Michigan appears to be about average in access to dental care. There are about 7,700 dentists in the state and over 10,000 dental hygienists. In 2011, there were 6.2 dentists per 10,000 people, exactly the national average. But there is a concerning trend: Michigan’s dentist population skews older than average and the state may be facing a dentist shortage in the near future.
Detroit is living up to its motto and rising from the ashes by embracing business, but it would see greater job growth and faster recovery if it removed the arbitrary occupational licensing laws that are preventing it from reaching its full potential.
Michigan’s regulatory system aimed at protecting the Straits of Mackinac are working, but that hasn’t stopped media, environmental groups and public officials from criticizing a private company that’s following the rules.
As explained in an MLive op-ed by Mackinac Center’s Director of Environmental Policy Jason Hayes, Enbridge Energy has come under fire in recent months after it reported erosion around lakebed supports of its Line 5 pipeline in the Straits and requested permits from the state to fix the unsupported sections. The company followed the regulations in conducting a survey of the pipeline and is now trying to repair the eroded areas.
By Ben DeGrow
MLive reports this week that the share of Michigan students enrolling across school district lines or in public charter schools has reached 23 percent. Still others choose private schools (7 percent) or homeschooling (3 percent). The growing trend of families to access different school options is reinforced by the broader popularity of choice found in a new Mackinac Center public opinion survey.
If the government prevented people from shopping outside of their own town or state, they would be outraged and recognize it as limiting their freedom. If Michigan businesses were prevented from buying or selling their products to people from other states, most people would understand that to be economically destructive.
At an event held in northern Michigan on Aug. 4, Gov. Rick Snyder announced that he and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne would sign a memorandum of understanding to cooperate in promoting the automotive industries of Michigan and Ontario. This type of selective government meddling in the economy is a bad idea and should be avoided.
By Ben DeGrow
This year’s back-to-school season has brought out more than the usual share of anti-charter hostility — with local critics seeking to amplify national voices.
On his HBO show, comedian John Oliver skewered charter schools with 18 minutes of uninformed and outdated (but otherwise funny) satire. The NAACP has called for a moratorium on new charters, which has provoked a bewildered backlash from many who see the benefits they have provided for children of color.
By Jack McHugh
While the Legislature is on a summer break with no voting, the Roll Call Report continues its review of key votes from the 2015-2016 session.
Senate Bill 231, Ban selling “e-cigarettes” to minors: Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2015
To ban selling or giving minors electronic vapor cigarettes, or any product or device that delivers nicotine. Violations would be a misdemeanor with a $50 fine, which also applies to giving a minor regular cigarettes. The House has not voted on this.
By Kahryn Riley
Herbert Hoover said, “The worst evil of disregard for some law is that it destroys respect for all law.”
This point of view goes to the heart of the Mackinac Center’s work on over-criminalization. Center analysts have examined Michigan’s vast, disorganized criminal code, discovering at least 3,102 crimes. Many of these crimes are duplicative (prohibiting the display of material containing the name of an elected official at a polling place) or unnecessary (specifying the lettering type and color for contact information displayed on a barge). Still others are of dubious constitutionality (prohibiting the cohabitation of divorced parties).
If a private company were responsible for the mistake that led to the discharge of over 570,000 gallons of wastewater into the Kalamazoo River this week, there would likely be public outrage, but because the government is responsible, most seem to turn a blind eye.
By Kahryn Riley
It is a basic principle of American law that the government may not deprive citizens of their property without due process. But, according to the Michigan Court of Appeals, at least one Michigan statute lets the state do exactly that.
When Shantrese Kinnon and her husband were arrested on drug charges in Kent County, the police searched her home and seized some property, including a GMC Denali, a Chevrolet El Camino, a motorcycle, a tablet, a laptop, and nearly $400 in cash from her purse.
By Jack McHugh
While the Legislature is on a summer break with no voting, the Roll Call Report continues its review of key votes from the 2015-2016 session.
House Bill 4163, Relax licensure restrictions on residential lift installers: Passed 62 to 47 in the House on March 11, 2015
By Ben DeGrow
For years, and especially in the wake of the state’s school funding “adequacy study,” people have called for more “equity” in how Michigan funds its public schools. Unfortunately, many of the appeals for more funding equity fail to consider the progress that has been made over the years. Instead, they treat each and every funding disparity as evidence of an entirely rigged, broken funding system.
