Rick Snyder took office in January 2011 as Michigan faced yet another budget deficit and as plenty of citizens wondered whether state government could act with alacrity. Armed with large Republican majorities in both chambers of the Legislature, and aided by a good economic tailwind, Snyder rushed through the first six months of his term […]
Bridge Staff
Bridge’s mission is to inform Michigan citizens about their state, amplify their views and explore the challenges of our civic life.
Posted inGuest Commentary
State waits for Legislature to do its job on transit
By Timothy R. Fischer/Michigan Environmental Council and Michele Hodges/Troy Chamber of Commerce Our state’s leaders must stop dithering and approve the regional transit authority bills (Senate Bills 909, 911-912) before the Michigan Legislature. An RTA matters for the entire state. It would control transit tax expenditures in Southeast Michigan, cut duplicative service, force efficiencies and […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Student loan debt is next big bubble
By Evan Montague/Lansing Community College Graduation stories abound this time of year, inspiring students and educators alike with the promise of a career and personal success. Imagine starting this journey with a monthly payment of $276 for the next 10 years — if not longer. The average Michigan undergraduate student loan borrower is graduating with […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Time to play 'Moneyball' with K-12 funding
By Brendan Walsh/Grosse Pointe School Board treasurer When he proposed Michigan’s largest-ever cut in public education spending last year, Gov. Rick Snyder cited a statistic that only 16 percent of the state’s high school graduates were college-ready. “Michigan’s education system is not giving our taxpayers, our teachers, or our students the return on investment we […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Change tax code to feed starving Michigan cities
By Dayne Walling/Flint mayor In Michigan, cities were the greatest victims of the recent near failure of the economy and the housing market. Michigan is not seeing the same renaissance of returning to the city at a significant rate equal to the national trend. The problem is that all of the cuts to government here […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: What do pizza guy, chemistry guy and office furniture guy have in common?
By Doug Rothwell/Business Leaders for Michigan The pizza guy, the office furniture guy, the chemistry guy … they have more in common than you know. The leaders of Michigan’s Domino’s Pizza, Steelcase and Dow are coming together to talk about higher education. Their conversation is urgent and critical, because they all are challenged with finding […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Will personal property tax tug-of-war drag cities into the mud?
Legislation that would phase out Michigan’s personal property tax — essentially a business equipment levy — on industrial and commercial property is working its way through the Michigan Senate. The repeal is strongly backed by business groups such as the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and manufacturers. It is just as strongly opposed by alliances of […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Early childhood efforts need more than office equipment
By Jack Kresnak/Michigan’s Children A new report on the nation’s efforts to provide quality early learning shows Michigan was one of the few states to increase preschool funding last year. The bad news: We still serve only 18 percent of 4-year-olds and no 3-year-olds, putting Michigan in the bottom half of states in accessibility to […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Traditional polling worthless in predicting ballot-proposal votes
By Mark Grebner/Practical Political Consulting Inc. Some polls prove to be right on the money, while a few miss by five or even 10 points. But some polls that aren’t worth anything at all: The ones that try to predict how a ballot proposal will fare with the voters. When the final pre-election poll published […]
Posted inMichigan Government
See where personal property tax hits
Bills that would lead to the elimination of the personal property tax for almost all Michigan businesses are now before the Michigan Legislature. Business groups have expressed strong support for PPT repeal, arguing the levy on business equipment makes Michigan less competitive. A coalition of local government and school groups says the plan by the Snyder administration could strip hundreds of millions of dollars from local governments. The administration says most of those dollars will be replaced by state funds appropriated by the Legislature each year.