Dick DeVos continues his “Get It Done” bus tour around our state. It’s generating lots of enthusaism and excitement. The campaign filed their 30,000 signatures to put his name on the ballot….it’s official. Help is on the way!!!
More news on Governor Ganholm going to Japan….save us taxpayers some money…just make the announcement here. Jet setting around the world at taxpayer expense just for the sake of a political photo op is not right…the taxpayers deserve better. We noticed your skipping the China portion of the trip…talk about politics?
Granholm campaign continues it’s attacks….now on Dick’s dad? The Governor’s team started out negative from day one, throwing out false charges, implying and/or trying to spin a negative story….and now they try to drag in Dick’s family. I doubt we’ll be going to Canada to dig up stuff about the Governor’s father. We’ll just stick to Dan’s emails he sends out to state employees….what’s that all about???
Notice the story on how Indiana’s first attempt at using Photo ID went through with almost not issues raised. It was well run, insured every vote was counted…OK, only once….and didn’t disenfranchise anyone. We have the same law in Michigan and many are calling for it to be implemented. The State Supreme Court has agreed to review the laws constitutionality.
Lots of phone calls are being done around the state. Thanks again to all of those who are participating.
Saul Anuzis
State Stories
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2006/5/2/131329.shtml?s=et
Dick DeVos May Make Michigan GOP
With Michigan settling ever deeper into the economic doldrums, Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm is taking the challenge from the presumed Republican candidate, businessman Dick DeVos, very seriously.
http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Comment/Pollsters/DavidHill/050306.html
Granholm may be odd woman out
The gubernatorial race in Michigan should cause Republicans everywhere to take heart. A slew of polls taken during March and April all came to the same conclusion: Democrat Jennifer Granholm’s bid for reelection is on the ropes.
Separate surveys by national pollsters Rasmussen and Strategic Vision and by local firms EPIC-MRA and MRG all pegged Granholm’s electoral support at just 43 to 44 percent. The polls signal that Michigan could be the leading edge of a surprising Republican showing in November.
http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/20060503-092715-9504r.htm
Varied voter issues
Americans often receive a very skewed picture of their country's deepest concerns when the news is filtered through the nation's capital.
All too often those with the loudest voices here get the most attention in the nightly news, though they are not necessarily what outrages people in what I like to call "the real world" outside the Washington Beltway.
In Michigan, where automotive layoffs have plunged its economy into a crisis, driving the unemployment rate to 6.8 percent, the biggest concern is jobs. "The economy and jobs is the No. 1 issue here by 40 percent or more. Every day it seems there is another plant closing and downsizing," said Michigan pollster Ed Sarpolus of EPIC/MRA. "This trumps everything." The next closest issues in the open-ended survey are health care and education" and they poll in the teens.
Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm, once one of her party's stars, may be looking for a job, too, next year. She and Republican businessman Dick DeVos are now in a dead heat, says Mr. Sarpolus. "DeVos is no longer the underdog. The governor is the underdog," he told me.
http://www.ourmidland.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16580154&BRD=2289&PAG=461&dept_id=472542&rfi=6
DeVos visits Case Systems, downtown Midland
Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVos got some good business news, applause, comments similar to his campaign statements and some pointed questions during campaign stops in Midland this afternoon.
He also got at least one promise of a factory worker's vote.
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=4856361&nav=0Rce
Claim Check: DeVos on the SBT
GRAND RAPIDS--This year's political cycle has started earlier than ever, largely due to the entry of Dick DeVos in to the governor's race.
DeVos is the only candidate already running television commercials and has embarked on a bus trip promoting his campaign.
As we have for nearly a decade, 24 Hour News 8 looks at political commercials for accuracy and clarity in our "Claim Check" reports.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060503/NEWS11/60503006/-1/BUSINESS07
State moves to ban demonstrators within 500 feet of funerals
Change not in time to block weekend protests
LANSING Laws to prevent disruptions of slain U.S. soldiers burials moved closer to the governors desk Wednesday, but they wont take effect in time to blunt funeral protests planned Friday and Saturday.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/BUSINESS06/605040330
State launches next phase of energy plan
Group to draft report by June 10
The second phase of an ambitious plan to chart a course for Michigan's energy future was unveiled in Lansing by state Sen. Bruce Patterson Wednesday.
The Canton Republican, who chairs the Senate Technology and Energy Committee, said he was forming a technical working group to come up with long-range legislative solutions to Michigan's energy crunch.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/METRO/605040415
House reinstates $4M zoo grant
Badly-needed funds will keep financiall-troubled facility in operation
Gary Heinlein / The Detroit News
LANSING -- Legislation reinstating a badly needed $4 million grant for the Detroit Zoo was approved by the House on Wednesday.
The money is part of a supplemental spending bill for the current fiscal year, containing a host of added state spending items and recommended by Gov. Jennifer Granholm.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/METRO04/605040393/1015
15 to vie for 4 county judge seats
Crowded field suggests 'fierce' bench battles for 2 district and 2 circuit courts, retired jurist says.
Jon Zemke / Special to The Detroit News
Every judicial seat up for election in Livingston County this fall is being contested. Fifteen people were running for four bench seats as of Tuesday's filing deadline.
"It's going to be wild with that many seats being contested and that many people running," said Dan Burress, a former Livingston County Circuit judge who retired in 2004 after 19 years on the bench.
State's major research universities lobby for more cash
By TIM MARTIN
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan's three large research universities have unique missions that separate them from the state's 12 other public universities, the schools' presidents said Wednesday in asking lawmakers to spare Wayne State University from a budget cut.
The presidents of the University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Wayne State University appeared before the same House subcommittee that last week endorsed a plan to cut Wayne State's funding in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 by about $4 million.
http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?S=4854641&nav=5D7v
State Workers Rally at Capitol
State workers say they're over worked and understaffed. Some state employees cancelled their lunch plans for pickets all across Michigan. State employees are walking in circles to protest because they say they're going in circles on the job.
Their union representative says, because of a lack of resources, it's a struggle for them to get any work done.
http://www.ourmidland.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16576243&BRD=2289&PAG=461&dept_id=541496&rfi=6
Workshop focuses on talking to youths about sexuality
The Midland area has been selected as a pilot site to host the Talk Early & Talk Often parent workshop, an initiative of Gov. Jennifer Granholm. The 90-minute workshop will offer assistance to parents of middle school youths in developing the skills necessary to talk with their child about abstinence and sexuality.
http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-5/114667116593630.xml&coll=8
No one to challenge appointed judge
It looks like newly appointed 20th Circuit Judge Jon Hulsing of Jenison will not have to worry about competition during this fall's general election.
When the deadline for candidates passed Tuesday afternoon, Hulsing was the only candidate for the 20th Circuit Court, according to the Michigan Secretary of State Office. Hulsing, who ran for judge in 2004 but narrowly lost to Jon Van Allsburg, was appointed last month to fill the seat vacated by retiring Judge Wesley Nykamp.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060503/UPDATE/605030443
Senate votes to restrict funeral protests
Gary Heinlein / The Detroit News
LANSING -- Lawmakers are hurrying to adopt legislation restricting demonstrations at funerals, with members of a Kansas religious sect planning to show up Friday and Saturday at rites for two more Michigan soldiers.