As groups and individuals across the country work to educate workers about their rights during National Employee Freedom Week, right-to-work states like Michigan should consider another reform that would make workplaces more fair and free.
Mackinac Center Policy Analyst Jarrett Skorup wrote in an op-ed published by The Detroit News this week that even workers who opt-out of union membership can be forced to accept union representation even if they don’t want it. Worker’s Choice would free workers from forced representation and unions would no longer be required to negotiate on behalf of non-members.
This piece was originally published in the Orange County Register.
It seems there is a never-ending war on “sin” and a desire by some to try and tax it away. This includes higher taxes on snacks and cigarettes, among other items. As to the latter item, California voters will weigh in with a November ballot proposal to hike California’s cigarette excise tax by $2 per pack – a 229 percent increase.
On July 1, a new Detroit school district was created as part of a major legislative reform package — the old district will remain but serve only as a tax collecting entity. Another new organization will be responsible for educating students. This dual-district model, however, is not a new concept.
Most Michiganders are familiar with the state’s bottle deposit law, which was enacted in 1976. At 10 cents a bottle or can, Michigan has one of the nation’s highest deposit rates — most of the other states that use these deposits require only five cents. But what may not be as well known is that Michigan also enforces this law with an iron fist. A recent case from Livingston County resulted in felony charges and raises the question of whether this punishment fits the crime. It also highlights Michigan’s tendency to overcriminalize undesirable behavior.
In Traverse City, a couple could lose thousands of dollars in cash as well as their home because of the state’s loose civil forfeiture laws. Their case shows the perspective of both sides of this issue, but the solution is fairly simple – governments should not be able to take ownership of people’s assets unless they are convicted of a crime.
A new survey finds an overwhelming majority of rank-and-file union members across the country believe employees should have the freedom to represent themselves in negotiations with their employer if they choose not to be part of a union.
Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s Director of Labor Policy Vinnie Vernuccio wrote about his idea to make workplaces more fair and free environments in an op-ed published by The Hill. Along with his co-author and Mackinac Center Adjunct Scholar Jeremy Lott, Vernuccio explains that Worker’s Choice benefits individual workers, unions and employers.
Property owners in Wayne County may pay the highest effective tax rates in the state, but they will be asked to pay more this November.
On the ballot will be a proposed new property tax aimed at raising money for regional transit and public schools. Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s Vice President for Marketing and Communications John Mozena explained in an op-ed published in The Detroit News that, “For potential homebuyers or commercial property owners, it’s hard to make the argument that what we get in Wayne County is worth the additional cost.”
If Michigan wants to attract high-quality, job-creating businesses to the state, it should consider removing some of the hurdles companies must face to operate.
Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s Assistant Director of Fiscal Policy James Hohman wrote about the state’s failed attempts to grow the economy through crony capitalism. Rather than offer handouts to a few favored companies that often fail to deliver on their promises, the state should look at its business climate.
By Jack McHugh
While the Legislature is on a summer break with no voting, the Roll Call Report begins a series that reviews key votes of the 2015-2016 session.
Senate Bill 34, Revise concealed pistol license procedures: Passed 28 to 9 in the Senate on February 3, 2015 and passed 76 to 34 in the House on Feb. 25, 2015.
To eliminate county concealed pistol licensing boards and transfer their duties to the State Police and county clerks.
Acres of shiny new Chevrolet Camaros temporarily parked outside a Lansing auto plant: temporarily because they’re being snapped up by customers almost as fast as the state-of-the-art facility can ship them out. The image may sum up the evidence assembled in a new study from the respected Fraser Institute in Canada.
The Mackinac Center’s mission is premised on the notion that free markets and free people make for a more prosperous and flourishing society. So it’s no surprise that we find Michigan’s alcohol control regime problematic, because it is designed to unjustly enrich a few beer and wine wholesalers at the expense of consumers everywhere. Indeed, parts of the state liquor code read as if it were written specifically for the benefit of wholesaler business interests.
It’s not coincidence or bad luck that causes government economic development programs to so reliably fail to meet their promises — there are good reasons to expect this. So why do politicians keep returning to this dry well?
Sadly, even an unconventional, non-careerist politician like Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is taking a turn with an executive order that appears to embrace the flawed economic central planning vision that inspires such programs. He is doing so despite having expressed skepticism about such programs in his first election campaign and reducing their scale after he was elected.
