Senior Attorney Derk Wilcox explains in The Detroit News how the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Harris v. Quinn Monday has its roots in a legal battle the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation first drew attention to in 2011.
The Court’s ruling brings an end nationwide to the type of stealth unionization and dues skim that in Michigan took $34 million away from our state’s most vulnerable residents before it ended.
Executive Vice President Michael J. Reitz has a commentary online at The American Spectator about Monday’s Supreme Court ruling that put an end to the forced unionization scheme of home-based caregivers across the country.
Reitz noted the similarities of the case to a similar dues skim that occurred here in Michigan, and how Justice Alito, writing for the majority, echoed a point the Center made in amicus brief we filed in the case.
Patrick J. Wright, vice president for legal affairs, told The Detroit News that today’s Supreme Court ruling in Harris v. Quinn that outlaws the forced unionization of home-based caregivers in Illinois and several other states is “similar to what we went through in Michigan with the SEIU’s stealth unionization of caregivers and the ensuing dues skim.”
By Jack McHugh
The Manhattan Institute has just released an interactive map comparing on a county-by-county basis the least expensive individual health insurance policies available before and after the federal health care law went into effect.
To make the analysis more fair, the earlier rates are adjusted to reflect higher prices paid by individuals with pre-existing conditions (the methodology is explained here). These are then compared to the lowest rates currently available on the federal exchange.
While the Legislature is adjourned for a primary election campaign break, the Roll Call Report will review key votes of the 2013-2014 session.
Senate Bill 51, Expand forest property tax breaks: Passed 35 to 0 in the Senate February 12, 2013
To expand the eligibility for certain forest property tax breaks, increase their value, double the number of acres eligible for the tax breaks from 1.2 million to 2.4 million statewide, authorize a new 2 mill property tax on property in this program that would go to a proposed "Private Forestland Enhancement Fund" to subsidize private forestland management activities, and more. This and related bills are designed to facilitate use of a program granting property tax exemptions to owners of smaller "non-industrial" sized parcels of forestland.
The Michigan Education Association is a large critic of school boards hiring private companies to provide noninstructional services, such as custodial, food and transportation. But the union uses this often fiscally responsible practice itself, as the Mackinac Center for Public Policy has documented several times in the past.
Just a year ago, the Detroit Free Press had high praise for Thirkell, an elementary school in the conventional Detroit Public Schools district.
Reporter Lori Higgins wrote that Thirkell was "defying the odds by posting strong proficiency rates on the MEAP..." Editorial Page Editor Stephen Henderson characterized Thirkell in a column as having an environment of "focus and consistency," with a "dynamic and skilled" principal.
Labor Policy Director F. Vincent Vernuccio was a guest on “Capital City Recap” with host Michael Cohan on WILS-AM1320, discussing how teachers can opt out of the Michigan Education Association during the month of August.
Both Gongwer News Service and MIRS Capitol Capsule included stories about the Michigan Employment Relations Commission’s recent decision to uphold it’s 1981 ruling prohibiting the forced unionization of graduate student research assistants at public universities in Michigan.
By Jack McHugh
This report contains more votes from the very active final week of legislative sessions ending June 13, before an extended summer break.
Senate Bill 324, Require certification of federal health care law "navigators": Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate
To require certification for the individuals and organizations acting as "navigators" authorized by the federal health care law ("Obamacare") to assist individuals who apply for government subsidized health benefits through the law's exchange, including criminal background check and training in a program that protects the privacy and security of Michigan residents' personally identifiable information. The bill authorizes administrative sanctions and fines for individuals and organizations who violate various rules, including steering a person toward a particular policy.
The Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based nonpartisan research think tank, says a report by Michigan Future that claims Minnesota is more prosperous than Michigan because of its higher tax rate “misses the mark.”
You can read the entire piece at the Tax Foundations’ Tax Policy Blog: http://taxfoundation.org/blog/michigan-future-misses-mark.
(Editor’s note: These are remarks delivered recently by Michael LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.)
Thank you Commissioners. My name is Michael LaFaive and I am director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.