The legislation, which passed the Senate Wednesday and should get final approval from the House next week, would require demonstrators to stay at least 500 feet away from funeral services. It's aimed at members of the Westboro Baptist Church, who carry and chant slogans such as "Thank God for Dead Soldiers."
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1146667879251700.xml&coll=6
Sensible reforms for campaigns
Don't let the name fool you. Michigan's campaign disclosure laws often hide as much as they reveal.
This year, for instance, candidates for state office from the House of Representatives to governor will be able to pack their bank accounts with contributions in the last two weeks before the election. None of those donations will be public until well after races have been decided.
http://www.themorningsun.com/stories/050406/loc_drugs001.shtml
Deadline mires drug plan
As the May 15 deadline for the senior drug program closes in, the Commission on Aging offices in both Isabella and Gratiot counties are swamped.
Because of these difficulties, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, is trying to get the deadline extended.
"I have received thousands of calls and letters from people across Michigan about the trouble they are having with the new Medicare Prescription Drug Program,“ she said in a written statement about the bipartisan effort she is leading that would allow seniors until the end of the year to sign up.
http://www.ourmidland.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16576620&BRD=2289&PAG=461&dept_id=472542&rfi=6
No problems expected in Ludington confirmation
Midland County Circuit Court Judge Thomas L. Ludington is a step closer toward a lifetime job as a federal judge.
President George W. Bush nominated him for the job more than 3 1/2 years ago. Ludington's confirmation hearing was delayed by politics, but Tuesday it finally took place before the Senate Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C.
http://www.dailypress.net/stories/articles.asp?articleID=1794
Senate race starting to heat up
By George Weeks
DETROIT — After withdrawal of three primary opponents and a $2-million-plus TV ad campaign that gave him a surge in polls, wealthy businessman Dick DeVos clearly is the Republican nominee-in-waiting to oppose Gov. Jennifer Granholm.
Is Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bou-chard, whose support in the party establishment is rapidly expanding, the presumptive challenger of Democratic U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow?
Zandstra, on leave from a Grand Rapids think tank, yelped about Anuzis’ comments, saying he should either resign “or apologize and cease to support” Bouchard.
Anuzis said he was “insulted” by Zandstra’s “public tirade…foolishness,” and emphasized he was only responding to a question from the Lansing-based MIRS newsletter for an assessment on the primary in which he is making no endorsement.
Good for Anuzis — a rare party leader who is willing to be candid about a candidate who’s leading today, but may or may not be tomorrow.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-29/1146667640251700.xml&coll=6
GOP stars to align over reforms
The 2008 election is a long way off -- but not far from the minds of ambitious politicians.
That could be the case when U.S. Sen. John McCain visits Michigan in June to give a thumbs-up to the campaign finance reform proposals of Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land.
"Terri Lynn Land is a rising star in the Republican Party, and I look forward to coming to Michigan in June to support her campaign for re-election," McCain said in a statement.
McCain added he supports Land's campaign finance proposals, commending her for trying to "clean up" the state's campaign finance system.
http://www.mlive.com/news/sanews/index.ssf?/base/news-1/114666251035250.xml&coll=9
Follow the $$$, early and often
Money is the mother's milk of political campaigns and Michigan voters deserve to know the identity of the cash cows bankrolling a candidate or issue.
More importantly, they deserve to know who's funding a campaign before they vote and end up with a bad case of buyer's remorse.
To that end, Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land pitched a 10-point plan to increase transparency in Michigan's campaign finance process.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/NEWS04/605040358/1005/news04
Tax credit proposed for parents of stillborn children
By Tim Martin
Associated Press
Michigan parents of a stillborn child would get a $150 tax credit under a proposal making its way through the state Legislature.
The measure is meant to help with the expenses of a funeral and prenatal care for families who lose a child at birth.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/NEWS04/605040353/1005/news04
Law student expected to enter race for House
Jeffrey Abood, 22, seeks seat vacated by Whitmer
A 22-year-old Cooley Law School student is hoping to make laws while he studies the law.
Jeffrey Lance Abood of Okemos is expected to officially announce his Democratic candidacy for the 69th District state House seat today.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/NEWS04/605040344/1005/news04
Resolution targets absent lawmakers
Lawmakers who skip a session without an excuse could lose pay under a resolution passed Wednesday by House.
The resolution, which passed by a 98-5 vote, now goes to the Senate. If two-thirds of Senators approve it, the resolution, which would amend the state constitution, would go to voters for their consideration.
"We need to allow flexibility for illness or a family emergency but regular absenteeism, including time spent running for another office, is a problem that needs to be reigned in," Rep. David Law, a Republican from West Bloomfield and the measure's sponsor, said in a statement.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/NEWS01/605040357/1001/news
Grand Ledge, Maple Valley, Okemos voter numbers high
Voters came out in higher numbers than expected to reject bond proposals in Grand Ledge, Okemos and Maple Valley.
While most school elections reap no more than a 10 percent voter turnout, Tuesday's bond elections drew 24.9 percent of Grand Ledge's 24,582 registered voters.
http://www.mlive.com/news/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-17/1146667281232960.xml&coll=2
Pact rules out teacher layoffs Ann Arbor schools agree to make cuts from nonteaching staff
The Ann Arbor Public Schools has reached a tentative agreement with its teachers union and will not lay off any teachers during the next school year, union and school officials confirmed Tuesday.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-29/1146667605251700.xml&coll=6
GR considers balancing budget with higher fees
GRAND RAPIDS -- City administrators said Tuesday they will ask city commissioners to approve a variety of fees and fee increases next week as they attempt to balance the city's budget without a tax increase.
The fees would range from a 500 percent increase for block party permits -- from $5 to $25 -- to a $500 fee for building owners who trigger more than six false fire alarms in a year. The amounts of several of the proposed increases have not been finalized, according to city budget officials.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/NEWS03/605040328
Turnout is light for school elections in Oakland County
Some districts in metro area fared well, others didn't
Few voters showed up at the polls for Tuesday's school elections, but those who did didn't have a collective message to send to metro Detroit school officials.
In Oakland County, turnout was so dismal -- 8.9% of registered voters cast ballots -- that Ruth Johnson, county clerk and register of deeds, issued a news release saying it's time for schools to choose November as their election date.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/BIZ04/605040396
Detroit to drivers: Hang up
City Council wants to fine motorists who use cell phones $100; hands-free devices OK.
Lisa M. Collins / The Detroit News
Detroit motorists -- downtown workers, visitors, sports fans, residents and club-crawlers -- will have to hang up their handheld cell phones while driving if Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick signs a ban approved Wednesday by the Detroit City Council.
The council voted 8-1 to fine drivers $100 if they are caught using a cell phone while driving, effective if and when Kilpatrick signs the measure. Talking on a hands-free phone will be allowed, and drivers who can prove they were making an emergency call will get a pass.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/AUTO01/605040395
Delphi locals to take strike vote
UAW steps up pressure on bankrupt supplier as deadline looms on pay concessions for 24,000.
Brett Clanton / The Detroit News
The United Auto Workers on Wednesday inched closer to a strike at Delphi Corp., giving the go-ahead for its 24,000 blue-collar workers at the bankrupt auto supplier to take a strike authorization vote.
