jobs for Michigan Fund
BY RYAN MCGINN

November 10, 2005 - On the 19th of October, this year, the State Senate passed Governor Jennifer Granholm’s 21st Century Jobs for Michigan Fund, which would allow the state and the private sector to invest up to $2 billion in Michigan’s economy with which to create thousands of new jobs. "Michigan’s future needs high-growth industries, such as advanced manufacturing, the life sciences, and alternative energy development to compete in a global economy," Granholm said. "Michigan families need the House of Representatives to do the right thing by passing the jobs plan quickly." In order for the Jobs for Michigan Fund to be successful though, state lawmakers need to pass the rest of the Economic Plan which includes such legislation as: restructuring business taxes in Michigan by providing a job-creating tax cut for business taxpayers, new tax credits for manufacturers and Research and Development (R&D) companies, and a rate cut for small businesses. Also, the Jobs Today Initiative will provide new tools that will facilitate the upgrading of schools, downtowns, and nursing homes. The JTI will make colleges accessible to all future high school graduates by guaranteeing every Michigan student the opportunity to attend college. Every child who graduates from high school and completes two years of college, community college, or apprenticeship training will be guaranteed a $4,000 scholarship. (Michigan.gov Article "Granholm's 21st Century Jobs Plan Okayed by Senate; Governor Calls for House Approval" Oct 19, 2005.

So how is the state going to get investors to contribute $2 billion dollars? By offering general obligation bonds in that amount over ten years. Up to twenty percent could be spent in 2006, with up to an additional ten percent in each of the next eight years. In order for a business to receive some of this funding their programs must first undergo a peer review involving experts in competitive edge technology, and they will base their decisions on scientific value, market success, and the potential to create future jobs. However, investment decisions will be made through private equity and venture capital management firms in the effort to fuel additional investments in Michigan-based competitive edge technology businesses. Also, an annual audit of bond proceed expenditures would be posted on the internet for the general public in an effort to create transparency and accountability. Debt service on the bonds will be paid first from a combination of sources, including tobacc o settlement funds otherwise set aside for Life Sciences and Technology Tri-corridor funding (the current program to invest money into the technical job market), returns from pre-2006 Life Sciences/Technology Tri-Corridor activities, and returns from Jobs for Michigan Fund program activities. (Granholm)

However, what are the consequences the citizens may face if the state issues $2 billion dollars worth of bonds and cannot repay them? The Jobs for Michigan Find directly states that tax dollars can never be used to fund this project. It has not mentioned how the fund would be repaid if it were to fail. Another possible problem is the equal distribution across the state. One of the main focuses of this fund is to allow Detroit-based motor companies funds to invest into the hydrogen fuel cell so that it can be produced in the state of Michigan and not elsewhere. Yet, the unemployed do not solely live in Detroit. The panel set up to decide the distribution of these funds will be from independent investment groups and such as above stated, but can they fit all varieties of business’ needs?

The House of Representatives, particularly the Republican Representatives, will have to decide if this should pass or undergo further scrutiny. This reporter attempted to contact several likely Republican Representative for a comment, but many were still deciding, though almost all of them agreed that it would be a tough decision. "Education is the key to Michigan’s future as well as the nation’s," Granholm said. "Now that we are a step closer to creating the types of knowledge-based jobs that can’t be outsourced, we need to ensure that Michigan citizens have the education and training needed to fill those jobs." Without a doubt, a dream come true to many Michiganders.

*Side Note: Since the completion of this article the House of Representatives has passed the Jobs for Michigan Fund and also added a $1 billion dollar tax cut directed towards manufacturing, and small businesses. (Michigan.gov Article "Granholm, Legislative Leaders Agree on $3 Billion Job Package" November 4, 2005)

Tuition Reduction for Non-residents of Designated States
BY ABRAHAM DENG

November, 9, 2005 - There are some occasions that one may decide to school in another state. But such decision is difficult mostly for poor students because of Out-of-State high tuition and fees that one may be charged for not being the resident of that particular state. Well here may be some good news for those who are residing in states of Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and the province of Ontario; they are admitted to public institutions of higher education in this state of Michigan. The tuition and fees will be that of in-state student but be equal to out-of-district student which is not as bad as out-of-state tuition and fees. (http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2005-2006/billgrossed/house/htm/2005-HEBS)

“Reciprocal Agreement” means “contractual arrangement permitting resident students of designated states to be admitted to a public institution of higher education in other states at an agreed tuition rate of less than the normally charged non-resident students of that state.” The program “Reciprocal Agreement” doesn’t apply to everyone but to those who are admitted through program, and designated public institutions of higher education in Michigan. In May, 19, 2005, the bill passed the Senate. This bill was aiming at reducing heavy tuition and fees that were put on the shoulders of out-state students. This will be a “New Deal” for poor students of those designated states who are interested in studying outside of their own states of residency (http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2005-2006/publicact/htm/2005-PA-0034.htm)

The reciprocal exchange of educational services between Michigan and others states to reduce or waived the tuition and fees shall be reviewed annually by the Department of Economic Growth so that to correct imbalances where applicable. The bill wouldn’t be renewed or extended without approval of the Appropriations of Committees to be valid. (http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2005-2006/billanalysis/house/htm-HLA-4)

Prohibition Takes a new Twist
BY STEVEN KELLY

November 8, 2005 – An article written by Julia Bauer, in the Grand Rapids press called, “Now, You can Buy Wine via E-mail,” featured a ruling by U.S district court judge, Bernard Friedman. In his ruling he declared 1985 Michigan law unconstitutional that banned consumers from buying wine over the internet from out-of-state origins, but still allowed instate shipments. Yet Friedman’s ruling recognized the authority of the state legislature to amend the law to regulate shipments
The case started when the plaintiffs, wine writers, Eleanor and Ray Heald sued when they believed that their constitutional Rights were being violated.

The wine Journalists from Troy, Michigan, taught a wine-tasting course at Townsend Hotel in Birmingham. They had to stop teaching it in 1999 because the out of state wineries stopped shipping the small samples of their wines to them due to the strict regulations in Michigan.

“This is a big victory for little people who like wine,” said Mrs. Heald of Friedman’s ruling.

“Judge Friedman was just upholding the ruling of the supreme court,” said Melissa Christianson, spokeswoman for Mike Cox, the state attorney general. In the same article she says, “We are also pleased that the court recognized the authority of Michigan’s legislature to decide on what the state policy should be on direct wine shipments in the future.”

Previously Cox was determined to ban all direct shipments of wine as a result of the ruling.

Another article written by David Shepardson, on November 2nd, posted on the Detroit News website (detnews.com), called, “Judge allows wine into Michigan” says that the Supreme Court made a similar ruling in May stating, “Michigan Law discriminates against out of state Wine sales.” They ruled that all wineries had to be treated the same.

