See where you can borrow free camping gear in Michigan
by Kelly House (Bridge Michigan) GRAND RAPIDS — In its quest to democratize the Great Outdoors, the Grand Rapids Parks and Recreation Department is ripping a page out of a well-worn book. A library book, to be exact. In a gymnasium basement in the city’s Roosevelt Park neighborhood, the city has opened a gear library […]
Michigan pot sales skyrocket to all-time high as prices keep dropping
by Roni Kane (Bridge Michigan) Michiganders really, really like marijuana. The total amount of cannabis products sold between the state’s recreational and medical dispensaries has tripled in the past two years, with the top two pot sales months in Michigan history being the past two months. There are nearly a thousand shops across the state where you can […]
Michigan, we have a budget deal. But no tax relief yet, despite surplus
by Jonathan Oosting (Bridge Michigan) LANSING — The Michigan House and Senate voted early Friday morning to approve a major $76.9 billion state budget deal after Republican leaders reached an agreement with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. The deal includes new money for school safety and teacher recruitment programs, local government debt relief, blight removal and […]
What’s next after Roe in Michigan: lawsuits, a ballot measure and uncertainty
by Jonathan Oosting & Yue Stella Yu (Bridge) The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ended nearly 50 years of federal protection for women seeking legal abortions, but experts say the blockbuster decision is unlikely to cause immediate changes to abortion access in Michigan. “Everything remains the same as it was yesterday at this time,” Michigan Attorney […]
Who is running for attorney general and secretary of state in Michigan in 2022
by Lauren Gibbons (Bridge) Who is running for attorney general Come November, Michigan voters will choose between two polars vying to serve as the state’s top law enforcement official. Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, is running for a second and final four-year term against presumed opponent Matthew DePerno, a Portage attorney who is known […]
New Michigan law cuts red tape for small, home-based child-care providers
by Koby Levin, Chalkbeat (Bridge) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law a package of changes to Michigan’s child-care system that she says will reduce red tape and help make child care more widely available. The laws enacted Thursday contain a wide range of measures, from minor procedural fixes to major changes in the state’s method […]
After a life-long love affair with books, Ed Surovell learns to let go
by Roni Kane (Bridge Michigan) The last thing Ed Surovell said he remembers reading about is the ocean. Two years ago, before the 82-year-old Ann Arbor book collector could no longer distinguish the words on a page, he recalls sitting comfortably nestled among the 10,000 books in his private collection and traveling from the Arctic […]
Cutting cigarette nicotine? Juul banned? What’s next for Michigan smokers
by Julia Forrest (Bridge Michigan) The Biden administration wants to lower the level of nicotine allowed in cigarettes to make them less addictive. Combined with the banning of Juul vapes and the possible ban of all menthol cigarettes, the federal efforts could save thousands of lives. The administration announced plans this week to create a […]
Michigan gas prices could drop 75 cents per gallon if state, feds freeze taxes
by Zahra Ahmed (Bridge Michigan) LANSING — President Joe Biden on Wednesday urged Congress to suspend the federal gas tax and called on states to do the same, something Michigan legislators have urged of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer since prices hit record highs. The federal tax, 18.4 cents per gallon of gas and 24.4. cents for diesel, […]
Michigan deer hunters decline as pandemic boost in hunting wanes
by Zahra Ahmad (Bridge Michigan) With life getting back to normal after the pandemic, Michigan’s deer hunting participation is simmering down from a boom the sport experienced two years ago. The state’s deer hunting license sales were down almost 4% in 2021 from 2020, the Department of Natural Resources reported Thursday to the Natural Resources […]
