Business Bridge

With the governor leaving office next year, business executives are being asked to carry the flag in Lansing for billions of dollars in new investment in education, infrastructure and jobs.

For generations, Republican lawmakers worked in lockstep with Michigan’s business establishment. But Lansing’s new GOP leadership is ignoring the priorities of business to pursue its own, anti-tax agenda.

What does big business want in Michigan? Who are the major players? Here’s a quickie primer on the state’s leading industry groups and their publicly stated wish lists.

To measure one way in which the business community can influence lawmakers, we analyzed the campaign contributions of 15 leading business advocacy groups.

What the state’s top executives have to say about the most critical issues facing Michigan (Spoiler alert: It’s not tax cuts)

Two commissions convened by Gov. Rick Snyder recommend dramatic upgrades to Michigan education and infrastructure. But the Republicans who lead the House and Senate want to shrink government, not expand it. Can anyone get them to consensus?

Legislation pending in Lansing could well save jobs for a salt mining company operating in Michigan. But it could also increase costs for state taxpayers.

A favorable outcome for AK Steel could set a tax precedent for other companies that wind up in a similar scenario through a merger or acquisition.

Backers of the legislation point to estimates showing the state could earn up to $60 million in revenue from the law. Fiscal analysts are less bullish.