Michigan Capitol Confidential

Why we withdrew our Benton Harbor story

When the premise of a story is undercut, the story must be removed Read more

Michigan lawmakers are likely to keep taxing pensions

Raising the tax deduction for seniors is different from eliminating the pension tax, but don’t expect lawmakers to explain that Read more

IRS delays $600 reporting threshold for third-party payments

Washington Wednesday: Critics worry lower reporting requirement for banking transactions will cause tax troubles for everyday people Read more

In last agenda item of year, Oakland County Commissioners gave themselves a raise

“If you want quality, you’ve got to pay for it,” commissioner said before voting yes Read more

Michigan health officials broke public trust with pandemic response

Public health officials never admitted their shortcomings. Instead, they blamed the public for not following orders. Read more

Whitmer signed 1,000 laws in first term as governor; here’s 8 she vetoed

MichiganVotes Monday takes a look at bills that were passed by lawmakers but vetoed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Read more

CapCon’s top 10 most read stories of 2022

Michigan Capitol Confidential’s Top 10 stories of the year as measured by views Read more

Citing supportive feedback, Michigan nuclear plant to reapply for federal funding

Restarting the plant could take about two years if approvals are granted, company says Read more

Court rules against transparency in Rochester schools FOIA case

Mackinac Center Legal Foundation will appeal; district said it didn’t have teaching materials for a semester-long class Read more

How Michigan reps voted on Puerto Rico statehood

Washington Wednesday: Michigan reps voted 8-6 in favor of letting Puerto Rico decide its statehood status. Read more

Private sector employees would be affected if right-to-work repealed in Michigan

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling gives public employees, such as schoolteachers, the right to opt out, but employees at private firms like Ford would be affected by a right-to-work repeal Read more

Stabenow should set aside, not donate, FTX funds

Stabenow says she will donate donations from Samuel Bankman-Fried to a local charity. They should instead be set aside for victims Read more

Will Whitmer sign bill to let patient advocates visit nursing homes?

Senate bill 450 would prevent the isolation of 2020 by outlawing executive orders that keep family members, advocates out Read more

Survey of parents, alumni, allowed multiple votes on question of removing Ben Carson’s name from a Detroit high school

There were no safeguards to stop people from taking the survey more than once, district admits Read more

Only 14% of Michigan residents are up-to-date on COVID booster shot

‘Lack of trust’ cited as 85% of Michiganders go against official public health guidance Read more

Stabenow took nearly $56K of donations from FTX, then took lead role on crypto bill

Samuel Bankman-Fried, owner of bankrupt firm FTX, met with lawmakers regularly. Critics say bill he pushed would kill decentralized finance Read more

MSU employees who object to vaccine mandate present case to U.S. Court of Appeals

Three employees faced discipline for refusing a COVID shot Read more

Washington Wednesday: Bipartisan coalition calls for banning Tik Tok

Two Michigan representatives, Bergman and McClain, have introduced bills challenging popular video platform Read more

In Michigan town that banned short-term rentals, few filed complaints

Park Township bans short-term rentals for peace and quiet, but lack of complaints show there was never a problem Read more

Michigan bill demands 100% transition to green energy by 2035

Renewables only account for 11% of Michigan’s energy today, so how could they make up the rest by 2035? Read more

There are no free rides — Michigan taxpayers will subsidize the QLine through 2039

Republicans helped pass a subsidy for a train that has a fraction of the ridership it would need to sustain itself Read more

FOIA exemptions for Michigan governor, lawmakers breed distrust

Transparency demands that FOIA apply to the governor and the legislature Read more

Pork Friday: Lawmakers give grants but are unwilling to explain them

Elected officials, grant recipients, are silent on the taxpayer funds. Read more

McClain, Moolenaar sign letter pressing Biden to end COVID-19 emergency

Nearly two dozen reps sign the letter, which calls Biden’s use of emergency powers “akin to dictatorship” Read more

Michigan teachers unions continue to shed members

Latest filings show that MEA has lost 1,000 members since last year Read more