Michigan lawmakers are debating bills to give out more money in corporate handouts. It’s a bad idea. Selective business subsidies are ineffective at creating jobs, unfair to the taxpayers who foot the bill, and expensive to the state budget. They also fail to accomplish what their supporters promise. When lawmakers give out more subsidies, they say what they want them to do. And corporate handouts fail to live up to the standards their supporters’ claim.
The entirety of Ford’s normal vehicle profits was undone by its losses on electric vehicles.
Ford’s 2024 Q3 Earnings Presentation delivers the details: The year-to-date losses on Ford’s EV business (what the company calls “Ford Model e”) totaled $3.7 billion. Profits from Ford’s “Model Blue” division, which sells traditional internal combustion vehicles, also happened to be $3.7 billion.
By Molly Macek
A Senate bill package would hurt some of the top-performing schools in the state. Under the guise of transparency and equality, the bills hold charter schools to unequal standards and jeopardize their ability to serve students effectively.
Senate Bills 943, 944, 946 and 947 mostly impact charter schools that contract with a private education management organization. While charter schools are public entities, many of them contract with EMOs to operate certain services such as hiring employees, providing professional development and managing custodial and food services.
Politicians can’t buy more auto jobs. They’ve tried. They’ve tried very hard.
Lawmakers have authorized $22.7 billion in business subsidies since 2000, mostly aimed at bolstering the auto industry. With that money, they could have run the state government without income taxes for two years during this period.
A recent court decision allows Michigan school districts to shield their curricula from parents by keeping materials in the possession of teachers rather than the district.
Under the Michigan Court of Appeals’ interpretation of public records law, school materials held by teachers are not subject to public scrutiny. That decision came in a case that was litigated by the Mackinac Center on behalf of Carol Beth Litkouhi, a mother with a child in the Rochester Public Schools district who requested course materials for a high school class.
The following are a few of the biggest bills and issues the Mackinac Center is monitoring during the Michigan Legislature's lame-duck session. The Legislature has spiked government spending and passed $4.6 billion in special corporate subsidies in the past two years. Despite that spending, Michigan has seen five straight months of employment losses. Yet special breaks for chosen businesses remain the top priority of outgoing lawmakers.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News October 25, 2024.
This Saturday’s Michigan State-University of Michigan football game pits residents against each other. Because everyone knows a fan of the other side, the rivalry is more chivalrous than others. We’re going to have to live with the fans of the opposition, so we can at least be neighborly.
In 2003, the state of Michigan enacted a law starting the “Venture Michigan Fund.” This was a venture capital program where managers made investments backed by taxpayer funding. By all measures, it was a failure. It had no measurable effect on the economy; the 2004-2015 period saw Michigan lose more than 150,000 jobs, the worst performance among the 50 states. A 2018 Auditor General report found that it spent $450 million on 52 companies for 734 jobs — a dismal $613,000 per job “created.”
This article originally appeared in The Hill October 16, 2024.
It’s been a year since the United Auto Workers went on strike against the Big Three automakers in Michigan. UAW president Shawn Fain trumpeted the resulting contracts as a major win for workers.
This article originally appeared in The American Spectator October 28, 2024.
Last week, someone in Georgia won the Powerball lottery and became an overnight multi-millionaire. The jackpot was more than $478 million, and the winner had two options for collecting the prize — a smaller (though still hefty) lump sum cash payment of $230 million immediately, or an annuitized prize for the full $478 million over almost 30 years. For an individual, this is a once-in-a-lifetime gift, but big corporations across all 50 states are regularly winning the “lottery” and collecting on both payment options — the immediate large lump sum and the yearly longterm payments.
My kids borrowed my cellphone recently to record themselves jumping into leaf piles. This led to the thought of making a slow-motion video by dropping my phone into the pile from the top of our tree. A good idea in theory, except for the tree branches.
North Carolina, like many states, has faced mounting pressure to transition to renewable energy sources in response to environmental concerns. However, Jon Sanders of the John Locke Foundation is looking to change the conversation by calling into question the feasibility and long-term sustainability of the plan. On the Overton Window podcast, he discusses the main challenges and opportunities surrounding energy policy.