If approved, the vote would allow UAW leaders to call a strike if Delphi tosses out its labor contracts and imposes wage cuts.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/OPINION01/605040343/1008
Michigan should prime tourism pump
More marketing could boost lagging travel industry
M ichigan's travel industry might seem a little out of touch in asking for a more than five-fold increase -- to $30 million -- in state funds for marketing tourism.
With state revenues tight, the industry probably ought to consider itself fortunate to hold on to its $5.7 million marketing appropriation, along with a one-time $15 million boost promised by the state for later this fall.
But being more aggressive in promoting Michigan to out-of-state tourists would be a solid investment, and lawmakers and the governor should give some consideration to the request for a bigger marketing budget.
National Stories
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/14486750.htm
Election Day calm as voters comply with photo ID rule
Despite months of debate culminating in a federal lawsuit, Indiana’s new requirement that voters show photo identification at the polls caused barely a ripple in Tuesday’s primary election.
Across Indiana, there were no reports of problems caused by the new requirement, with most areas reporting they did not have to turn away a single voter; those that did turn voters away for lack of identification found it to be a rare exception.
http://www.townhall.com/news/ap/online/gov/president-whitehouse/D8CTB5488.html
Cheney: Russian's Putin Restricting Rights
VILNIUS, Lithuania
Vice President Dick Cheney accused Vladimir Putin's Russia on Thursday of restricting the rights of its citizens, and said "no legitimate interest is served" by turning energy resources into implements of blackmail.
"In Russia today, opponents of reform are seeking to reverse the gains of the last decade," Cheney told a conference of Eastern European leaders whose countries once lived under Soviet oppression, and now in Russia's shadow.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/POLITICS/605040340/1022
Lawmakers tackle gas prices
The House approves price-gouging law, larger fines and jail time if energy firms are caught.
H. Josef Hebert / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- The House on Wednesday approved criminal penalties and fines of up to $150 million for energy companies caught price gouging, yet lawmakers acknowledged there is no quick and easy fix to higher pump prices.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/POLITICS/605040350/1022
Senate bill for Iraq war costs, hurricane aid faces veto threat
Andrew Taylor / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- A Senate bill paying for the war in Iraq and hurricane aid has drawn a veto threat from the White House that imperils lawmakers' add-ons.
The bill facing a Senate vote today is about $14 billion more than President Bush is willing to accept. That means items such as $4 billion in farm aid and $1 billion in state grants not requested by Bush may have to get dropped during House-Senate negotiations.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/03/AR2006050302244.html
Tax Deal Sets Day of Reckoning
Tough Choice on Deficit in Store for President, Congress in 2011
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 4, 2006; Page A04
With this week's hard-fought agreement on a $70 billion tax-cut extension, President Bush and congressional Republicans have effectively set a date for a fiscal day of reckoning for the next president and a future Congress: Jan. 1, 2011.
House Lobbying Rules Call for More Disclosure
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 4, 2006; Page A01
The House narrowly approved ethics legislation yesterday that would expand the amount of information that lobbyists must disclose about their interactions with lawmakers and would also rein in big-money political groups that spent heavily in the last presidential election.
By a vote of 217 to 213, the House agreed to require lobbyists to file quarterly instead of semiannual reports, to include in those reports donations they give to federal candidates and political action committees, and to make public gifts that they give to lawmakers or congressional aides
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/03/AR2006050302137.html
Security Council Is Given Iran Resolution
Pressure Builds to End Tehran's Nuclear Efforts
By Colum Lynch
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 4, 2006; Page A18
UNITED NATIONS, May 3 -- Britain, France and Germany presented the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday with a draft resolution that urges states to restrict nuclear trade with Iran and requires Tehran to halt enriching uranium or face "further measures," a veiled reference to possible sanctions.
Russia and China immediately signaled they will oppose the U.S.-backed resolution, which demands that Iran halt nuclear research and development activities, and stop construction on a heavy-water nuclear reactor at Arak because it could be used to produce weapons-grade fuel. The resolution calls on governments to prevent the transfer to Iran of all "items, materials, goods and technology" that could be used to enrich or reprocess nuclear fuel or advance the Islamic state's missile programs.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/03/AR2006050300324.html
Jurors Reject Death Penalty For Moussaoui
By Jerry Markon and Timothy Dwyer
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, May 4, 2006; Page A01
Al-Qaeda conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui will spend the rest of his life in a maximum security prison for his role in the Sept. 11 attacks after a federal jury rejected the government's four-year quest to secure his execution for the deadliest terrorist strike on U.S. soil.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/03/AR2006050302198.html
Condescensional Wisdom
Thursday, May 4, 2006; Page A25
John Kenneth Galbraith, the Harvard economist who died last week in his 98th year, has been justly celebrated for his wit, fluency, public-spiritedness and public service, which extended from New Deal Washington to India, where he served as U.S. ambassador. Like two Harvard colleagues -- historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and Sen. Pat Moynihan, another ambassador to India -- Galbraith was among liberalism's leading public intellectuals, yet he was a friend and skiing partner of William F. Buckley. After one slalom down a Swiss mountain, inelegantly executed by the 6-foot-8-inch Galbraith, Buckley asked how long Galbraith had been skiing. Thirty years, Galbraith said. Buckley mischievously replied: About as long as you have been an economist.
Galbraith was an adviser to presidents (John Kennedy, a former student, and Lyndon Johnson) and presidential aspirants (Adlai Stevenson and Eugene McCarthy). His book "The Affluent Society," published in 1958, was a milestone in liberalism's transformation into a doctrine of condescension. And into a minority persuasion.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/washington/04jefferson.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Businessman Pleads Guilty to Bribing a Representative
WASHINGTON, May 3 — A Kentucky technology executive pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges of bribing a member of Congress in an investigation that has centered on Representative William J. Jefferson, a Louisiana Democrat.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/business/04scene.html
Red States, Blue States: New Labels for Long-Running Differences
THE red state-blue state division has captured the pundits' imaginations, leading to much armchair theorizing about how political constituencies in the United States are evolving.
According to some, the country is splitting into two opposing camps, with political divisions becoming more polarized and more spatially segregated than they have been in the past.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/nyregion/04kt.html
An Ugly Turn in the Race to Oppose Mrs. Clinton
The pitched battle to be the Republican challenger to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has turned nastier, with the campaign manager for Kathleen Troia McFarland, who is struggling to get on the primary ballot, accusing her opponent, John Spencer, of bigamy.
In an NY1 News interview on Tuesday, Edward J. Rollins, a top aide to Ms. McFarland, spoke of Mr. Spencer's personal history and his record as the mayor of Yonkers, dredging up marital infidelity and accusing him of nepotism.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/04/world/middleeast/04mideast.html
In New Problem for Palestinians, Banks Reject Transfers
RAMALLAH, West Bank, May 3 — As the Hamas-led government struggles to raise cash after the suspension of Western aid to the Palestinian Authority, it faces a new and unexpected obstacle: banks here are refusing to accept its money transfers from abroad.
The United States Treasury last month barred almost all financial dealings with the Palestinian Authority in response to Hamas's rise to power, under a federal law that makes it a crime to provide funds to terrorist groups
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110008329
The Next Filibuster?
