Policy Issues

Someone experiencing suicidal thoughts could have their names put on a temporary or indefinite do-not-sell list for firearms, under legislation by Sen. Rosemary Bayer (D-Keego Harbor).

The Senate Tuesday night passed a bill significantly expanding Michigan's brownfield redevelopment program, which would award developers with $3.5 billion in total tax capture off from payrolls and other costs. Folks around the Capitol see this as greasing the wheels on a massive redevelopment of Detroit's Renaissance Center, a planned aquarium in Kent County, a Macomb County mall, and other large projects in Traverse City and Muskegon.

Distributing human milk that is improperly pasteurized, adulterated or contaminated would be formally outlawed under new legislation by Sen. Erika Geiss (D-Taylor).

In the new legislative year, House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) is planning to introduce a property tax cut proposal that gives Michigan voters two choices on how to replace the lost dollars for local governments and schools.

Residents with employer-provided health insurance will see the "additional financial pressure" of more folks going uninsured due to federal Medicaid reforms and the looming expiration of Enhanced Premium Tax Credits, says one benefits consultant.

Lue Yang – a Hmong refugee and St. Johns married father of six – who was detained and threatened with deportation by federal immigration officials for a 30-year-old expunged home invasion conviction on his record, was released to his family Wednesday afternoon.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and several Democratic legislators put up opposing comments as the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) held a well-attended virtual hearing about speeding up approvals for DTE to provide electrical service to a proposed Washtenaw County data center.

(Source: MIRS.news , Published 11/25/2026) With DTE Energy asking the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) to quickly approve electric service to two high-electricity-using data centers, Attorney General Dana Nessel said Tuesday that the situation is “highly unusual” and that DTE is “making unverified promises (that) nobody else will shoulder these costs.”   At the end of October, a new data center project in Saline Township was announced, and DTE was selected as the ene

Slotkin Accuses Trump Administration Of 'Weaponizing' FBI

From Pilot To Program, Educating Prisoners In Michigan

Speaker Talks About 428 Second-Chamber Bills That Remain In Limbo

A new statewide survey of local government leaders across Michigan shows a paradox: officials say local democracy is functioning well, even while their trust in residents has fallen to its lowest recorded level.

U.S. Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Bay City) described the United States' health care system as being in a “crisis" that, in the long term, should include affordable insurance programs, which “likely means . . . a reasonable proposal that opens up Medicare for people who want it."

"If you remember only three words out of this presentation: minors can't consent,” Rep. Mark Tisdel (R-Rochester) said to the Regulatory Reform Committee in support of his HB 4388, which would require age verification to sign up for a social media account.

U.P. Lawmaker Says ‘Destruction’ Of U.P. Possible If Senate Doesn’t Move On RICE Bills

Foreign contributions to ballot initiatives would be banned under HB 5197 and HB 5198, just like they are banned from political candidates and Super PACs.

(Source: MIRS.news , Published 11/5/2025) Michigan organizations that provide food assistance and early childhood education warn that the ongoing federal government shutdown is cutting off services for children and families, and could force more programs to close if funding is not restored soon.   During a virtual press conference Wednesday, leaders from early education programs and anti-poverty agencies said families are beginning to lose access to meals, childcare and class

(Source: MIRS.news , Published 11/05/2025) The Departments of Natural Resources and Environment, Great Lakes & Energy would need court-issued warrants to search property regardless of the search’s environmental protection intentions, under two bills that both passed 63-37 in the House Tuesday   Rep. Dave Prestin (R-Cedar River)’s HB 4073 applies to the DNR and Rep. Tom Kunse (R-Clare)’s HB 4421 applies to EGLE. Kunse said in his floor speech that the right to private property

Sen. Thomas Albert (R-Lowell) is leading a 53-bill proposal to eliminate the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), the public-private agency offering grants and programs to entice businesses to locate or grow in Michigan. The legislation comes as some Republican gubernatorial candidates call for the MEDC's demise as a core campaign message.

Congressional candidate William Lawrence's night sleeping on the lava rocks outside U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte)'s Lansing office in protest of the presumed suspension of federal food assistance benefits – which Lawrence believes Barrett is partially responsible for – was not uneventful.