During the case, Anthony Kennedy wrote that the, “Discriminatory Character of the Michigan system is obvious-- the current patchwork of laws, with some states banning direct shipment altogether and others doing so for only out of state wines.... is essentially the product of an ongoing, low level, trade war. ]

The second article holds that opponents of the new ruling are concerned that minors will find a way to buy wine online that thereby bypass the laws— a suggestion that was discounted by Mark Johnson, Vice president of Chateau Chantal, a winery in Traverse City.

“Ludicrous.” Says Johnson, “It doesn’t happen. I have an 18-year-old son. I know how they get their booze. He’s not calling up the winery and trying to trick us.”
Fenn Valley Vineyard Owner Doug Welsh says in the first article, “The court’s ruling will have little immediate impact on the industry.” In the long run however, he says that he would enjoy a little competition, instate or out of state.

Tobacco Act
BY RYAN MCGINN

November 2, 2005 - In order to pinch a few pennies many tobacco users have begun to purchase their supply off the internet. However, many youths have abused this loophole to acquire tobacco before they reach the legal age. In addition, the State taxes on tobacco, known as a SIN tax, are not being enforced since the tobacco being purchased usually comes from outside of Michigan, or even outside the United States that may not have a SIN tax. Also, by mailing the tobacco directly to the customer and not through a local retailer, there is no way the local law enforcement can track these packages. Local lawmaker Mike Sak (76th District) emphasizes, "Consumers who purchase tobacco products over the internet should be held to the same laws as other consumers."

But how can the government get a hold on such an issue? State Representative Edward Gaffney of Michigan’s 1st district proposed an amendment in the form of House Bill 4151 to 1993 Public Act 327, Tobacco Products Tax Act, specifically amending section 11 as of the 18th of Oct. 2005. This will require age verification to not only the seller, but also to the delivery company by requiring someone of legal age to sign for the package upon delivery. All shipments must also clearly be marked with "CIGARETTES" on the outside of the package. HB 4151 goes on to define such things as a computer, computer system, computer program, etc, and therefore eliminating many possible loopholes buyers may try to use to bypass the new bill by simply stating that they used a device, such as a Blackberry, to order instead of the traditional desk top computer.

So just how effective will this measure be? When this reporter asked a tobacco user who wished to remain anonymous how she felt about this attempt to make it more difficult to purchase cheaper cigarettes she responded, "If they are going to raise prices anyway I might as well just go to the store and save myself the hassle." Apparently, the amendment is beginning to show promise.

House Bill Denying Teens the “Gift of Gab” While Driving
BY STEVEN KELLY

October 17, 2005- Michigan State legislature is processing a bill that will make it illegal to talk on the cell phone while driving. According to an article written by Larry P. Vellequette in the Toledo Blade Newspaper called, “Bills Could Disconnect Teen Drivers’ Cell Phones,” published on Oct. 15 2005, the House Judiciary Committee unanimously approved the bill that would smack teens with a $50 fine if they were caught talking on their cell phones or using other wireless devices while driving.

What do Michigan teens think about this?

In the October 17th edition of the Midland daily news in an article called, “Cell Phone Bill Targets Teens”, Jacob Wagner, a senior at Bullock Creek High School, says that he doesn’t think the bill is fair. He says, “I see many people over the teenage age pulling in front of people, in front of me, talking on cell phones.” He thinks that the law should target people of all age groups.

In the same article, Janice Goodall, Principle at H.H. Dow High School says she doesn’t see students talking on their cell phones any more than their role models – adults. She continues, “Teenagers tend to mimic their older counterparts.” She would also like to see the legislature go after a broader range of drivers.
In Mr. Vellequette’s article, John Moore, a retired principle who continues to teach driver’s education after 27 years, said that he’s not sure if the bill targeting talkative teens is unnecessarily discriminatory.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Car accidents remain the leading cause of death for people ages 15-20. Almost 64,000 youths were killed between 1995 and 2004. The NTSB estimates that driver distraction contributes to the cause of 20-30 percent of all motor vehicle crashes—1.2 million accidents. For these reasons, eleven states, including the District of Columbia, restricts the use of wireless devices among novice drivers.

Rep. David Law, a West Bloomfield Republican who is sponsoring the bill said the state needs to do everything it can to help teen drivers keep attention on the road. In the article, “Cell Phone Bill Targets Teens,” Law says, “Inexperienced Drivers not paying attention to the road can have devastating results. He hopes to see the law reach the desk of Jennifer Granholm by the year’s end.

If approved by the House, the bill will move on to the Senate.

Some one making decision and not the owner, why?
BY ABRAHAM DENG

October 13, 2005 - It was the case of Roe against Wade in 1973 that the Supreme Court made the decision that it should not be the politician or the government or whosoever to decide for woman, but should be a woman to decide for herself whether or not to terminate her pregnancy. Since that long time until recently, the Roe’s case remain just a word of and not something put into full action

http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/legislature/index.cfm.

Nowadays, the pro-life groups have breed well and have tremendous power across the country. The pro-life groups are the people likely found in the County Courthouse, hospital board, running medical schools, writing state laws, governing the statehouses, the United State Congress and the White House.

Since 1995, 400 pro-life measures have been enacted in Michigan so far. In 2004 alone, Michigan has enacgted 20 new pro-life measures. And it was in 2004 that Michigan enacted a law that could ban aborgtion to be performed at a very early stage of pregnancy. The nearly two identical bills were passed by the the Legislature, but were vetoed by Pro-choice Governor Jenifer Granholm. This ban was then enacted by a “citizen initiative.” After the abortion ban was passed by the Legislature, which could neither be vetoed by the Governor, nor overturned via ballot vote. In September, 2005 it was declared as unconstutionally by a court because of the followings: “(1) fail to protect the health of woman, (2) Place an undue burden on woman’s right to reproductive choice, (3) contains a constitutionally inadequate life exception, and (4) include language that is unconstutional vague

House Bills 4501 and 4502: Gas Pump Inaccuracies
BY RYAN MCGINN

October 6, 2005 - As if the rising costs of Petroleum were bad enough, the Michigan Department of Agriculture has discovered an increase in the amount of finable citations issued for substandard fuel quality and weight/ measurement violations; an increase of more than $300,000 compared to the fines issued in 1996 through 1997 ($13,498). The goal of the bills by amending sections 4, 10a, and 10b of 1984 P.A. 44 (MCL 290.644 et seq), as of the 6th October 2005, is to increase the penalties for multiple violations of the Motor Fuels Quality Act (Public Act 44 of 1984) and the Weights and Measures Act (Public Act 283 of 1964). How serious does the State Legislature plan on being? The bill’s sponsor, Fran Amos (43rd District) asserts that "With record high gas prices that promise to continue their climb, we need to crack down on service station owners who try to cheat the public. Michigan’s citizens work hard for their money and they can ill afford to be robbed of it."