Republicans should welcome a judicial brawl
It's merely taken three years, but Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to come for a vote before the Senate Judiciary Committee today. Democrats are likely to oppose him in lock-step, and some on the left are urging them to use the F-word.
Anything is possible, but it's hard to believe Democrats are nuts enough to launch a judicial filibuster in the middle of an election year with a GOP President so low in the polls. Talk about a get-out-the-vote gift for Republicans. Then again, no one ever got rich overestimating the intelligence of the political class.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/cc/?id=110008328
Prodigal State
Tort reform brings doctors back to Texas.
BY NEWT GINGRICH AND JOHN T. GILL
DALLAS--The Senate is once again taking up the issue of medical justice reform. If senators want to expand access to health care by increasing the number of physicians and lowering costs, they need to look at Texas.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110008330
They Should Have Killed Him
The death penalty has a meaning, and it isn't vengeance.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP)--Moussaoui said as he was led from the courtroom: "America, you lost." He clapped his hands.
Excuse me, I'm sorry, and I beg your pardon, but the jury's decision on Moussaoui gives me a very bad feeling. What we witnessed here was not the higher compassion but a dizzy failure of nerve.
MIRS Capitol Capsule, Wednesday, May 3, 2006
School Election Scheduling Bill Passes
School districts would need to hold their elections in November under a bill that passed the House, 60-46, today, only hours after it was reported out of committee.
The form of HB 4755 that came out of the Committee would have still given school districts the option of scheduling elections in May. They just would have had to choose an odd-or even-numbered year. However, on the House floor this afternoon, the bill's sponsor, House Majority Floor Leader Chris WARD (R-Brighton), offered an amendment to limit the options to just November on either an even- or odd-numbered year. It passed on a primarily party-line vote.
"When I had originally introduced the bill it was limited to November," Ward told MIRS. "But then we added the May option because some people thought that since the election consolidation law was so new we should give them more time. But since then I'd decided to offer the amendment (to limit it to November) and see what support it would get."
On the final bill, four Democrats joined 56 Republicans in support of the bill, Reps. Rich BROWN (D-Bessemer), Andy DILLON (D-Redford), Michael SAK (D-Grand Rapids), and Joel SHELTROWN (D-West Branch). Two Republicans, Rep. Bruce CASWELL (R-Hillsdale) and Rep. John STEWART (R-Plymouth) voted no.
Ward timed movement of the legislation for the day after many school districts had held their May elections and turnout had proved to be abysmal. In Committee today, a representative of the state clerks' association testified that some precincts reported literally no voters.
The Democratic point person on the bill, Rep. Andrew MEISNER (D-Ferndale), who along with Rep. Matt GILLARD (D-Alpena), voted against the measure in committee, argued that the legislation is anti-local control.
"I would think that local control should have some meaning," Meisner said.
Rep. Aldo VAGNOZZI (D-Farmington Hills) argued for more time.
"The election consolidation bills just passed a couple of years ago," Vagnozzi said. "I think we should give them a little more time on this."
In committee this morning, Ward said school districts have generally refused to take advantage of election consolidation law options to hold elections that cost less and would result in greater turnout.
"When we passed the election consolidation package a couple of years ago, we were hoping that many schools would choose to hold their elections in November," Ward said. "Instead, most chose to hold them in May when they cost the most and have the lowest turnout."
Meisner asked if those behind the bill have completely given up on the local control aspect that was a component of the election consolidation debate.
"Has the local control concept been winnowed away?" Meisner asked.
Donald WOTRUBA, spokesman for the Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB), testified against the bill in committee, saying that legislators should give school districts more time to adjust to the election consolidation law.
"I see districts moving their election dates down the road," Wortuba said. "I'd ask you to give the school districts more time."
In addition to the school district wording, the bill would specify that if a village's regular or special election were held in conjunction with another election conducted by a township, then the village would pay the township a proportionate share of the election expense. If not, the village would pay the township 100 percent of the actual costs of conducting the regular or special election.
Other election reform bills moved out of committee and were passed on the floor today, as well (See related story.)
MSU, U of M Rally To Wayne's Aid
The presidents of Michigan State University (MSU) and the University of Michigan (U of M) stood by their counterpart from Wayne State University (WSU) today, in opposition to a House proposal to cut the Detroit school's funding for next year by nearly 2 percent.
In a unique format, the heads of the state's top three research institutions testified together in front of the House Higher Education Committee, in support of the idea that they should be considered separate from the state's other 12 publicly funded universities in the appropriations process as Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM had proposed in her budget.
They argued that the high-tech, health science education and research conducted by the three institutions represents the future of Michigan's economy.
"The future of higher education in Michigan begins at the these universities" said WSU President Irvin REID, whose school would see $4 million less than last year under HB 5781, which moved to the House Appropriations Committee last week (See "Most U's Win, Familiar Two Lose In House Proposal," 4/26/06).
"Any decrease for Wayne State University puts our common future at risk," Reid said. "We have made very difficult decisions. We've streamlined our operations. We cannot reduce services or hold the line. We've done that already."
U of M President Mary Sue COLEMAN backed up Reid by urging the House not to go forward with a budget that essentially gave a 3.5 percent increase to her school to the detriment to her fellow research institution.
"I understand the difficulties and the decision you have to make when the state is in a tough economy," Coleman said. "There is every evidence that the three research universities are providing the professions the state desperately needs. To somehow hobble one of them is enormously painful … It's like throwing out rocks in the path. I'm very, very hopeful that this is not a path we want the state to go down."
Panel Republicans said WSU came out on the short end of the stick because it didn't perform well under the highly complicated formula the House leadership used to determine who got what. Interestingly, the two schools that made out the worst in the deal — WSU and Northern Michigan University — were the same two schools that were singled out for cuts last year. The Republicans openly admitted the schools were on the chopping block because they were given preferential treatment when Democrats were in charge.
Nonetheless, Rep. Jerry KOOIMAN (R-Grand Rapids) took the lead in defending the funding decision, saying the formula was based on output and outcomes. Who graduates the most students? What types of degrees do those graduates hold? All that information gets thrown into the mix.
He added that he didn't see a need to segregate MSU, U of M and WSU in the appropriations process. These three schools already are given significantly larger pieces of the higher education pie because of a bigger commitment to research. He didn't sound convinced there was a need to further pad that advantage.
Democrats haven't been impressed with the Republicans' formula and restated their opposition to it today.
"I think it was Dr. Frankenstein who came up with a formula that created a monster that went out of control," said Rep. Michael MURPHY (D-Lansing). "I hope we can level the playing field and create a formula where all are winners."
Under the House proposal, U of M would receive $327.4 million from the state, MSU $293.8 million and WSU $210.6 million. The next highest funding comes from Western Michigan University (WMU) at $114.2 million.
WMU President Judith BAILEY, the fourth university president testifying today, noted that her school and Michigan Tech also have research status, albeit not to the high degree of the other three. Oakland University and Central Michigan University also have a level of research going on at their respective schools.
For that reason, separating out the three top research universities into their own strata poses the question about whether all schools should be given its research classification. She didn't, however, endorse the House cut to WSU.
"I see it as problematic to take from one school to give to another," she said.
