Lack of child care now a ‘crisis’ facing Michigan’s workforce
By Paula Gardner (Bridge Magazine) Shock came first. Then anger. And within days of learning the Ann Arbor Public Schools planned to eliminate its school-age child care program in the fall, more than 1,110 parents signed a petition asking the district to restore it. “There was near universal astonishment at this decision,” said Liz Lin, a […]
Michigan fireworks 2021: What you can and can’t do on the Fourth of July
by Olivia Tucker (Bridge Michigan) With the COVID-19 pandemic canceling summer festivities in 2020, Michigan residents may not remember what they can and cannot do with fireworks for their Fourth of July celebrations. Are firecrackers legal in the state? Can I shoot them into my neighbor’s yard at 3 am? What’s the difference between a […]
Dems, GOP feud over fixing Michigan Secretary of State appointment backlog
by Sergio Martínez-Beltrán (Bridge Michigan) The pandemic may be winding down, but a backlog at the Michigan Secretary of State caused by it continues to vex lawmakers in Lansing. Both Democrats and Republicans acknowledge they need to fix a system that has left an unknown number of 7 million drivers with lapsed car registrations — […]
Michigan GOP advances voter ID mandate: common sense or a new poll tax?
by Jonathan Oosting, Sergio Martínez-Beltrán (Bridge Michigan) Fourteen years after Michigan’s voter identification law survived a legal battle because of an affidavit option Republicans are now moving to eliminate, critics are threatening litigation again as the legislation moves to the full Senate for a potential vote. Because Michiganders without an ID can currently vote by […]
Peak rates: Why daytime A/C will cost many Michigan homes more this summer
by Olivia Tucker (Bridge Michigan) This past weekend was set to be the hottest of the season thus far, with temperatures in lower Michigan approaching 90 beginning Saturday. And just in time for you to crank the air conditioning, Consumers Energy, the public utility company that provides electricity to 6.6 million Michiganders, is raising electricity […]
Records: COVID-19 nursing home deaths may have been undercounted in Michigan
by Mike Wilkinson (Bridge Michigan) The death toll in Michigan’s nursing homes and other senior long-term care facilities may be higher than the 5,600 COVID-19 deaths currently attributed to the facilities, according to newly released information. Nursing homes nationwide were among the hardest hit by COVID-19 and Michigan’s official total accounts for nearly 30 percent […]
Michigan GOP pushes critical race, trangender bills as school funding in limbo
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge Michigan) An average of two transgender athletes a year ask to play in Michigan high school sports. Educators say critical race theory isn’t even taught in high schools. And no government here is trying to require that children get the COVID-19 vaccine. Yet Republican lawmakers in recent weeks have rushed to […]
Ann Arbor likely will be ground zero for Michigan cicada invasion
by Arjun Thakkar, Sophia Kalakailo (Bridge Michigan) Most of Michigan will miss out on the great Brood X cicada invasion of 2021. The one- to two-inch bugs, which emerge from the ground once every 17 years to sing, have sex and die, mainly hang out in a Bug Belt just south of Michigan, from Washington, […]
How a secret group of lawyers influences who sits on Michigan’s federal courts
by Sergio Martínez-Beltrán (Bridge Michigan) A secret group of lawyers and political donors has an outsized influence in determining appointments to federal courts in Michigan — and some say that’s hurt the diversity of the bench. Michigan has two vacancies in the federal courts, and a judicial advisory committee is tasked with screening applications for […]
Michigan GOP eases absentee voter ID plan. Critics call proposal ‘pointless’
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge Michigan) Michigan Republicans on Wednesday eased proposed identification requirements for absentee ballot applications, addressing some criticisms but doing little to placate Democrats and voting rights advocates concerned about disenfranchising voters. As introduced in March, legislation sponsored by Sen. Lana Theis, R-Brighton, would have required applicants to mail a photocopy of their driver […]