Currently, the fines for a fuel quality violation according to Public Act 44 of 1984 range from $100-500 for the first offense, $500-1,000 for a second, and $1,000-2,000 for a third as long as both the second and third occur within a five-year time frame from the date of the initial offense. In addition, a person who violates the Motor Fuels Quality Act may be guilty of a misdemeanor that is punishable by no more than 90 days of imprisonment, and a fine between $1,000-2,000. The grounds for the misdemeanors (P.A. 44) are: (1) harms part of a stage 1 or 2 vapor-recovery system; (2) makes a false representation; (3) fails to disclose information relating to the harm of a stage 1 or 2 vapor-recovery system; (4) falsifies records; (5) removes a seal placed on a dispenser; or (6) violates the act or rules for which a penalty is not otherwise specified. House Bill (4501) would double the range for second and third offenses, and would increase the fine for an offender, who is found guilty of a misdemeanor violation or for someone who is found guilty of impersonating a director or an inspector to a fine between $5,000-15,000.

As for violators of the Weights and Measures Act, the current fines (P.A. 44) range from $50-1,000 for first offenses, $100-5,000 for a second as well as investigation costs, and for a third offense violators are fined $5,000-10,000 plus investigation costs. This House Bill (4502) will increase the fines for second and third violations to between $1,000 and $7,500 for a second violation, and between $2,000 and $10,000 for a third violation. Unlike Bill 4501, there is no mention of incarceration or other offense that would lead to imprisonment.

But just how much damage can some bad gas be for a car? According to the State of Michigan website, www.Michigan.gov/mda (MDA Motor Fuels Program), consumers have a lot at stake when they pull up to a gasoline pump. The average family sedan costs $22,000 and uses more than 750 gallons of gasoline each year. Just one purchase of poor quality gasoline could result in thousands of dollars of damage or premature engine wear to the consumer's vehicle. As for quantity, Michigan uses five billion gallons of motor fuel each year. And according to information provided by Fran Amos (43rd District), if just 10% of the stations shorted consumers by two tablespoons (about half an ounce per gallon) from every gallon of gasoline they sold this year, consumers would be overcharged $24 million (at $2.00 per gallon).

However, the real concern seems to be with multiple violators. According to local State Representative Michael Sak (76th District), "If we should continue to see multiple violations from the same retailer, than we should see an increase of fines against that provider (Retailer)." The revenue created by these fines is used exclusively for the purpose of funding the gasoline inspection and testing program and the vapor-recovery program established by the Motor Fuels Quality Act, and not other State projects. As of September 27, 2005, the fiscal year 2005 House recommended budget for Agriculture includes one million dollars for enhancements to the Motor Fuels Quality program. If anyone has a complaint involving fuel quality or inaccurate measurements, the toll-free number for reporting such incidents is 1-800-MDA-FUEL.

Protecting our children
BY ABRAHAM DENG

September, 27, 2005 - In the month of May, there were a series of investigations done under the request of the Granholm Administration. The investigation found out that children who are too young at the age of nine, have access to purchase adult-rated games which are inappropriate for children safety. The investigation was conducted in the counties of Cass, Ingaham, Genesee, Lenawee, Monroe, and Wayne. 26 of 58 stores in the above mentioned counties sold videos rated games to minors. (http/www.michigan.gov/som/0, 1607, 7-192-29939-126123--, 00.html)

Due to the shameful act of selling adult video rated games to minors, Governor Granholm signed the two bills packages that will ban adult video games sale to minors from age 17 and younger. And the bill will effective on December, 1, 2005.During the State-Address, Governor Granholm recognized Senator Clarke for the efforts on the issue. Senator Clark (D-Detroit), Representative Angerer (D-Bedford TWP) and the law enforcement leaders across the state were pivotal in passing this kind of legislation. (htpp/www.michgan.gov/som/0, 1607, 7-192-29939-126123--, 00.html)

Governor Granholm as a mother and a leader of the community, she has firm records of protecting kids. “Protecting our children must be our top priority,” Said Granholm. “This is a common sense law that provides parents with the tools they need to protect their children from the effects of violence and graphic adult content.” (htpp/www.michigan.gov/som/0, 1, 607, 7-192-29939-126123--, 00.html)

“The graphic nature and wide availability of these games should disturb us all, whether or not we are parents,” Granholm said. “I am proud to sign this legislation that will protect children from this kind of content.” (htpp//www.michigan.gov/som/0, 1607-192-29939-1261223--, 00.html)

Granholm as an attorney protected children; she formed the high tech crime unit who will work with Michigan State Police to pin down those who use the internet for activities such as child pornographers and predators. For parents who believe in child safety, there is no doubt that Granholm will do the best job protecting kids. (http//www.michigan.gov/som/0, 1607, 7-192-29939—00.html )

Deadly Force Legislation Proposed in MI Disturbs Antigun Groups
BY STEVEN KELLY

September 26, 2005 - On Wednesday September 7, 2005 two bills, no. 5142 and 5143, were proposed in the state legislature by Rep. Tom Casperson and Rep. Rick Jones, both republican. The bills state that in a case of self defense the victim is allowed to meet force with force when he or she deems death or severe bodily injury imminent. The bill also removes the duty to retreat.

The house bills no. 5142 and 5143 are an amendment to a previous bill, 1927’s Public act 175. Their purpose is to serve as a “defense to a prosecution involving the use or attempted used of deadly force that the person acted in lawful self defense or lawful defense of another person.”

It provides what kind of situation will be considered self defense and that the victim cannot be arrested for acting in defense of himself or others.

Bill 5143 supplies that the victim is presumed to have, “reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great bodily harm,” or if the person against whom the defensive force was used is in the act of or had “unlawfully and forcibly entered” a dwelling, residence or occupied vehicle. Also, the person knew or had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry or act was occurring or had occurred.

David Frownfelder, a columnist for the Daily Telegram of Lenawee County and a strong opponent of the Deadly Force legislation, expresses his views about it in his commentary. In his most recent article written on, Sept. 26, 2005 titled, “Welcome back, Wyatt Earp” He said that “Paranoia and personal property overtook common sense and self-restraint” and it would create a bunch of, “would be Dirty Hairys.”

In an article by ABC news called, “Gun Control Groups Take Aim at Michigan’s Deadly Force Legislation” printed on Sept. 21, 2005 Rep. Rick Jones said, “Our intent is to protect crime victims who are in imminent danger of losing their lives.” The former Eaton County Sheriff said, “This does not put more guns on the street. This will not create the OK corral.”

Evidence in support of Jones’ assumption, that this legislation would not create and OK corral, is supplied by the NRA and states that less than a quarter of all violent crimes occurred with a knife or gun.

In the same article, Shikha Hamilton, head of the state’s Million Mom March chapter, said, “The scariest part is that they’re removing the duty to retreat. That’s really there to preserve life.”

The article by ABC holds Rep. William Van Regenmorter, Chairmen of the house Judiciary Committee, as a strong proponent for victim’s rights.
He says, “I think there’s a fundamental right to protect oneself.” He continues, “But I want to know what the practical implications are, and there are probably quite a few.”

Frownfelder states in his article that no dates have been set for action on the bills; but ABC holds that many people who are antigun proponents are calling and sending post cards to their representatives telling them their concerns.