The camaraderie among the three university presidents in general today was worth observing. Former MSU Trustee Jack SHINGLETON observed after the meeting, that to see the three university presidents giving joint testimony before a legislative panel was something he would have never expected to see, having remembered the U of M-MSU conflicts of days past.
Term-limited Rep. Chris KOLB (D-Ann Arbor) shared a similar observation. When he came to Lansing, the state's universities were competing with one another for funding. To see three universities working together to advance Michigan's economy was a refreshing sight to see at his final Higher Education subcommittee meeting.
Committee Chairman Rep. John STEWART (R-Plymouth) told MIRS after the committee meeting that he saw the House offering as a step in the process, and defended the Republicans' formula as something that gives the House Republicans good ground to stand on when they go into the final target negotiations with the Senate and the governor.
Did DeVos File Too Many Signatures?
When Republican gubernatorial candidate Dick DeVOS and his supporters carried 10 boxes of nominating petitions into the Secretary of State's office on Monday, the campaign told the media they were turning in 33,180 signatures from registered Michigan voters.
The rationale for having so many signatures was most likely that state law mandates at least 15,000 signatures be filed and nobody wants to be caught with too few after the non-registered voters and other bad signatures are thrown out by the Secretary of State.
However, state law (MCL 156.444f) gives candidates a range of signatures they must turn in. In the case of candidates running for statewide office, that range is 15,000 to 30,000. So what happens if a candidate turns in more than 30,000 as the DeVos campaign acknowledged yesterday?
MCL 156.548 reads, "It shall be unlawful for any candidate to willfully and intentionally procure more names upon nominating petitions than the maximum prescribed in this act."
Asked for some analysis on the situation, Michael HODGE, a Lansing elections attorney for the past 30 years, said he's often wondered what would happen if somebody did file more signatures than the range provided, but — to the best of his knowledge — doesn't know of anybody ever challenging it.
"The literal language of the statute imposes these limitations," Hodge said. "It's a law that's never been enforced."
So what's the penalty? Would the Secretary of State be forced to reject the petitions?
"If I were to fashion a challenge, that would be my challenge," he responded.
The maximum number was put into state law as a way to put more of an onus on candidates to file valid signatures. Policymakers didn't want a situation where a candidate filed an excessive number of questionable signatures from possible unregistered voters, dump them on the Secretary of State and make state officials weed through the numbers to see if the required minimum number was in there.
Hodge said under his reading of state elections law, anybody "aggrieved" could challenge the DeVos signatures. That means the Secretary of State could definitely pursue the matter, but so could the Granholm campaign or just about anybody, for that matter.
DeVos Spokesman John TRUSCOTT said his team "scrubbed the signatures" to make sure they would pass through the Board of State Canvassers and the Secretary of State. While they dropped off 33,180 actual signatures, the campaign filed 29,990 valid signatures.
Is that the number of valid signatures the Secretary of State's office will ultimately find? Secretary of State officials say they have yet to open any of the boxes the DeVos camp turned in. The affidavit affixed to the entry estimated the number of enclosed signatures at 30,000.
"We do not plan to pursue the matter," said Michigan Democratic Party spokesman Jason MOON. "But I'm sure the Republican Secretary of State will take the appropriate action."
Free IDs For Indigents Bill Moves
The House passed 63-43 today a bill allowing the Secretary of State to give free photo identification cards to the poor, apparently as part of a Republican push to bolster the constitutionality of a law that requires voters to show photo ID at the polls.
Democrats opposed the legislation on what appeared to be a variety of grounds. They said they didn't know how the state would pay for. They said there are no rules on who would qualify for the ID. They said those who do qualify for the free ID would still need to come up with identification such as birth certificates in order to prove their identities, which could be problematic for some.
At one point this afternoon on the House floor, House Majority Floor Leader Chris WARD (R-Brighton), the bill's sponsor, gave a pointed reaction to a speech made against the bill by Rep. George CUSHINGBERRY (D-Detroit). Cushingberry claimed the legislation would disenfranchise 350,000 Michigan voters and then he made some reference to the Confederacy.
"The issue of requiring voter IDs is in the court," Ward responded. "If you're worried about disenfranchising people, you should vote for this bill."
Rep. Andrew MEISNER (D-Ferndale) said he was opposing the bill because of the funding issue.
"I have grave concerns about where the funding would come from to carry out this project," Meisner said.
Meisner offered a floor amendment to the bill that would have tie-barred it to several Democratic-sponsored bills. The amendment failed. Ward offered an amendment that said the Secretary of State would be required to do everything within reason to inform the public about the program and its requirements. This amendment passed.
This morning, the House Oversight, Elections and Ethics Committee, chaired by Ward reported out the legislation along with other election reform measures. Republican members voted for the legislation while Meisner and Rep. Matt GILLARD (D-Alpena), the only Democrats on the committee, voted against it.
"Since we can apparently know how many there are, would this include an outreach effort to seek these people out?" Gillard asked in committee after Ward stated that it's estimated that there are more than 350,000 Michigan citizens to whom the legislation would apply.
"If you have any ideas along those lines I'd be happy to entertain a friendly amendment," Ward responded.
Later in the discussion Ward suggested that Michigan should take a look at what Indiana has done in regard to outreach.
"I think it would be good to look at the state of Indiana on that since the same federal court Michigan's law would ultimately have to go before has already ruled that Indiana's law is constitutional."
Meisner then pointed out that Georgia has passed legislation requiring voters to show photo IDs and also included a provision that the state would provide the IDs for those who couldn't afford them, yet the federal courts had struck down the Georgia law.
Ward responded that today's issue wasn't the photo ID requirement.
"The photo ID issue is now in the hands of the State Supreme Court," Ward said. "This is about providing IDs to those who otherwise couldn't get them."
Both Gillard and Meisner then asked how the free ID program would be funded.
"Have you identified a funding source for this?" Gillard asked.
"I believe a placeholder has been put into a supplementary budget," Ward responded.
Then Gillard asked what a person would need to do to get such an ID.
The Secretary of State representatives said they'd have to meet the same standards as everyone else by providing proof that they are who they say they are.
"I certainly wouldn't want to be supporting counterfeit IDs," Ward quipped in support of the standards.
Bureau of Elections Director Chris THOMAS quoted former U.N. Ambassador and civil rights advocate Andrew YOUNG, saying that anything that can be done to help provide IDs for people should be done.
Currently an applicant for a state identification card pays $10 to the Secretary of State for each original and renewal ID card issued. The card expires on that person's birthday four years after it's issued. The Secretary of State is required to waive the fee if the applicant is 65 years, had their driver license pulled because of a mental or physical disability, is blind or presents other good cause to not be charged.
HB 6007 would retain all of these provisions and add a person who presents evidence that he or she is unable to pay the fee required, to the list of reasons for fee waivers.
Two other bills (HB 6022 and HB 6026) that are part of Ward's overall election reform package were also reported out today. HB 6022 would allow election officials to create an inactive voter file. If a voter whose name was in the inactive file remained completely inactive for two presidential election cycles the name would be removed from the system.
Gillard asked Thomas (who supports the bill) if other states had instituted longer periods.
"No," Thomas responded. "In fact some have put in shorter periods and been more aggressive about having inactive names removed."
Gillard and Meisner voted against reporting the bill out.