Labor Policy Director F. Vincent Vernuccio and recently retired teacher Lisa Jelenek were on Fox News Wednesday with host Neil Cavuto, discussing how the Michigan Education Association is threatening the credit ratings of teachers who have stopped paying union dues under Michigan’s worker freedom act by turning them over to collections agencies.
Gathering up-to-date public pension data is no trivial task. While all municipalities are required to report basic accounting and financial information, many make it quite difficult to obtain.
Cities and townships are required to file audits and most list a Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) with this information. But just because the reports have to be filed doesn't mean they are easy to find. Even among Michigan's 100 largest municipalities, there are large discrepancies between how the reports are posted online.
Labor Policy Director F. Vincent Vernuccio was a guest Tuesday on “The Wilkow Majority” with host Andrew Wilkow on SiriusXM satellite radio, discussing the MEA’s attack on teachers who exercise their worker freedom rights and how teachers can opt out of the union.
The Washington Examiner today is reporting on how the Michigan Education Association is attacking the credit ratings of its members who chose to opt out of the union under Michigan’s new right-to-work law.
Fox News also reported on the situation.
Research Associate Jarrett Skorup told WNEM-TV5 that an over-budget project in Lansing involving which buildings state workers should occupy shows why legislators should not be pushing for a gas tax hike.
The Legislature has adjourned for an extended summer break, but not before there was a high volume of activity.
House Bill 5477, Replace fuel tax with higher wholesale tax: Failed 17 to 21 in the Senate
To replace the current 19 cents per gallon gas tax and 15-cent diesel tax with a 7 percent wholesale fuel tax, gradually increasing to 15 percent in 2019, which would be equivalent to around 41 cents per gallon at current fuel prices. When combined with the sales tax levied on fuel this would give Michigan the highest gas and diesel taxes in the nation.
An old saying goes, "Those who love sausage or legislation should never watch either being made."
The road funding debate now underway in the state Capitol is a prime example, with multiple proposals swirling around Lansing. Currently, rather than trim some fat from Michigan's $52 billion budget and reallocate the money to road repairs, Republicans in the state Senate have suggested reaching more deeply into taxpayer pockets for an additional $1.5 billion.
During the debate in Michigan over right-to-work, critics commonly incited fear that it would result in lower incomes for Michigan workers.
For example, President Obama claimed in 2012 that the law meant "giving you the right to work for less money."
As right-to-work is being discussed in other states, including Missouri, the fears about its impact on income are reiterated. The Committee to Protect Missouri Families, a coalition fighting right-to-work legislation, claims on its website that the law "cuts wages and stifles job growth by reducing people's discretionary income. When people have less discretionary income, they spend less, which in turn, hurts the economy."
WJRT-TV12 in Flint and the MIRS newsletter are reporting on a new website the Center has established — www.AugustOptOut.org — to help teachers wishing to resign from the Michigan Education Association.
“Union members around Michigan have the ability to say ‘yes I want to stay in a union’ or ‘no I want to opt out,” F. Vincent Vernuccio, director of labor policy, told WJRT.
Executive Vice President Michael J. Reitz was cited in a Cadillac News story today about legislation dealing with the Open Meetings Act, saying it is “essential for citizens to know what their elected officials are doing.”
Reitz recently joined the board of directors for the Michigan Coalition for Open Government and has written previously about government transparency.
In the midst of the city going through a bankruptcy, talk of a Detroit turnaround is in the air from Gov. Rick Snyder on down.
And while the emergency manager and bankruptcy process are making solid strides toward fixing the city's fiscal mess, it is in the other ways of governing that Detroit needs to improve if it wants to retain and attract residents.
By Jack McHugh
House Bill 5574, Give Detroit $195 million: Passed 21 to 17 in the Senate
To appropriate $194.8 million for a gift to Detroit, which is related to a potential bankruptcy settlement. The Senate adopted the same House-passed reform conditions on the gift, except it did not adopt one banning the renewal of a 10-year regional property tax imposed to subsidize the Detroit art museum.
MLive and MIRS are reporting on a request the Center filed with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission requesting that MERC promulgate a new rule to help make public-sector union members more aware of their rights during so-called opt-out time frames.