School Funding Doing the High Speed Shuffle… Downhill
BY PAUL SCHELLENBERGER

April 12, 2005 - By the last U.S. Census Report the entire Michigan School system is going to the dogs; Financially that is. The State of Michigan since 1998 has fallen from 6th to 16th place in the nation for school funding as reported by the Grand Rapids Press April 7th issue. While many other states have begun to increase their budgets for schools. Michigan’s dropping at a phenomenal rate. A Michigan State Professor, Mr. David Plank, stated for the Grand Rapids Press April 7th issue that, “This is a very big change and all of the change is in one direction.” Later in the same article Mr. Plank went on to say that, “We’re not bouncing around. We’re falling pretty much like a rock.” This type of statement from the co-director of the Education Policy Center is a pretty clear endorsement to the Legislature to fix the current deficit and get the schools back on track. There is no clear plan out to handle the current funding problem, but all that can be said is that this must be handled soon before the Michigan schools sink any lower. Reports show that Michigan is still one of the leading states in the Midwest barely behind number 13, Wisconsin as reported by the United States Census Bureau, 2004 report. The per city funding on the other hand is not so good. Grand Rapids itself gets 6,782 dollars a student and falls at number 38 in the nation in between Louisiana and Kentucky as reported by the GR Press April 7th issue. Rhonda Grochowalski, Grand Rapids School Board Member, said the spending figures are misleading because it shows the total amount spent by the state, not the local districts as reported by the GR Press April 7th issue. The State Legislature will need to take action to curb the decline before the Michigan school system sinks into disrepair. With tax cuts taking 580 million dollars out of the General Revenues Fund, as stated by the GR Press April 7th issue, which is used to supplement the School Aid Fund.

Democrats Hope to Push Minimum Wage
BY RUSS HELSEL

April 11, 2005 - According to the Detroit Free Press and Lansing State Journal, Michigan Democrats are trying to draw support for House Bill 4514-18 and Senate Bills 318 and 320. These bills would raise the states minimum wage from $5.15 an hour, to $7.15 an hour. The Democrats will travel around the state this month to push for the minimum wage increase.

As a proponent for the minimum wage increase, Michigan House Minority Leader Dianne Byrum said, “The public is strongly behind our efforts to increase the minimum wage so that people who work hard can earn a decent living” in a statement she released in the March 21, edition of the Detroit Free Press. In the same article she also stated, “House Democrats are going across the state to push for a higher state minimum wage.” The Democrats will hope to influence the Republican-controlled House through a number of town hall meetings held at different locations across the state.

Opponents of the bills, such as Speaker of the House Craig DeRoche, told the Detroit Free Press in a statement released by spokesman Matt Resch, “The increase in minimum wage will hinder any kind of business growth when Michigan needs it most.” He also stated, “Michigan was the only state in America last year that lost jobs, and no amount of news conferences, town hall meetings or political spin will change the fact that the Democratic proposals will cost even more workers their job in the future.”

According to information obtained in the March 27, edition of the Lansing State Journal, the bills break down the following way: both the House and Senate Bills would increase state minimum wage 75 cent in July, another 75 cents in January of 2006, and finally another 50 cents in January of 2007. This would eventually change our minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.15, if the bills were passed.

In the aforementioned Lansing State Journal article, “Republicans claim that a minimum wage hike would be a job killer and won’t be taken up.” Democrats dispute the notion that a higher minimum wage will cost the state jobs, they point out many of the 14 states that have a higher minimum wages have low unemployment.
Whatever the decision business owners and employees alike will eagerly await the outcome of the proposals.

Insurance Rates no Longer Based on Credit Score
BY MICHELLE VANDEN BERG

April 11, 2005 - Michigan State Legislature has passed a law prohibiting insurance companies from basing home and motor vehicle insurance rates on credit scores. According to "Credit Scoring", an article written in April 2005, found on the Insurance Information Institute's web site, http://iiidev.org/media/hottopics/creditscoring, the institute explains that profits are maximized when insurance companies are able to accurately correlate rates with the actual cost of claims. They (Insurance Information Institute), claim that there is a correlation between a person's score and the person's likelihood of filing a claim. In other words, as they (Insurance Information Institute) explain, "Statistically, people with a poor insurance score are more likely to file a claim."

The state Office of Financial and Insurance Services opposed the idea of basing insurance rates on credit scores. David Eggert, in an article written February 17, 2005 in the Associated Press, writes that the OFIS found the practice to be "unfair, inaccurate and illegal." Eggert also quotes Linda Watter, the state's insurance commissioner, as saying, "By eliminating this unfair and illegal practice, these rules will lower rates for most Michigan citizens, especially in urban areas."

However, there has been some opposition. Eggert quotes Sen. Bishop as saying, "I'm very concerned these proposed rules will have the opposite effect. Beware of the law of unintended consequences."

Michigan will soon see the effects of this change. The law will likely take effect in July 2005.

State House tries to reinstate the Ten Commandments
BY PAUL SCHELLENBERGER

March 29, 2005 - On Friday, the Michigan State House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow the posting of the Ten Commandments in public areas. The vote ended up at 74 to 34 with the bill passing as posted by the Grand Rapids Press March 25 issue. This bill will allow the posting of the Ten Commandments in public areas as long as they coincide with a historic article such as the Declaration of Independence or a State’s constitution as stated by the GR Press March 25 issue. This bill now sits on the table of the Michigan State Senate. The Senate though refuses to view or vote on the bill due to a current U.S. Supreme Court case that will say whether you can post the Ten Commandments and how you may post them as stated by the GR Press March 25 issue. The reason this is in the Supreme Court is because it may violate the U.S. Constitutions Separation of Church and State clause. The Senate will not view the articles till the Supreme Court makes its official ruling. That ruling is expected to come in June as stated by CNN.com.

In the House the bills majority of supporters were Republicans, but the bill also received support from 17 Democrats as stated by the GR Press March 25 issue. The opposition to the bill was an all Democrat consensus who’s problem with the bill was the impending Supreme Court ruling on the subject. The State House’s leading Democrat Mr. Steve Tobocman personified that claim with the statement to the Grand Rapids Press on the 25 of March that, “I don’t know why we’re moving forward while the Supreme Court is going to come up with specific language on this.”

The House Proposes New Safety Measures for Schools
BY MICHELLE VANDEN BERG

March 28, 2005 - Earlier this month, the House proposed an amendment to House Bill No. 4460. This bill covers fire prevention and safety drills for Michigan schools. While the old bill included fire and tornado drills, the proposed bill would also include new lockdown drills. According to the bill as stated on www.legislature.mi.gov , these new lockdown drills would have to be conducted a minimum of two times per school year in addition to the six yearly fire drills and two yearly tornado drills. Lockdown drills would be carried out in order to secure the school premises, confine the students, and any other security measures as appropriate to an emergency such as the release of a hazardous material or the presence of an armed individual on or near the premises. This new drill would help prepare Michigan schools for a terrorist attack.