HB 6026 consists of technical amendments to the revised school code concerning school elections.
House Passes Absent Lawmaker Measure
Today, on a 98-5 vote, the House passed HJR V, a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow a legislators' pay to be reduced if they missed session without a valid excuse.
Rep. David LAW (R-Bloomfield Hills) spoke to his proposal on the House floor arguing that lawmakers are elected to serve the public and they should be present when it's time to vote.
The resolution appears to be a measure few lawmakers are willing to vote against. In order to be placed on the November ballot, the resolution must be passed by a super majority (two-thirds) of both the House and Senate. The five no votes on HJR V in the House today were cast by Reps. Doug BENNETT (D-Muskegon), George CUSHINGBERRY (D-Detroit), Hoon-Yung HOPGOOD (D-Taylor), Lamar LEMMONS, Jr. (D-Detroit) and Bill McCONICO (D-Detroit).
HJR V is the centerpiece of the House Republican ethics package. It was reported out of the House Oversight, Elections and Ethics Committee this morning along with some other bills from the package. The other ethics bills were prepped for passage, but weren't voted on. They were:
- HB 4983, sponsored by Rep. Steve BIEDA (D-Warren), which would regulate and require certain reports on contributions to legal defense funds. A similar bill was part of the House GOP package, but Bieda's was introduced first and Committee Chair Chris WARD (R-Brighton) apparently decided to go with Bieda's rendition.
- HB 5985, sponsored by Rep. Joel SHELTROWN (D-West Branch), would prohibit all state-elected officers from accepting honorarium and institute a $1,000 fine for those who violate the prohibition. Currently only state lawmakers are subject to the restriction.
- HB 6011, sponsored by Ward, would expand lobbyists' reporting requirements to include items of food and travel provided for state officials.
- HB 6017, sponsored by Rep. Tom CASPERSON (R-Escanaba), would prohibit private interests from paying for out-of-state travel expenses for public officials.
Brennan, Gov Staff Trade Barbs
The war of words between rejected appellate court candidate Democrat J. Martin BRENNAN and the governor's legal council continues.
Brennan, a former Democratic-nominated Supreme Court nominee, made statewide headlines when he told MIRS last month that Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM and her husband were "Harvard elitists" who basically put their judicial openings up for sale (See "Brennan: Granholm For Sale," 4/3/06).
That broadside prompted a written response from Granholm's legal advisor Kelly KEENAN, who reminded Brennan that he didn't get a judicial appointment because he did not get the blessing of the State Bar of Michigan's Judicial Qualification Panel.
Keenan noted that normally the results of those findings from the Bar "are held confidential. However, in light of your recent public allegations, I feel I must share accurate information regarding your rating … "
Then he told Brennan in the three-paragraph correspondence, "both times that you have appeared before the (panel) seeking a judicial appointment from Gov. Granholm, you were rated 'Not Qualified.'"
But Keenan is not done.
Because of that rating he said, "It is unrealistic to expect an appointment irrespective of any endorsement you may have received from any outside group."
Brennan said the trial lawyers endorsed him, but Keenan reported he was advised that there was no such blessing.
He ended the April 10 letter saying, "I strongly advise you to use truthful statements regarding the highly qualified attorneys the governor has appointed judges."
Brennan crafted his own response letter 11 days later.
"Suffice it to say that I vehemently disagree with everything you indicated in your letter: The governor's judicial appointment process is seriously flawed and should be immediately junked. "
Brennan advised the governor's legal advisor to get rid of the State Bar process in favor of "a system in which the guidelines are promulgated by the Michigan Democratic Party."
"Your feigned apology for my disappointment is hollow and insulting," the rejected Democrat continued.
This week in an interview with the Michigan Radio Network, Brennan added the correspondence was also "disingenuous and insincere."
"I don't believe that I was found unqualified by the State Bar … If I am not qualified nobody is," he contended.
Brennan described the traditional screening process used by this governor and previous governors as "a good way for them to hide behind the State Bar."
He said perhaps the Bar should "do it's own investigation as to what took place here."
The Democratic attorney closed his four-paragraph letter with, "I will continue to exercise my right to free speech wherever and whenever possible; this includes the judicial selection process and the disgraceful treatment exhibited by your office."
(Contributed by Senior Capital Correspondent Tim SKUBICK.)
Drolet Zoo Amendment Falls Short
Today, Rep. Leon DROLET (R-Clinton Twp.) unsuccessfully tried to get his House Republican colleagues to go along with a measure to force Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM to either veto a bill that would prop up the Detroit Zoo, or sign it even though it included anti-racial preference language.
Drolet, a staunch supporter of the Michigan Civil Rights initiative (MCRI), offered an amendment on a supplementary budget bill to link the $4 million Detroit Zoo bail-out money to a requirement that the City of Detroit agree in writing not to give preferences based on or to discriminate on the basis of race, gender, national origin, or ethnicity in awarding of a contract for management of the zoo.
"The Detroit city council has said that it rejected the original deal (for zoo operations to protect racial preferences)," Drolet said. "We should end that kind of discussion. Let's take race out of the zoo issue."
Democrats claimed the Drolet amendment was an attempt to blackmail the City of Detroit.
"This is an ill-placed amendment that is very divisive," said Rep. Bill McCONICO (D-Detroit). "We're going to be debating affirmative action all summer and fall. This is an attempt to blackmail the city council to adopt a resolution that reflects (Drolet's) policy on affirmative action."
After the Democrats exhausted every maneuver to try to prevent a vote on the amendment, they were pleasantly surprised to find out that about a dozen Republicans had decided not to support it. The amendment failed on a 46-59 vote.
After the vote on the Drolet amendment, the vote on passage of the supplemental budget bill SB 0242 seemed anti-climatic. It passed on a 101-5 vote.
SB 0242, sponsored by Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Shirley JOHNSON (R-Troy), was initially presented by Granholm on Feb. 9 as a request for FY 2006 spending that primarily included additional funding made available by the federal government.
Highlights of the bill that was approved today included:
- Restoration of $1 million for Amtrak service, which would keep the Blue Water line running through the fiscal year
- $10 million for the I-96/Wixom Road interchange
- $42.95 million for pandemic influenza preparedness
- A $100 placeholder for the Baldwin prison that read that the Department of Corrections would not shift bed space within the corrections system without first exploring the recently closed Baldwin facility as an option.
As the bill continues to bounce back and forth between chambers there's talk that it will likely end up in a conference committee.
Weighing Drug Immunity Costs/Benefits
The state's prescription drug immunity law is more an argument of cost-versus-benefit, not necessarily one of right-versus-wrong, three Michigan State University (MSU) professors told a group of listeners at an Institute for Public Policy and Social Research (IPPSR) forum.
Michigan's drug immunity law is unique. Drug companies are given almost complete immunity to lawsuits if the companies get approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The law makes it nearly impossible for a person who feels they were harmed by a drug to file suit, said Paul ARSHAGOUNI, MSU assistant professor of Law.
The only way a person can file suit is if they can find evidence that the drug company withheld information about the drug from the FDA or gave the FDA misleading information that would have caused the FDA to change its mind about approving the drug. If the FDA would have approved the drug regardless of the misleading information, the suit doesn't have any bearing.