The Michigan Democratic Party platform takes a very strong stand against giving favors to corporations:
With billions in corporate welfare, subsidies, tax shelters and tax cuts, large corporations and the wealthiest individuals pay less than their fair share of the tax burden. This forces working people and small businesses to pay more than their fair share... In Michigan, the overall tax burden for corporations is less than zero. This is not only unjust; this is economically unsustainable.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News October 22, 2024.
Is it time to update the oath of office that Michigan lawmakers take?
You know how the swearing-in ceremony goes: A judge administers the oath of office. The lawmaker holds up his or her right hand and often places the other hand on the family Bible. The judge intones: “Repeat after me…”
Half of all Michigan college students get at least part of their coursework online. But federal regulators are considering a policy that would block this innovation by going after the private-sector service providers who offer the programs public universities and non-profits use.
A contentious political season leaves many people exhausted and despairing that any good can come out of the public sphere. But there are still many bright and happy notes to consider. The spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship is still a powerful, creative force, as exemplified recently by a conference held in California. The contest involves the XPRIZE Foundation, which underwrites competitions to “make radical breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity” and unites big idea people and risk-taking investors and philanthropists.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News August 13, 2024.
Walk into any zoo or museum and you will see a prominent display of generous benefactors.
Americans love to give.
Generosity is not exclusive to Americans, but the extent of our generosity is unique. According to Philanthropy Roundtable, charitable giving in the United States reached a record $557 billion in 2023. The Charities Aid Foundation’s World Giving Index determined that the United States was the most generous country from 2009 to 2018.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News August 21 2024.
Moving to Michigan more than a decade ago, I noticed that people love the shape of this state. Nowhere else have I seen such a profusion of state-themed bumper stickers, decals and clothing. Not only that — Michigan has the "hand thing."
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News August 8 2024.
President Joe Biden’s plan to tamper with the U.S. Supreme Court relies on arguments that former President Franklin D. Roosevelt deployed in 1937 for his infamous court-packing scheme. That turned out to be one of F.D.R.’s rare defeats, and Congress should reject Biden’s new attempt to interfere with the judicial branch.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News June 25, 2024.
When running for governor in 2018, Gretchen Whitmer made a remarkable pledge, promising to open the governor's office to the Freedom of Information Act. “Michiganders should know when and what their governor is working on,” she wrote.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News October 15, 2024.
It just got easier for the government to keep secrets in Michigan.
A court ruling will allow hundreds of thousands of local government employees to withhold records from the public. Earlier this year, the Court of Appeals decided that a Rochester teacher had no obligation to provide curriculum records to parents under the state Freedom of Information Act. The Michigan Supreme Court refused to intervene. As a result, records created by local government employees are no longer subject to FOIA, even if those records relate to official public business.
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News July 31, 2024.
Fifty-five years ago Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon.
“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,” he said. Armstrong’s small step is celebrated in schools, museums and popular culture.
Michigan Rising Action is making waves by holding state agencies accountable and pushing for government transparency. Executive Director Abby Mitch works to ensure that promises made by politicians turn into tangible actions. Mitch details Michigan Rising’s accountability strategy on the Overton Window podcast.
This article originally appeared October 9, 2024.
It’s election season, so public policy ideas ricochet like the ball in a pinball machine. Campaign promises, talking points, proposals and counterproposals — ideas are the stuff of campaigns. And that’s just the beginning. After the election, policymakers will seek to enact their ideas.
Michigan leaders complain about the high cost of housing, but city planners in Muskegon are doing something about it.
Regulations on housing providers lead to higher costs and worse outcomes. Permitting prolongs the time it takes to build more housing, leaving towns stuck with older properties for longer periods of time. Building codes and environmental rules are too strict while also failing, on net, to provide safety and environmental benefits. Parking mandates, along with minimum home and lot sizes, drive up costs for no reason. These and other zoning rules make it illegal or impossible to build units affordably in many parts of Michigan.