The Detroit Public Schools are one example of the many Michigan schools facing the challenges of preparing for terrorism attacks. At present, the "Detroit Public Schools (DPS) is failing when it comes to preparing its schools for terrorism," says an article found on www.americaprepared.org . This article states several reasons why DPS is not fully prepared. One reason is the lack of enforcement on current drill regulations. Right now there are no follow-ups to make sure a school is performing the required safety procedures. Another reason is that there are not enough staff or enough funds to carry out all necessary procedures. The article states that 200 of Detroit Public Schools's 500 security guards have recently been laid off. Yet another reason is that parents are not receiving the information that some schools insist they've been mailing. These newsletters contain instructions about emergency preparedness. Apparently the letters aren't reaching the parents, or the parents aren't reading them. Other methods of informing the parents, such as radio interviews and parent meetings, have so far been equally unsuccessful.

Whatever the reasons, the problems facing the Detroit Public Schools are just a sample of what other Michigan schools are currently or will soon be facing if the bill passes. The Detroit Public Schools are not alone, the Detroit News Report in March 2003 as quoted www.americaprepared.org , says that only "one in five Michigan schools has no safety plan for dealing with bomb scares, hostage situations, shootings, and other critical incidents." If House Bill No. 4460 is approved, our schools may yet become a safer place for our kids.

Put A Cork In It
BY RUSS HELSEL

March 28, 2005 - A bill that would allow patrons of their favorite restaurants to bring home not only their leftover food, but also their leftover bottle of wine is in the making. Senate Bill 199, which already passed a senate subcommittee and is going to be introduced to the full senate sometime in the coming weeks, will try to make this a reality.

The bill sponsored by Republican State Senator Jud Gilbert hopes to accomplish two things, according to the March 11, 2005 addition of the Lansing State Journal. First, it would reduce the number of drunk driving incidents, because people would be less inclined to finish bottles of wine before they left the restaurant. Second, it will boost the income of restaurants, as patrons will purchase more upscale bottles of wine and more bottles of wine in general.

Senate Bill 199 would require that restaurants cap or recork the bottle of wine. If they chose to recork the bottle, they must have the cork flush with the top of the bottle, like when it was originally purchased. Patrons must make sure that the bottle is placed in the trunk and if a trunk is not available it must be placed out of reach, according to March 3, 2005 edition of The Times Herald.

Opponents in the aforementioned Times Herald article did not see as many benefits as State Senator Gilbert saw. Lenny Pecore, general manager of the River Crab restaurant in St. Clair township, stated, “Its just not a good idea, there is really no good way to recork a bottle, this could lead to open intoxicants in a car, which is never good.”

Proponents of the bill agree with Senator Gilbert, according to The Times Herald. Michigan Restaurant Association spokesman, Andy Deloney, stated, “With the economy the way it is, this will allow people to feel like they are not wasting money. It will also have an impact on drunk driving, people won’t be compelled to slug down an entire bottle.”

According to The Times Herald, “Senator Gilbert was originally approached by the Michigan Restaurant Association about the legislation. The association has about 4500 members and is a contributor to the Gilbert campaign.”

Wine lovers and restaurant owners alike will eagerly await a decision from the Michigan Legislature on Senate Bill 199.

The 2006 Elections get rolling Early
BY PAUL SCHELLENBERGER

March 16, 2005 - On Friday of last week the gubernatorial elections got rolling early. Not the election itself but the partisan fighting in the capital. The fighting started when the GOP majority House and Senate refused one of Granholm’s appointments to the State Board of Canvassers on the Grounds of Oath Breaking as reported by the Grand Rapids Press March 11 edition. Dorothy Jones, A liberal from Ypsilanti, was to be appointed to a third four year term on this bi-partisan board as reported in the GR Press March 11 issue. Her appointment was refused by the Senate on the grounds of not allowing Ralph Nader on the 2004 ticket, and voting against the Gay Marriage Amendment; which Ms. Jones thought was vaguely worded, GR Press March 11th issue. This is some showing of the first powerful partisan division in the senate since the 2002 election. After two years of quiet cooperativeness from the Congress; the State may see its next batch of infighting since the 2004 Presidential Elections. GOP members of the legislature have also been denouncing Granholm’s plans to cut the Merit Award Scholarship, a 500 dollar add on to the MEAP that’s determined by Middle School Scores. Craig DeRoche, House Speaker from Novi, is counted as saying to the Grand Rapids Press on March 11th that, “Its all in black and white, and it’s time to stop playing politics and get back to the promise that we made to these children in writing.” Granholm did counter this problem on Sunday the 13th when she revoked her plan to discard the Merit Scholarship as reported by the Grand Rapids Press.

In the Article “Congress Smells Blood” by Paul Schellenberger, it said that Jack Hoogendyk and Nancy Cassis bid for the Governorship would signal the beginning of the partisan backlash and now a month after the articles publication that line holds true. With the elections over a year away it would seem that the issue that come to the capital after this point will all be marred by partisan assaults.

Students Get Raw Deal
BY RUSS HELSEL

March 14, 2005 - Speaker of the Michigan House, Craig DeRoche, went to work trying to save the $500 middle school Merit Award Scholarship from being cut from Governor Jennifer Granholm’s proposed budget.

According to the February 24th edition of the Detroit Free Press, “An estimated 48,600 high school seniors who were promised the scholarships for passing state achievement tests while in middle school would not see that money under Governor Granholm’s proposed budget.

According to the aforementioned Detroit Free Press article, “Students who pass the high school MEAP (Michigan Education Assessment Program) and enroll in Michigan colleges will still be eligible for the $2,500 Michigan Merit Award Scholarship.” Governor Granholm’s proposed budget would cut the additional $500 added to the scholarship through performance on the middle school MEAP test. In a statement in the February 25th edition of the Lansing State Journal House Speaker DeRoche stated, “The fact that we are proposing reneging on a promise to middle school students that achieve on their MEAP tests is something that is outrageous.”

Figures given by the Lansing State Journal indicate that not giving the middle school Merit Scholarship would save the state an estimated $9 million.” Granholm’s spokeswoman, Liz Boyd said in the same article, “The state simply does not have enough money to pay for the middle school Merit Award Scholarship. In many ways it was a hollow promise made by the Engler administration.”

DeRoche’s opposition to this cut hurts the budget proposal’s chances in the Republican-controlled Legislature. DeRoche ended his statement in the Lansing State Journal saying, “These kids did their work, they studied and got the grades, and now they are getting a raw deal.”

Legislature Encounters Difficulties with MEAP Awards
BY MICHELLE VANDEN BERG

March 14, 2005 - The state of Michigan is known for its edge in education over other states. Yet even those states leading the way are bound to experience occasional glitches. One glitch the state and legislature is currently tackling involves the Michigan Educational Assessment Program, also known as MEAP. One problem is explained in an article in the Associated Press written by Tim Martin. It quotes state officials as saying that, "The state is trying to figure out which high school seniors are eligible for college scholarship money they earned in middle school." Another problem they are facing is the controversy caused by Governor Granholm's budget proposal.