Other states have approached drug immunity differently. Some states say a plaintiff can sue the company if they can prove the drug is unsafe, a practice that doesn't give drug companies immunity, Arshagouni said.
"Other states, generally speaking, take a far less stringent view on how to protect pharmaceutical companies," Arshagouni said.
Democrats want to reform state law so plaintiff's can sue pharmaceutical companies if they can prove the drug was harmful. Doing so would change the state's position on drug immunity from one that gives companies some protection to one that holds the producer liable for everything, said Scot YODER, a MSU philosophy professor.
Yoder then went through a list of costs and benefits associated to shifting to the "strict liability approach."
When a pharmaceutical company knows that it can be held liable for its products, it figures litigation and protection costs into the making and dispersal of the drug, Yoder said. Doing this shifts the company's cost to everyone who might use the drugs, which is clearly a benefit to the drug company.
But it's also a pitfall. Drug companies who do not have to fend off lawsuits end up collecting for costs they may never incur. Also, complete immunity was originally created to decrease liability costs and it has, in Michigan, Arshagouni said. However, because other states don't share similar laws, there's no proof that overall health care and prescription drug costs have decreased, which is the intent of this kind of legislation.
Another benefit to strict liability is that it improves safety because drug companies are more hesitant to release drugs if they know they can be sued. The counter argument to this is drug companies who know they may be sued may slow down innovation, which can decrease access to medication, Yoder said.
"If you want them to innovate and take risks, you need to lighten the load for them," Yoder said.
Yoder, Arshagouni and Harry PERLSTADT, an MSU sociology professor, gave the historical context of drug bills and the pros and cons to the Democratic-proposed legislation, but none of them offered a solution.
Instead, they provided the audience with information both sides have been using for their arguments and suggested lawmakers look at the pros and cons of each.
911 Fees To Continue
The Senate Technology and Energy Committee moved a bill that would allow phone companies to continue adding surcharges to phone bills to help pay for 911 services.
SB 1172, sponsored by Sen. Cameron BROWN (R-Fawn River Twp.), would extend the Emergency Telephone Service Enabling Act sunset to December 2007. The Act, which provides funding for 911 service, is currently set to expire at the end of this year. The Act also allows phone companies to approve surcharges to help pay for the services.
The original bill had the extension going to 2010, but due to some concerns about tracking the effectiveness of the program, the extension was pulled back to 2007.
"The sunset gives us a little more time to evaluate what needs to be done," said Harriet MILLER-BROWN, with the Emergency Telephone Service Committee (ETSC).
The ETSC system has undergone criticism, especially in Detroit, for not being as effective as possible.
Miller-Brown said she understands concerns about effectiveness and has put together a workgroup to devise ways to measure the system's effectiveness. The bill asks the ETSC to present to the Legislature ideas for creating statewide standards for the system, as well as, quality measure requirements by Dec. 1, 2007.
After the Legislature looks over the report and suggestions, it can more effectively decide what to do with the program's long-term funding, she said.
The committee unanimously passed the bill.
DHS Announces Welfare Expansion
Expanding job programs that help get Welfare recipients back on the job is a feasible way to get people off welfare and save taxpayers $12 million, according to a plan announced today by the Department of Human Services (DHS).
The DHS plans to expand the Jobs, Education and Training (JET) pilots. These programs help welfare recipients get jobs by offering training, education, supportive services and advocacy.
The JET program pilot is currently in Kent, Oakland, Sanilac and Wayne counties. The expansion is expected to serve 49 percent of the welfare population instead of 15 percent of the welfare population.
Expanding the program and getting more people out of the welfare system would save the state about $12 million in welfare costs, according to a DHS press release.
"The Jobs, Education and Training approach fundamentally changes the way we move families off welfare and toward self-sufficiency," said DHS Director Marianne UDOW. "Instead of telling those on welfare to 'get a job, any job,' the program supports them in developing job skills and moving permanently off of the welfare rolls."
Bits and Tidbits
Johnson Appoints New Chief Of Staff
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Shirley JOHNSON (R-Troy) recently named Tom DAVIS, the former chief of staff for Sen. Nancy CASSIS (R-Novi), as her new chief of staff.
"I look forward to working closely with Tom," Johnson said. "I have worked a great deal with him in the past on budget issues. Thanks to his strong background in the budget process, this is a good fit. I'm happy to welcome Tom on board."
Davis was most recently an advisor in the Senate Majority Policy Office. Johnson's current Chief of Staff, Brian O'CONNELL, will leave her office May 12. O'Connell will work for Wyeth Pharmaceutical as director of state government affairs for Michigan and Ohio.
Firefighters Union Backs Bowen
The Michigan Professional Firefighters Union today endorsed Democrat Scott BOWEN's attorney general bid during its annual convention in Grand Rapids. The union is an affiliate of the AFL-CIO and has more than 5,400 members representing 126 locals around the state. Bowen also has the backing of five other unions.
Bowen's opponent Amos WILLIAMS has the endorsement of a Detroit Fire and Police union and received a $500 donation from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 58 and has the endorsement of a Detroit police and firefighter union.
Western Wayne Officials Back Bouchard
Several current and former elected officials in western Wayne County announced Tuesday they are endorsing Oakland County Sheriff Mike BOUCHARD's bid for U.S. Senate. Among those signing on to Bouchard's candidacy were Sen. Bruce PATTERSON (R-Canton), Sen. Laura TOY (R-Livonia), Canton Township Clerk Terry BENNETT, former Livonia Mayor Jack KIRKSEY, Rep. John PASTOR (R-Livonia), Rep. John STEWART (R-Livonia) and former state Senator and GOP Lt. Governor nominee Sen. Loren BENNETT.
"I am giving my support to Mike Bouchard because I know that he is the best chance that we have to win in November," Toy said. "His career in law enforcement and as a member of the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, combined with his experience as a state legislator, affords him a unique perspective that will be an asset to Michigan in the United States Senate."
Bouchard is chasing the Republican nomination along with Keith BUTLER and Jerry ZANDSTRA.
Charter Schools Group Names Director
The Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers (MCCSA) today announced that Stephanie VAN KOEVERING is the association's first executive director and will be operating out of a permanent office in downtown Lansing. Van Koevering has served in several capacities in the charter school movement since 1999, ranging from charter school board president to researcher and state-level policy analyst.
"These changes reflect our organization's growing presence and commitment to supporting and representing authorizers across Michigan," said MCCSA Chair Jim GOENNER.
Senate Passes Funeral Bills
Today, the Senate passed a five-bill packaged designed to prevent war protestors from harassing families who are attending a soldier's funeral.
The package also includes sentencing guidelines for anyone who protests inside of a 500-foot safeguard and requires protestors to get a permit if they want to protest outside a funeral.
The package passed the Senate unanimously.
Cassis Introduces Disclosure Bill
Sen. Nancy CASSIS (R-Novi) introduced a bill that would require campaign committees to report all contributions they receive to the Secretary of State within seven business days of receiving the contribution. SB 1243 would require all campaign expenditures to be reported to the Secretary of State within 10 business days.
The bill comes after Secretary of State Terri Lynn LAND's called for immediate campaign finance reporting (See "Land Wants Real-Time Reporting," 4/24/06). Current law requires officials in an off-election year to report campaign finances every 12 months. In an election year, they file reports just before and after the primary and general elections.
