MSU Starts Student Health Care Mandate

Michigan State University is now mandating that its students be covered by health care insurance, a requirement being phased in with the current freshman class. more …

Commentary: When Stadium Deals Fizzle, Taxpayers Lose

The Detroit Tigers were a a few wins short of going to the World Series last year and getting that close has encouraged team ownership to open up its wallet and sign All Star first baseman Prince Fielder to a 9-year, $214 million deal in the hopes that he will help push the team over the top as well as continue strong attendance at Comerica Park.

Maybe with that extra revenue they will consider repaying Michigan taxpayers for the hundreds of millions of dollars that were used to subsidize the team's stadium. more …

Unemployment Rate Dropping But 'Disturbing Trend' Developing as Food Assistance Skyrockets

Although Michigan’s unemployment rate has been dropping lately, there’s a disturbing trend developing over the last decade.

One in five people in the state received food assistance from the state in 2011, up from 1 in 16 in 2001. more …

Commentary: Bureaucrats vs. Parents — Who Should Choose Where Children Are Educated?

Recently at a House Education Committee hearing about expanding parental choice, Debbie Squires of the Michigan Elementary and Middle School Principals Association let this slip (video below), "Educators go through education for a reason. They are the people who know best about how to serve children. That is not necessarily true about an individual resident. Not saying that they don't want the best for their children, but they may not know what actually is best from an education standpoint." more …

Elementary Students Forced to Write Advocacy Letters to Governor Criticizing Education Cuts

Third through fifth graders at an elementary school in the Walled Lake Consolidated School District were assigned this week by at least one teacher to write letters to Gov. Rick Snyder saying how unhappy they were with his budget cuts, the school district confirmed Thursday.

The students were told the best letters would be forwarded to the governor. One parent said that the teachers prepped the students with what the budget cuts entailed because some weren’t aware. Students were also asked to speak in front of their classmates about why they didn’t like the budget cuts. more …

Commentary: Research Shows Right-to-Work Laws the Right Way to Go

The state of Indiana is now America’s 23rd right-to-work state. Michigan may need to adopt such a law to better compete for jobs and talent. Research shows that states with right-to-work laws arguably are better off economically. They have typically enjoyed higher rates of economic and population growth and lower unemployment rates. more …

'Forced Unionization' Employer Out of the Picture, But Dues Keep Flowing To SEIU

Rep. Opsommer points out that his legislation wouldn't end MQC3 or its registry, just the illegal unionization.

“Not only should the dues be stopped, all of the providers should be given refunds,” he said. “Those dues are coming directly out of the hands of Alzheimer’s patients and autistic children, and we need to get it back to them.” more …

Commentary: Pete Hoekstra Ad Misses the Mark

In a new commercial for U.S. Senate candidate and former Congressman Pete Hoekstra, an actress portraying a youngish Chinese woman rides her bike up to the camera and thanks "Debbie Spend-It-Now" for putting America deeply into debt. The actress’s less-than-perfect syntax has drawn fire for playing on stereotypes. But the real problem is the half-baked economics that the ad promotes. more …

Benefit Costs Sunk Benton Harbor's Finances

Most union contracts don't last eight years. But in Benton Harbor they did and keeping a deal in place for eight years cost the city dearly.

Under that deal, Benton Harbor was giving raises as high as 15 percent to some of its employees and paying for 100 percent of health care premiums for all its employees. Also, employees contributed just 3 percent of their salary to their defined-benefit retirement plans. more …

Commentary: Rep. Ray Franz — Hero of Home Repair Tradesmen

Occasionally, a legislator does the right thing and deserves recognition. Based on a new bill to strike a blow against overly intrusive big government on behalf of the home repair tradesmen and entrepreneurs, Rep. Ray Franz, R-Onekama, is one of them. more …

Rosy Solar Jobs Projections Fail To Live Up To the Hype

In the final days of Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s tenure, the state Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth trumpeted the success of green jobs created in the solar industry. “Total job creation projected of 21,592” the April 12, 2010, DELEG presentation claimed.

Almost two years later, the large majority of those jobs never saw the light of day. Even if they had come to fruition, they would just be a small part of the entire Michigan economy. more …

The Unequal School Funding Myth

Public school special interests groups uniformly lobby for the state to give more money to school districts. To sell this idea to policymakers and taxpayers, these groups often claim that schools need "adequate," "stable," and "equal" funding. These talking points give rise to some common myths about school funding in Michigan. The short video below examines one of these myths: The Unequal Funding Myth. more …

SEIU Sent Key GOP Senator $5K on Day Bill to End 'Forced Unionization' Arrived in Senate

Michigan Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Roger Khan, R-Saginaw, received $5,000 from the Service Employees International Union on June, 9, 2011. That was the day House Bill 4003 was sent to the Senate, one day after its passage in the House.

HB 4003 was drafted to end the Home Healthcare Dues Skim, under which the SEIU has received more than $28 million more …

Analysis: School District Turns Down $270K Savings

Portage Public Schools had an odd reaction to some good financial news this week, telling a company that could save it $270,000 a year "no thanks." That offer came from Grand Rapids Building Services, a facilities cleaning contractor that proposed taking over the school district’s first shift custodial duties. more …

Projections vs. Reality — Should Politicians Make Job Creation Claims?

Michael LaFaive says Michigan residents have had their fill of erroneous job projections from politicians.

“There was no accountability for Gov. Granholm who gave out predictions like candy on Halloween,” said LaFaive, director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. “Have we already forgotten, ‘In five years, you’ll be blown away'?” more …

Commentary: If the Monopoly Title Fits, Wear It

The Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers are arguably the greatest beneficiaries of an archaic liquor control code. It reads as if it were written for these lucky few members of a hereditary and elite millionaire’s club. more …

Taxpayer Costs For Average State Employee Increased From $79K in 2001 to $95K in 2011

In 2001, the state paid $3.9 billion to 62,057 full-time employees, an average of $63,474 in total compensation for each employee. In 2011, the state paid $4.7 billion to 47,818 full-time employees, meaning total compensation per worker jumped to $97,883. The Mackinac Center received the compensation data in a Freedom of Information Act request from the state’s Civil Service Commission.

When adjusted for inflation, the state spent $4.8 billion in 2001 on employee compensation and $4.5 billion in 2011 despite having 23 percent fewer workers. Average compensation increased from $78,999 in 2001 to $94,888 in 2011 when adjusted for inflation. more …

Analysis: The Unstoppable Teacher Pension Fund Monster

The state’s teacher retirement system continues to increase burdens on taxpayers and local school districts. The costs exploded in the recent years, and without substantial reform there is no reason to expect that trend to change. more …

Award-Winning Reporter, Editor Joins Michigan Capitol Confidential as Managing Editor

Home Health Care 'Dues Skim' Worse Than Previously Thought

According to figures provided by the Department of Human Services, far more home healthcare providers were ensnared in Michigan's “forced unionization” of 2006 than previously believed. There are 60,190, which is more than 25 percent higher than the 43,000 reported up to now. more …