Seventh and eighth grade students who took the MEAP test and scored well were eligible for a $500 Michigan Merit Award to be given to them upon graduation from high school. Those middle school students are now high school seniors, and many have retaken the MEAP test again in high school. Students who scored well on the high school MEAP test were eligible for a Michigan Merit Award worth $2500. The state's problem occurs when they try to match the two awards to the right student. According to the same article in the Associated Press, "The MEAP tracking issue relates to students who were in middle school before 2003, when the state adopted a system that assigns a single identification number to each student."

However, Governor Granholm may completely eliminate that problem. In an article found on www.mlive.com written by Judy Putnam, March 12, 2005, it states that she proposed cutting the $500 middle school award in order to save the state approximately 9 million dollars. This same web site also says that Granholm's proposal ran into opposition from Republicans such as House Speaker Craig DeRoche. The opposition stemmed from the Republican's stance that the money promised to students should be given to them. Granholm replied in a written statement found on the same web site, that she had not known about the letters sent to students by a state contractor notifying them that they had passed the test. "Since students were notified for this scholarship, they will receive the scholarship-period," she said.
At present, the state is working on a database to match student's scores, according to the article written by Tim Martin in the Associated Press. Meanwhile, students can rest in the assurance given by a Republican spokesperson for Craig DeRoche quoted in the same press article, "It's a promise made (providing students with the award), and we should keep it."

The New MEAP Replacement Test
BY MICHELLE VANDEN BERG

February 21, 2005 - Students have often viewed the Michigan Educational Assessment Program, also known as the MEAP, as a necessary evil. Aside from the possibility of a Michigan Merit Scholarship for high scores, there is very little incentive for students to perform well. Senator Wayne Kuipers of Michigan would like to change their mindset.

According to www.migop.org , Senator Kuipers believes that, “Whether high school seniors are entering college or the work place after graduation, they need a test that determines how prepared they are for Michigan’s 21st century economy. This change would give students and their parents a strong reason to take the test seriously. We want to use a standardized test that students can use to apply to college instead of one that is used only by the state.” The new and approved test that Senator Kuipers is referring to will be known as the Michigan Merit Exam. The www.migop.com web site also states that the new test is schedules to replace the MEAP test by the school year of 2006-2007. The Michigan Merit Exam will include college admissions test such as the Act or SAT, a workplace skills exam, as well as science and social studies sections not covered by the MEAP. The Michigan Merit Scholarship will tie into the new test as well.

This bill has cleared the Senate, as stated in www.educationreport.org , and will be paid for by the state of Michigan. While the Michigan Merit Exam will cost more than the current MEAP test, educators, seem to believe it will be worth the extra cost. Jim Ballard, the executive director of Michigan Association of Secondary School Principles, is quoted as saying, “ Students should be happy. They don’t have to sit down for two test. They can sit down and take one test that means something to them.” Time will tell whether this will be good news for Michigan students.

State Senator Shows Counties the Way
BY PAUL SCHELLENBERGER

March 1, 2005 - State Senator Kenneth Sikkema last week gave the Michigan School Districts some advice that shouldn’t be brushed off. Sikkema identified a clause in Proposal A, a 1994 school reform bill, which allows for the Schools to gain more revenue. This Clause allows for the levying of a three mill tax for schools for up to twenty years as stated in the Grand Rapids Press, February 19 issue. The only small hitch is that this tax would have to be O.K. by the districts Voters. Sikkema also pointed out that out of all the school districts in Michigan; only the Monroe Intermediate District was using the tax, Grand Rapids Press February 19 issue. This possible financial supplement may come as a welcome surprise to state lawmakers as they struggle to balance the budget and deal with the No Child Left Behind Act. Sikkema’s involvement in the support of this clause shows a growing concern by State Lawmakers for the cuts that have had to be made to the Schools already.

This possible mill in no way can ever completely supplement the states regular yearly funding. In Grand Rapids though, the School district could gain another 4 million dollars for just a one mill increase, and a possible 12 million from the three mill increase, Grand Rapids Press, February 19 issue. Sikkema has spent some time with School Leaders to try to get them to adopt the tax, Since it could bring in an extra five hundred dollars a head for the schools, Grand Rapids Press, February 19 issue.

GOP Congress Smells Blood
BY PAUL SCHELLENBERGER

February 23, 2005 - GOP State Representative Jack Hoogendyk and Senator Nancy Cassis have begun what may be considered the GOP counterstrike against the popular Jennifer Granholm. The announcement came Friday when the Grand Rapids Press February 4 issue ran an article on the Representative and Senators bid for the GOP Nomination. Republicans in the congress for the last three years have been hounding Granholm on issues of Budget Reform and School Funding. Now the bomb has dropped as the GOP inside and outside of congress will begin to show there fangs. With only a year to go before the elections, the state can expect opposition to democratic bills in the senate to grow. Jack Hoogendyk, Representative, stated for the Grand Rapids Press February 4 issue that, “The problem with our current Governor is that she’s not leading. She appears unwilling to make decisions necessary to move the state forward.” Senator Nancy Cassis stated in the Same Article that, “Its time for a change.” This should be considered the first rounds of verbal attacks in the Governor’s race.

With Democrats calling for a minimum wage hike, Democrats in congress may find strong opposition as GOP Senators and Representatives gear up to stave off any popularity boosters before the election. Also this announcement may signal the end to a shaky three year cooperation between Democrats and Republicans as both prepare for the fight. The GOP is holding there Leadership council on Mackinaw Island where more challengers are expected to surface. Also possibly participating in the race will be Richard Devos of Grand Rapids.

Smokers Fired Up
BY RUSS HELSEL

February 21, 2005 - Weyco, a benefit service company located in Okemos, Michigan, has drawn national attention for firing four female employees for failure to quit smoking. It has also drawn the attention of Democratic Senator Virg Bernero. In a statement Bernero released in the February 16, 2005 edition of the Lansing State Journal, he stated, “Where do you draw the line?” Bernero said, “The way it is now, you can be fired for coloring your hair or wearing a blue shirt on Sunday.” That is why Senator Bernero is drafting legislation to make it illegal for employers to make hiring and firing decisions based on a worker’s legal preferences.

According to an article on the website, www.occupationalhazards.com/articles/12996 , Weyco began a two year phasing out of smokers in the workforce, which concluded January 1, 2005 and was the deadline for smokers to kick the habit. On the occupational hazards website, a statement from Weyco founder, Howard Weyers, claims that the company has always had stop-smoking programs available to its employees. He also claims that non-smokers are more productive and smokers drive up health care costs with their excess medical bills.

