Feds OK extra $300 a week for Michigan jobless – but it may not last long
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge) LANSING — Nearly a million Michiganders who have lost jobs during the coronavirus pandemic will eventually qualify for $300 per week in extra unemployment benefits, but the payments could take weeks to arrive and may not last long. The Federal Emergency Management Agency on Friday approved Michigan’s application for the temporary […]
Whitmer wins another round over executive powers. On to the Supreme Court
by Riley Beggin (Bridge) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer does indeed have the legal right to continue extending a state of emergency during the coronavirus pandemic without approval from the Legislature, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled Friday morning. The 2-1 decision upholds a lower court ruling siding with Whitmer and affirming the constitutionality of the Emergency […]
Michigan to identify schools with COVID outbreaks. In a couple of weeks.
by Robin Erb, Ron French (Bridge) Michigan’s top health official said Friday the state will release the names of more than a dozen K-12 schools and colleges where there have been confirmed COVID-19 outbreaks. But she said her office can’t do so for an undetermined number of weeks. The state first has to cobble together […]
Michigan businesses want cut of millions from uncollected pop returnables
by Kelly House (Bridge) As Michiganders continue to liquidate stockpiles of returnable bottles and cans amassed during the coronavirus shutdown, beverage industry officials are pushing for a cut of the deposits. At a press event Wednesday, they advocated for legislation that would give beverage distributors a portion of the multimillion-dollar pool of uncollected returns that now goes […]
Study: Wage gap widens between Black, white workers, especially in Michigan
by Paula Gardner (Bridge) Ricky Jefferson has watched the erosion of the Black middle class in the Ypsilanti area over decades. Today, as a Washtenaw County commissioner, he’s part of the mission to restore economic parity to the part of the county that didn’t thrive during the recovery from the Great Recession. Higher poverty rates, […]
What school restart deal means for Michigan parents, students, and educators
LANSING — With most school restart dates just weeks away, the Michigan Senate on Saturday approved a “return to learn” plan agreed to late Friday by legislative leaders and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The legislation finalizes guidelines for statewide school districts already planning to restart using either online-only, in-person or blended instruction. But the deal provides little funding […]
Michigan colleges ‘nervous’ about COVID as students return, ready to party
by Paula Gardner (Bridge) Students returning to Michigan’s college campuses might come ready to party, but the pandemic will make it harder this year. State agencies and local officials are working with bar, restaurant, and store owners in college towns to line up strategies to limit crowds and encourage safety precautions. While the initiative started […]
Michigan’s new coronavirus order: masks for little kids at camp, child care
by Riley Beggin (Bridge) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday ordered staffers and most children at camps and child care centers in much of Michigan to wear face masks beginning Monday. The announcement came shortly after public health officials linked a central Michigan summer camp to an outbreak of more than 50 cases of coronavirus in […]
Michigan passes absentee ballot voting test. November could be another story.
by Riley Beggin (Bridge) When Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown left her house to work the August primary on Tuesday morning, she bid her husband farewell until the next day and perhaps longer. She barely slept, leading election workers to tabulate results throughout the night until they were complete around 10:20 am Wednesday. That’s later […]
Michigan schools already planning for likely ‘rolling closures’ from COVID
by Ron French (Bridge) Even before Michigan schools reopen, education leaders are preparing for re-closings — discussing when and how to quarantine entire classrooms of children and how to shutter buildings where there are coronavirus outbreaks. Despite unprecedented precautions, ranging from face masks for all adults and students in middle and high school, to beefed-up […]
