USA Today notes that a recent article in Michigan Education Digest reports that even though a high percentage of members consider themselves "conservative," the Michigan Education Association has endorsed Democrats in 111 of 114 races statewide.
Michigan Capitol Confidential has more on the issue here and here.
Mackinac Center President Joseph Lehman is quoted in the November 2010 issue of National Review about the upcoming elections, including the possibility of Republicans winning governorships and gaining a majority in state legislatures in a number of states because, as some observers indicate, they are not currently the majority party.
From today's Wall Street Journal, "Where the New Jobs Are":
"According to a new Texas Public Policy Foundation study, Texas experienced a decline of 2.3% from its peak employment, while California fell nearly four times further, with 8.7% of jobs vanishing."
Russ Harding, senior environmental analyst, was featured in a story on using government subsidies to purchase hybrid trucks that appeared on both Michigan Public Radio and National Public Radio recently.
Harding has written about subsidies for hybrid vehicles previously, including here and here. Michigan Capitol Confidential also recently featured this story about the cost of hybrid buses.
The Tax Foundation released its 2011 State Business Tax Climate Index today, and not surprisingly Michigan comes off looking rather mediocre. Our overall ranking is 17th, which may strike some as not too bad given all the dislike for the Michigan Business Tax expressed by both business owners and the politicians who represent them.
The number of school employees for each student in Michigan's public school system has been rising for most of the past 15 years, and stands now at one employee for every eight students. This is surprising given Michigan's declining economy over the last decade and the school establishment's perpetual complaints of being underfunded. But even more startling trends emerge when the data are dissected further.
A new study by Mackinac Center Adjunct Scholar Rick Dreyfuss shows the pension and retiree health care benefits given to public school and other state of Michigan public-sector employees are "out of line" with those offered in the private sector, according to MIRS Capitol Capsule.
As the governor's race heats up, it is refreshing to see an occasional area of agreement between the candidates; especially when the agreement makes good economic sense.
Both major gubernatorial candidates, Rick Snyder and Virg Bernero, have alluded (more than once) that they will not raise taxes and in fact will make business tax cuts.
Environmental groups and other proponents of shifting to renewable energy to power our factories, heat our homes and fuel our vehicles are often the same groups that stand in the way of natural resource development. They don't realize you cannot have one without the other. An article in Sunday's edition of the Detroit Free Press describes how the fledgling alternative energy industry in Michigan is being thwarted by China's control of 90 percent of the world's production of rare earth elements. The production of solar panels and wind turbines requires the use of these elements. According to the Free Press, China's hoarding of rare earth elements caused MasTech to stop production of wind turbines for 10 weeks this past summer at its plant in Manistee because it could not secure a reliable supply of neodymium magnets.
Mike LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative, suggests some alternatives for creating jobs after several years of government failure on that front in this Detroit Free Press Op-Ed.
He specifically cites eliminating the Michigan Business Tax, giving Michigan employees Right-to-Work protections and reining in the state's regulatory regime.
An article currently appearing on MichCapCon.org and Mackinac.org describes how 72 of the likely winners in 81 races for open Michigan state House and Senate seats are already members-in-good-standing of the bipartisan political class. These include 61 current or former office-holders, eight current or former political staffers, several relatives of legislators, and others who have been government or school officials or employees.
The Legislature did not meet this week. Because there were no votes, this report instead contains several newly introduced bills of interest.
Senate Bill 1531 (Impose new regulations on natural gas “fracking” extraction)
Introduced by Sen. Liz Brater (D) on September 29, 2010, to impose groundwater discharge permit regulations, fees, permit requirements, etc. on the use of "hydraulic fracturing" to extract natural gas. This new technology reportedly has more than doubled the amount of known domestic gas reserves. See also the Brater amendment to Senate Bill 1177, defeated on a party-line vote, which would have banned “fracking” altogether in Michigan. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.
In an interview with The Detroit News, gubernatorial candidate Virg Bernero said, "One of the reasons we lose kids to the private school system is because of discipline."
"Losing" kids is an interesting way for Bernero to describe families who choose to opt out of the public school system, since he himself was primarily educated at a non-public school, and also chose one for one of his children.