However, in the before mentioned Lansing State Journal article, fired Weyco employee Anita Epolito told the newspaper that during her 14 years of employment as a receptionist and special events coordinator that she called in sick no more than five times, and never received health insurance from the company.
It is perfectly legal in Michigan to hire and fire for nearly any reason, or for no reason at all. That is why the bill that Senator Bernero will introduce will protect anyone from being fired for legal leisure time activities. Bernero said in the Lansing State Journal, “There would be exceptions for behavior that affects an employee’s performance or creates a conflict of interest.”

When Senator Bernero’s office was contacted in regards to a timetable of when the bill will be introduced they said the bill could be expected to be introduced within the next couple of weeks.

100,000 Voters Denied Right to Vote
BY RUSS HELSEL

February 7, 2005 - In a statement released in the Journal of the Senate, Senator Tom George addressed that in the past fall election there were 100,000 voters denied the right to vote in the judiciary elections because of their street addresses. In the Journal of the Senate, Senator George states that he addressed the problem of the judiciary elections last year. He introduced Senate Bill 1463 which aims at trying to correct the flaws in the voting districts. The flaws being that there are three election divisions in the eighth judicial district, which consists of Kalamazoo County and has seven judges. Senate Bill 1463 introduced by Senator George seeks to eliminate the three separate districts.

During the waning days of the session of congress the bill seemed to have a good amount of support from both parties, as evident from the Michigan House of Representatives’ 92-3 vote in favor of Senate Bill 1463, according to the Journal of the Senate. Senate Bill 1463 cleared on December 15, 2004 and all that was needed was a signature by the governor. The governor never signed the bill, effectively using a pocket veto, according to the Michigan Legislative website. Senator George was surprised by the pocket veto, especially after he found out that the veto was at the request of another senator. Especially from a senator that he says had spoken so passionately just days before on voter empowerment and the voting process. Senator George was also upset because the bill did not affect any of the constituents of that senator’s district. Senator George claims this led to the problem of not allowing 100,000 voters of Kalamazoo County the right to decide who will preside over them in their district courts. Senator George claims that according to figures nearly 100,000 people were not permitted to vote. These were not people who were considering voting, these were people who actually showed up at the polls and had planned to vote. In a statement, Senator George said, “I am particularly displeased that despite all the talk of voter empowerment, the citizens of Kalamazoo have been denied the right to vote in judicial elections by an action of a small minority.”

The Debate Over an Increase in the Minimum Wage Continues
BY MICHELLE VANDEN BERG

February 5, 2005 - Michigan’s State Legislatureis currently considering a raise in the minimum wage. The proposal made by legislators, according to www.mlive.com , would increase the present wage from $5.15 to $7.15 within the next two years. Controvery arises over the possible implications that a minimum wage increase would have on an already hurting economy. It is argued by GOP House Speaker Craig DeRoche, that the economy will suffer from an increased minimum wage by causing employers to cut jobs as a result of increased labor cost. On the other hand, a wage increase holds the possibilities of increasing minimum wage jobs.

Supporters of this bill, particulary the Democrats as stated in www.freep.com , believe that there is no direct relationship between high unemployment and a high minimum wage. Jeff Chapman, of the Economics Policy Institute, believes that statistics that show a connection are the results of a poorly conducted survey. He gives the example of Alaska, which has one of the highest minimum wages and also a high unemployment rate. Jeff Chapman argues that “unemployment remains high because the state’s labor force has grown even faster than its jobs”; not as a result of a high minimum wage. He concludes that such factors are often over looked, and can lead to wrongly informed decisions.

An opponent of the bill, Speaker of the House Craig DeRoche, states that, “Raising the minimum wage, especially during a job crisis, makes it harder to pay workers and even harder to hire new workers.” Small business and restaurant owners are also among those concerned, because they rely heavily upon minimum wage-paid employees.

This debate needs to be resolved upon soon, as the proposed increase would take affect this July. If the bill doesn’t pass the State Legislature, www.freep.com says that it will most likely appear on the 2006 general election ballot. Whether or not an increase in the minimum wage would be a help or a hindrance to Michigan’s economy remains to be seen. For now, it is likely that both sides will continue to closely monitor other states who have passed similar legislation.

The Country’s Trash Can
BY ALEXANDER TWEEDY, JENNIFER YOUNG, AND LAURA SCHNECKENBERGER

April 1, 2004 - Governor Granholm signed a package of 11 new laws, which were aimed at one of the largest problems that faces Michigan environments: the overuse of Michigan landfills by other states and Canada. The bills are aimed mostly at stemming the recent arguments that have been developing between local officials and Toronto city officials over the flow of waste that does not meet the current Michigan laws. Such items as lead acid batteries and low level radioactive waste are items of contention. The current legislature can only affect waste that is produced in Michigan, allowing such large cities as Toronto, Ontario to pour nasty things into our states landfills. Governor Granholm was heard to have said “Today, we take a critical step in putting a lid on Michigan’s unwanted reputation as the country’s trash can”. Another focus of the laws will be to impose a two year moratorium upon the building of new land fills in the state. A city park in Sumpter Township in Wayne County, Michigan looks over the Carleton Farms Landfill, which has endured the onslaught of Canadian trash. Last year, the total came out to over 1.55 million tons of trash from our neighbors to the north. This is only one of many landfills that are being overrun by the flow of solid waste from Canada. When one looks at the numbers, it is shocking: almost ¼ of the trash that is thrown into Michigan’s environment every year is not from Michigan itself. Amidst all of the jubilation over the supposed solution to this problem, there are still those that are angry as always with politics. What about the solid waste management firms that have been thriving off the transportation of Toronto’s trash for so long? What about the proverbial “neighbors fence”, that has been made that much taller? Whose back yard are they going to throw their trash in now?

Sources:

Toronto’s trash
http://www.fims.uwo.ca/newmedia/garbage/garbage_guthrie_d04_p.htm

Michigan adopts landfill legislation
http://www.wasteage.com/news/michigan-landfill/

Governor Granholm Signs New Laws to Reduce Trash into Michigan Landfills
http://www.michigan.gov/emi/0,1303,7-102--89408--,00.html

Capitol Punishment Sparks Heated Debate
BY ALEXANDER TWEEDY, JENNIFER YOUNG, AND LAURA SCHNECKENBERGER

March 22, 2004 - The Michigan House of Representatives was caught in a heated debate this week over what seems to be an ancient topic in Michigan: the death penalty. Michigan is in the minority, as far as states go, because of its’ stance on the death penalty. It is one of only 12 states that still do not have some form of capital punishment. The reason for the debate was House Joint Resolution W; a resolution that would contradict the Michigan State Constitution, which says, “No law shall be enacted for the penalty of death.” House Joint Resolution W would amend the constitution to add “except for first degree murder.” While the arguments flew, the families of women who was beaten to death by three young men, as well as the families of two Detroit police officers who were killed in February viewed the proceedings. The debate brought up many key issues as far as the death penalty is concerned. One of the most shocking figures to come out of the debate was that brought to light by the death penalty information center. The statistic states that since 1973, 113 people have been exonerated after already being sentenced to death. Many of the representatives voiced their reluctance to pass a bill, citing such things as religious beliefs and questionable certainty of guilt. For example, an opponent of the resolution, Julie Dennis, D-Muskegon, said Christians must practice forgiveness. "It is about what Christ has asked us to do in our lives, that we too forgive,'' she said. Still others made some very good points. The prohibition of the death penalty in Michigan has had considerable longevity. It is now 158 years old and it has been 41 years since it was last a topic of debate at a state constitutional convention. Joint Resolution W would have simply put it on the ballot for the voters to decide. Some legislators spoke out in favor of leaving it up to the voters whether they themselves were for it or not. After 2 hours of debate, the resolution was finally struck down when it failed to get the required 2/3 of house approval. It lost by a vote of 55-52, supported mostly by Republicans, along with a few stray Democrats.

