Elisa Seltzer figured she’d serve five years as Emmet County’s director of public works — just long enough to get a recycling program up and running. That was 21 years ago. Seltzer has created a self-supporting recycling program that includes 13 drop sites, curbside collection for 60 percent of Emmet Countyand more than 250 businesses, and […]
Michigan Government
Citizens cannot do their job of running their government if they don’t know what their public servants are doing.
Posted inMichigan Government
Budget numbers improve; does it matter?
On Friday, the financial experts in the legislative fiscal agencies and the Department of Treasury will meet to agree on a new snapshot of Michigan’s economic and fiscal situation — and the trend lines for the near future. Based on these early House and Senate releases, the news should be quite positive — if you […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Parting gift for college grads: $25k in debt
Clark Eagling has $45,000 in student loans — and he’s the lucky one in the family. His wife, Aimee Kessel, owes $90,000 for her undergraduate and graduate college education. The debt is so large that the couple may be collecting Social Security before they finish paying for college. “We’ve both essentially said that we don’t […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Legislator: Taxpayers get bad deal from universities
State Rep. Bob Genetski doesn’t have many fans at Michigan’s public universities. As chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education, Genetski, R-Saugatuck, has been an outspoken critic of how universities spend money — and a leader in the movement to reform the state’s higher education funding formula. A Bridge analysis found that Michigan […]
Posted inMichigan Government
The business of business is business
Rick Snyder campaigned primarily in 2010 on his credibility as a businessman. He wanted to fix, not fight; optimize, not antagonize. Snyder also campaigned, however, as someone interested in getting past labels and promoting shared solutions. He pledged to seek that often-sought, yet never-quite-reached bipartisanship. In Michigan, the political divide between Republicans and Democrats plays […]
Posted inMichigan Government
'College tax' burdens students, state
Caroline Robinson and Barbara Twist are cousins who share far more than bloodlines. They are both seniors in college; each attends one of the top public universities in the nation. The similarities stop, however, when the tuition bills arrive. Barbara is paying twice as much for her education at the University of Michigan as Caroline […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Grand Valley: "It's not our fault."
Calculating tuition at Grand Valley State University begins the same way every year. School officials estimate staff costs and utilities. They have a good idea how many students they’ll enroll. But the rest of the equation is dependent upon a variable beyond the university’s control or analysis: appropriations decisions made by state legislators. Last year, […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Redistricting poll is no triumph
Michiganvoters want a nonpartisan commission to take charge of drawing election lines in the state — a job now tightly in the grip of the Legislature. That’s the message the Michigan Redistricting Collaborative is trumpeting from a new poll it commissioned of statewide voters. (Note: The Center for Michigan, Bridge Magazine’s parent, is a member […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Guest column: Communities should find tax-spend 'niche'
By Mark Skidmore/Michigan State University Consumers instinctively look for bargains — quality products at a good price. We purchase the items that offer the right combination of price and quality we desire. This principle also hold true when we look for a place to live. Potential residents “shop” for the right mix of quality and […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Chronicle publisher stood for right things
News that Michigan Chronicle Publisher Sam Logan Jr. had passed away was a real shock to everybody who knew him. Sam was so energetic, so engaged, so filled with ideas and plans that no one ever thought he might leave us at such a premature time. He was a towering icon, not only to the African-American […]