A Saginaw company under fire for problems associated with its application for tax subsidies in Michigan says it will partner with a Colorado company on a solar module project, according to WJRT-TV 12 in Flint.
GlobalWatt has been the subject of controversy since a Mackinac Center investigation found problems with economic development information about the company both in Michigan and in Texas.
There has been very little innovative thinking on energy policy by political leaders in Michigan in recent years. The status of energy policy in the state could best be described as: let's just follow the pack by pursing alternative energy and green jobs. How has that worked out for us? Not very well as Michigan continues to lose population and jobs with the state's unemployment rate the second highest in the nation. Studies coming out of Europe have shown government mandates and subsidies to promote alternative energy come at a high price both in terms of higher energy costs and loss of jobs in other sectors of the economy.
"Democrats are making a pre-election pitch to give Social Security recipients a one-time payment of $250, part of a larger effort to convince senior voters that their party, and not Republicans, will best look out for the 58 million people who get the government retirement and disability benefits." — Associated Press
Today's Grand Rapids Press adds important details to a story Michigan Capitol Confidential reported on Oct. 13 about Kevin O'Neill, superintendent of the Coopersville School District, whose annual compensation totals $311,034. That's the third-highest in the state and comes to $120 per student in the district of 2,600. The Press's Dave Murray reports today that when the paper asked local school districts in 2009 to report how much they paid their superintendents, Coopersville and O'Neill under-reported his 2008 pay by $40,000.
Mackinac Center President Joe Lehman explains why a constitutional convention is not the answer to Michigan's fiscal, labor and regulatory problems in this Op-Ed in the Detroit Free Press today.
He addresses the issue more in-depth here, while Senior Legislative Analyst Jack McHugh addresses it here.
Big news was made recently when McDonald's announced it may have to end its "mini-med" healthcare plans that cover nearly 30,000 employees. These low-cost, limited benefit plans are aimed at temporary workers designed for companies with high worker turnover. As a result, the overhead costs are too high as applied under ObamaCare regulations.
"Hydraulic fracturing" or "fracking" is a new natural gas extraction technnique that promises to revolutionize America's energy future. Until just a couple years ago gas reserves had been falling here and the country was on track to becoming a net importer. Almost overnight the new method has miraculously turned that around, and now reserves of this clean-burning fuel are projected to cover current consumption levels for as much as a century. This is truly fabulous news for our nation.
The greatest power of government to affect the daily lives of Americans may be wielded by federal, state and local regulatory officials who never stand for election. Environmental regulatory actions by the U.S. EPA serve as a stark reminder of the power of the administrative state. EPA utilizes rulemaking and administrative fiat to determine the kind of vehicles we drive, how much we pay for energy to heat our homes and power our factories and what types of appliances and light bulbs we can buy.
Many school boards around the state are attempting to renegotiate current contracts or negotiate new ones with their local teachers unions to contain costs. Here's a brief recap of some of the new contracts agreed to recently.
North Muskegon: Under a new two-year contract teachers will get a 2 percent across-the-board salary increase this year and either a 1.5 or 2 percent increase in 2011-2012. The second year raise is dependent on the district's fund balance level. Teachers will still contribute nothing toward to the cost of their own health coverage, which includes medical, vision, dental and life insurance; those covered under a spouse's insurance will continue to get a stipend equal to the cost of a one-person plan. However, a $5/$10 prescription drug co-pay will increase to $10/$20. In 2009, health insurance coverage cost the district $15,761 per employee. For more information, click here.
This recent Michigan Capitol Confidential story by Managing Editor Ken Braun formed the basis for this editorial in The Detroit News.
The article documents how Gov. Jennifer Granholm and the Michigan Legislature raid special funds that are paid for with user fees in order to use the money in the general fund to solve overspending crises that governor and legislators themselves create.
Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson was the keynote speaker Thursday night at an event sponsored by the Mackinac Center in metro Detroit.
The Oakland County Examiner interviewed him prior to his talk, which was titled "What Michigan's Next Governor Can Learn From Oakland County."
WPBN-WTOM Channels 7&4 in Traverse City is reporting that the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation has filed a motion for reconsideration with the Michigan Court of Appeals in an effort to end the illegal, forced unionization of home-based day care operators.
