* We are letting thousands of our best teachers walk out the door each year, says a new report: “So who are the Irreplaceables? They are, by any measure, our very best teachers. Across the districts we studied, about 20 percent of teachers fell into the category. On average, each year they help students learn […]
Rick Snyder
Posted inMichigan Government
Truth Squad calls foul on ‘birthday tax’ claim on Snyder road proposal
MICHIGAN TRUTH SQUAD ANALYSIS: “Happy Birthday From Governor Snyder” Who: Joel Charles Featured Material: Web video Truth Squad Call: Foul To background sounds of the Beatles’ “Birthday,” Gov. Rick Snyder is portrayed in a clownish birthday hat, noisemaker in mouth and birthday cake in front of him. What follows is an attack on Snyder’s plan […]
Posted inPeter Luke: Eye on the Capitol
Analysis: Political reality may flatten Snyder's tires
Let’s just say that when Gov. Rick Snyder made his most robust case yet for boosting the annual budget for fixing Michigan’s highways last week, no one on the Senate or House Appropriations committees asked what might be the most appropriate question: “Why only $1.2 billion?” Actually, a plan that raises the gas tax and […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Hunters, anglers get Michigan licenses cheap
Much has changed in Michigan since 1997: Gasoline prices have tripled, food prices increased more than 40 percent and health-care costs have skyrocketed. It seems that everything costs more today than it did 16 years ago — unless you hunt or fish in Michigan. The price of hunting and fishing licenses here hasn’t increased since […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Where Michigan stands on hunting, fishing fees
As Bridge reported last week, Gov. Rick Snyder is taking aim at Michigan’s outdoor bargains: “The cost of shooting a deer in Michigan would double next year, under Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed 2014 budget, and more conservation officers would patrol the state’s woods and waterways. “Released Thursday, Snyder’s budget calls for $354.3 million for the […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Michigan cities firing flares over funding
By Tom Ivacko/Center for Local, State and Urban Policy Michigan local government leaders are waiving a red flag, warning that the state’s system of funding local government is broken and that we can expect fewer public services in the future if the system is not fixed. In recent days, both Flint’s emergency manager, Edward Kurtz, […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Deer, fishing fees headed for change under Snyder plan
The cost of shooting a deer in Michigan would double next year, under Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed 2014 budget, and more conservation officers would patrol the state’s woods and waterways. Released Thursday, Snyder’s budget calls for $354.3 million for the Department of Natural Resources, which would allow the agency to hire 41 more conservation officers, […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Snyder ‘excited’ to double preschool spending; predicts ‘dramatic’ impact
Gov. Rick Snyder formally called for an additional $130 million for state preschool classes Thursday, a move long hinted at by administration officials – and long sought by advocates for early childhood education. “One of the things I’m most excited about (in the budget) is we are making a large investment in early childhood funding,” […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Road repair enjoys bipartisan support
On Michigan’s Right to Work law, labor activist Mark Schauer and business advocate Rich Studley could not have sought more different results. But when it comes to working on Michigan’s crumbling roads — an issue that’s arisen in Lansing nearly as frequently as winter potholes — the two have an identical goal. Schauer, a former […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Michigan's current fuel taxes place it in the national top 10
Michigan last raised its fuel taxes in 1997, moving it from 15 cents to 19 cents (technically 18.715) for gasoline. In the interim, the buying power of those 19 cents — for asphalt, steel and the other elements of road construction and repair — has eroded. The nonpartisan Citizens Research Council noted in a 2011 […]
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