Sources:

House Joint Resolution W
http://www.michiganlegislature.org/mileg.asp?page=getObject&objName=2004-HJR-W

Innocence and the Death Penalty
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=412&scid=6

Michigan Legislature to Face a Balanced Forest Management and Jobs Legislation
BY JENNIFER YOUNG, ALEX TWEEDY AND LAURA SCHNECKENBERGER

March 8, 2004 - The House Agriculture and Resource Management Committee has to decide on March 9th whether or not to adopt House Bills 5552-5554 and Senate Bills 1022-1024. Governor Granholm provided the fuel for the bills by an announcement she made declaring her support behind making Michigan’s forests become certified. The Michigan Forest Products Council has also showed its dedication to these bills being passed. The two forces are working together in order to improve Michigan’s economic development in the production of forest products. The balanced Forest Management and Jobs package would “set standards for protecting water quality, maintain wildlife habitat and ensure proper forest regeneration; promote and encourage the use of state forests…invest $20 million in forest management activities to create more jobs and improve overall forest health” (1).

All of these things would balance economic, recreational and environmental benefits, which were recommended by the Governor’s Land Use Leadership Council, says chairman of the Michigan Forest Products Council, Stephen J. Hicks. (1)

“If there is an increase in the availability of wood, and at the same time this increase is helping and protecting the environment, Michigan could see nearly $8 million each year”. (1). Michigan needs unemployment to be erased. These bills will attract a lot of money in new investments, which will create jobs. And the reason why so much money can be made from this legislation is because of Michigan’s position as a producer of forest goods. The state produces 40 % of forest growth. The bills would make sure that Michigan keeps its advantage nationally and globally.

Works Cited

1. Michigan Forest Products Council Applauds Bi-Partisan Management and Jobs Package
Obtained on: March 8, 2004 http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/business/article.adp?id=20040308122109990021
Courtesy of PR Newswire Association LLC www.prnewswire.com

Where Did The Money Go?
BY JENNIFER YOUNG, ALEX TWEEDY AND LAURA SCHNECKENBERGER

February 19, 2004 - What does one do when there is a $300 million hole in Fiscal Year 2005? Raise taxes, of course! It was recently discovered that a .3 billion dollar hole is to be fond in the Fiscal Year 2005 caused by the use of Medicaid. Granholm sees a reasonable solution to the problem by raising the cigarette tax. The new tax would be raised by .75 cents and would make Michigan the second highest cigarette tax state, and this would also be Michigan’s second increase in 2 years. All you smokers out there…..hope you are ready for the new 2 dollar tax; Granholm seems to be seriously considering this.

In a response to Granholms State of the State address, Ken Sikkema (Senate Majority Leader) calls her plan for making Michigan a better state “anemic.” Sikkema and the Senate Republican Caucus devised a plan that is 5 times of what Granholms is. The Republican Senate is focusing on their 35-point plan to make Michigan a better place to live. This plan focuses mainly on attracting new industry, getting tax breaks for new companies, balancing the Fiscal Year 2005 budget, and making Michigan’s roads better. Sikkema and the GOP’s plan also include a section on protecting families. With sub-categories such as identity theft, lead screening, grandparent visitation package, prize and sweepstake regulation act, and a daycare savings account. Other categories include educating youth, preserving MI, and building a healthy MI. The senate will have 19 oversight hearings to help them decide what to do.

For anyone that was confused by Granholms mentioning of “cool cities” in the State of the State Address, there may be an answer for you. Steve Malange who is a contributing editor for City Journal and a senior fellow at Manhattan Institute explains that what she said may mean creating progressive and social politics and the right environment. That she may want to attract young and creative people resulting in new businesses and initiatives that can spur economic growth. This could possibly be what Granholm meant in her mentioning of “cool cities.”

Congratulations to Attorney General Mike Cox for his many accomplishments in 2003. These include, but are not limited to…

Collecting more than $326.6 million for deposit in the states general fund.
Recovering more that $1.4 million in unpaid child support.
Responding swiftly to the nation’s largest blackout.
And, launching “It’s MI Identity” a program to help prevent identity theft.

Michigan House and Senate Meet to Institute Environmental Fee for Pollution Emission
BY LAURA SCHNECKENBERGER

February 3, 2004 - The Michigan House of Representatives, along with the Michigan Senate, are to hold a joint conference to discuss an annual fee set forth for those polluting, and create a bill to amend a section of the Natural Resources and Protection Act. It requires polluting businesses that wish to gain a wastewater permit, fill out an application. Once achieved, this application must be renewed annually, and all applicants must pay a fee each time it is renewed. According to House Fiscal Agency, “The 2004 fiscal year budget of the Department of Environmental Quality relies on the revenue generated by the application and permit fees. If the bill is not enacted, funding for the program would likely come from the General Fund, which is already under great pressure” (1). Some of the application fees include an EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) major facility permit of $500 and an EPA minor facility individual permit of $300. The permit fees span from $150 all the way to $173,000. The later fees apply to those who received a permit to discharge their waste. The bill also states the specifics involved in the paying of those fees, by requiring deadlines for the fees to be turned in, and penalties for not turning them in on time.

This cracking down on businesses and their pollution production widens the smiles of many faces, while deepening the frowns of others. Those who support these amendments and the bill argue that these fees allow for the Department of Environmental Quality to function properly, as it funds their fiscal budget. If they can’t get the fees from these businesses then they have to go elsewhere, such as the General Fund. The DEQ needs these fees, approximated at nearly three million dollars for fiscal year 2004, because it helps support them in their enforcement of the NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System). Why would the DEQ want to fund the NPDES? “Funding the NPDES program with the support of permit fees pushes the direct costs from taxpayers to those responsible for discharging wastewater into the state’s surface waters”(2). Those against this state that it makes matters worse for businesses in Michigan because it takes away Michigan’s ability to compete with other states for business. They are less likely to draw businesses towards them and keep it. Another argument against it is that giving business more fees is the worst thing you can do now, especially because so many businesses are suffering in the manufacturing industry. Making them accountable to these fees would possibly sink them.

12726 page hits and 11560 unique visits since 02-11-04
Updated on 25-APR-08
Edit this page | View text only version

Grand Rapids Community College

Menu