Debate about corporate subsidies comes as business leaders, others sound alarms that wages in Michigan incomes aren’t keeping pace with the nation. They are calling for investments in education, high-tech jobs.
Business Watch
Covering the intersection of business and policy, and informing Michigan employers and workers on the long road back from coronavirus. Our Michigan Economic Dashboard shows key metrics that show how the state is performing.
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Michigan lawmakers eye retooling corporate subsidies to target high-wage jobs
The push is on in Lansing to use incentives to lure tech jobs, as average incomes in Michigan fall behind and criticisms increase about using tax money to create low-wage work.
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Corporate subsidies cost Michigan $335M; 40% of deals create low-paying jobs
Gov. Whitmer says tax money funds ‘good-paying jobs.’ But details on wages from subsidies are often difficult to find, and a Bridge Michigan investigation reveals $228 million in subsidies in 2023 are for jobs that pay less than average.
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Metro Detroit Black Business Alliance changes name, goes statewide
A $500,000 appropriation from last year’s state budget will take Detroit-based organization to Lansing and Flint.
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Disaster relief loans available for Michigan businesses hurt by lack of snow
The Small Business Administration is giving loans of up to $2 million to small businesses in Michigan affected by the lack of snow this winter.
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Gotion submits site plan to Mecosta County for EV battery factory
Gotion, a subsidiary of one of China’s largest battery suppliers, has submitted site plans for the controversial electric vehicle battery plant it wants to build near Big Rapids.
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$900M solar component factory to add 1,100 clean energy jobs in Michigan
The 1-million-square-foot assembly plant will employ over 1,100 when it opens in 2028, creating a clean energy and semiconductor hub with nearby corporate relative Hemlock Semiconductor.
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Michigan bet big on online gambling. We’re now No. 1
Internet gaming — like poker on your phone — is surging in Michigan. Receipts totaled $1.92 billion last year, and that’s meant higher than expected tax revenues for the state and Detroit.
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Michigan boosts funding to attract new EV-related factories
The state hopes a new $125 million fund will make Michigan more attractive for advanced manufacturing and let it lure more federally backed high-tech factories.
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Michigan cord cutting accelerates; cable customers fall 13% in 2023
Since 2015, the industry has lost over 1 million subscribers in Michigan. Last year, subscriptions fell by 190,000.