LANSING ? Gov. Jennifer Granholm said Friday that her administration has laid the foundation for the "Next Michigan" she described in her second inaugural address of 2007, where the state would have a diversified economy and better-educated workforce. Leaving office in 15 days after a wrenching eight years of economic upheaval, Granholm, continuing a series
LANSING ? Gov. Jennifer Granholm, in part two of her year-end interview, said she declined to critize the Michigan Business Tax ? unlike House Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Twp.) and Sen. Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester) - reserving her criticism instead for the MBT surcharge. "I think that the idea of making it more profit-sensitive,
LANSING - Conflict over industrial personal property tax exemptions and confusion over who should get such breaks has spurred thousands of court and administrative appeals and moved the elimination of the personal property tax to the top of the agenda for many business and political leaders in Michigan. Taxing authorities have said only property used
LANSING - Olga Dazzo, Governor-elect Rick Snyder's choice as Department of Community Health director, said Friday the state faces both large challenges and opportunities in changing the direction of health care and its cost. But she also said the state would continue to implement its portion of the new national health care law, especially those
LANSING - Of the 92 schools in Michigan deemed Persistently Lowest Achieving Schools, 45 now have approved restructuring plans, the Department of Education announced Friday. Another 22 of the schools have conditional approval of their plans, with teacher contract amendments needed by August 1 to receive full approval. Five of the schools either already closed
WASHINGTON - Congress passed the most far-reaching tax bill in a decade late Thursday, averting across-the-board tax increases, enacting new breaks for individuals and businesses and laying a marker for how Washington might work in an era of divided government. The bill goes to the White House for President Barack Obama's signature after the House
ANN ARBOR - Merit Network, Inc. today announced that ADVA Optical Networking has accepted an invitation to become a Merit Community Supporter. The Merit Community Supporter program selects commercial organizations on an invitation-only basis that share Merit's core values of Community, Innovation, People and Integrity. "Merit is pleased to welcome ADVA Optical Networking as a
DETROIT ? The McGregor Fund will provide $30,000 to the Nonprofit Enterprise at Work in 2011 to support continued expansion of services in Southeast Michigan through its BoardConnect, ResourceConnect and npServ programs. NEW's npServ program offers affordable IT support, BoardConnect builds the leadership and effectiveness of nonprofit boards and the ResourceConnect program helps organizations find
WASHINGTON DC - In a reversal of the federal government's hands-off approach to Internet privacy regulation over the past decade, the Obama administration said Americans should have a "privacy bill of rights" to help regulate the commercial collection of consumer data online. The Obama administration has called for the creation of a Privacy Policy Office
LANSING ? Gov.-elect Rick Snyder continues to build his staff so that he can hit the ground running on Jan. 1 when he is sworn into office by naming Thursday a couple of political operatives to help him sell his transform Michigan agenda. Terri Reid, Republican Party political director, will serve as External Affairs Director.