"There is no excuse for campaign offices to hang on to this information for months," Cassis said. "With modern technology, including electronic filing and the Internet, campaign finances can be disclosed very quickly. A fully informed public is a smarter electorate. This will help them make knowledgeable decisions in the voting booth."
Bush Names Two Michigan Teachers 'Top Ten'
President George W. BUSH awarded one math teacher and one science teacher from Michigan with the 2005 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
Cindy HASSELBRING, a math teacher from Milan High School, and science teacher June TEISAN, from Harper Woods Secondary School, won the award. Only 100 7th-through 12th-grade teachers nationwide receive this award.
Gay Republicans Form PAC
The Log Cabin Republicans of Michigan, a group of gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender (GLBT) Republicans recently formed the Republican Pride Political Action Committee (Republican Pride PAC).
"Today marks a great day in Michigan GLBT and Republican history," stated Log Cabin President Gregory WRIGHT. "Only a handful of GLBT Republican PACs exist in the country and we're confident Republican Pride PAC will make a great impact in Michigan."
The group plans on releasing a candidate endorsement list this summer.
Governor Orders Flags Lowered
Gov. Jennifer GRANHOLM today ordered that U.S. flags throughout Michigan be lowered Friday to honor Army Sergeant Matthew WEBBER of Kalamazoo who died April 27 in Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas.
Webber died from injuries that he sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV during combat operations in Habbaniyah, Iraq on Nov. 21, 2005. Flags will be returned to full-staff on Saturday.
Gongwer
REPORT NO. 85 VOLUME 45 WEDNESDAY, MAY 3, 2006
D.C.H. BUDGET RECEIVES $287 MILLION CUT WITH PANEL VOTE
The Department of Community Health would receive $580 million above fiscal year 2005-2006 appropriations, but would be $287 million in lesser funds than proposed by the Senate under a budget bill reported out of a House Appropriations panel Wednesday.
Overall, the budget (HB 5776
Subcommittee Chair Rep. Bruce Caswell (R-Hillsdale) said that discussions are still ongoing on the implementation of that program, which would be slated to start in April 2007 if the waiver is approved, but that it is key for the Legislature to “be at the table” of those discussions.
But Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-Ypsilanti), the ranking Democrat on the panel, said the placeholder should have been closer the Senate amount and not stripped down to $100.
Ms. Wheeler Smith said that while the subcommittee may have little hope or faith that Michigan can receive a federal waiver, she still is optimistic.
A controversial part of the budget – the cut to Detroit-Wayne County Community Mental Health Agency – that caused debate on the Senate side did not rear its ugly head before the House panel, who departed from the Senate proposal and put into place a $50 million cut should the agency not become an authority by September 1, 2006. The Senate plan cut $15 million from the agency regardless of its status as an authority and would have cut it $35 million if it did not convert by July of this year.
But the budget did find itself in hot water regarding a proposal to increase Medicaid co-pays for non-emergency hospital visits from $3 to $6.
Rep. Carl Williams (D-Saginaw) introduced an amendment – defeated on a partyline vote – holding the co-pays at $3, saying that the line between a non-emergency and emergency visit is too vague.
“People going under Medicare can’t afford that,” he said.
And Ms. Wheeler Smith said that the emergency room is the only point of entry for treatment for some people and that hospitals would spend more than $6 chasing people for the co-pay.
But Mr. Caswell said that the budget is an attempt to bring more doctors back into the system and have people go to a primary care physician instead of the emergency room. “I believe a modest increase can have that effect.”
Mr. Williams also tried to amend the bill to put $400,000 back into the Healthy Michigan Fund which had been eliminated, but that also failed on party-line votes with Mr. Caswell saying that some of the grants in that program could be used more effectively.
The appropriations bill adopts a 5 percent increase to Medicaid physician payment rates. It also increases the Medicaid personal care supplement paid by $10 to adult foster care facilities and homes for the aged.
Medicaid eligibility would be deleted to 19-20 year olds under the budget, except for former foster care cases and parents/caretakers of relatives.
Mr. Caswell said the argument could be made that these people are being dropped off the roles, but “doctors aren’t participating…it doesn’t do the patient much good.”
Besides wage increases for DCH employees, the budget also calls for $10.4 million, $4.5 million in general funds, to finance a 2 percent wage hike for community mental health direct care workers and another $15.9 million ($6.95 million general funds) to increase the minimum wage for Medicaid home help workers.
The subcommittee budget also wipes out the Senate-passed $100,000 amount in favor of a $100 placeholder for the establishment of a Methamphetamine Cleanup Fund, 211 Human Services Information Line, Parkinson’s Disease and Huntington’s Disease programming, Medication Management Pilot for arthritis and diabetes.
The surgeon general position would also be deleted and the $240,000 in savings applied to infant mortality project grants, which expand a Berrien County program statewide.
An early childhood secondary prevention program for kids zero to three would also be funded under the Department of Human Services budget and not the DCH budget.
The panel passed the budget unanimously, with Ms. Wheeler Smith saying she supported the budget’s emphasis on prevention and understood the appropriation is a moving target. Mr. Williams said he liked the mental health coverage in the budget, but added that he would pursue his amendments further as the bill now goes before the full Appropriations panel to be placed into an omnibus budget.
SENATE PASSES FUNERAL PROTEST BAN
With protests announced for the funerals of two Michigan military men this week, the Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed legislation setting new restrictions on demonstrations at funerals.
While the First Amendment must be respected, Sen. Valde Garcia (R-Howell) said: “In this most solemn moment, people should be given privacy and allowed to mourn.”
Passed were HB 5887
Should the bills become law (and Governor Jennifer Granholm has said she will sign the bills), Michigan will join 29 other states that have passed similar laws aimed specifically at the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas. The church, which preaches what it calls a primitive, fundamental Baptist theology that believes in predestination, mounts protests at military funerals across the nation saying the deaths are proof that the United States has been divinely damned because it tolerates homosexual behavior.
On the church’s website, http://www.godhatesfags.com/, the church says it plans protests on Friday at the funeral of Army Sgt. First Class Richard Herrema at the “Hudsonville Reformed Church/leper colony” and on Saturday in Morley at the funeral of Army National Guard Sgt. Matthew Webber.
The church’s website on Wednesday also posted the following message: “Thank God for 18 more dead troops. We wish it were 18,000.”
The church first gained widespread national attention when it protested at the funeral of Matthew Shepherd, a gay college student whose murder in 1998 in Wyoming triggered a national discussion on hate crimes.
At a recent funeral, the protestors were kept from the family by the “Patriot Guard,” an organization of veterans, many of who are motorcyclists, who have made it their mission to provide protection at military funerals.
Under the legislation, protests would have to be kept at least 500 feet from a funeral. Local governments could also require permits for demonstrations at a funeral.
However, the church is also starting to challenge the laws that have been passed, with a challenge of the Kentucky law underway.
FLAGS AT HALF-STAFF: Ms. Granholm has ordered that all state and federal flags be flown at half-staff on Friday in memory of Mr. Webber, 23, who died April 27 of injuries he suffered in Iraq last November.
ZOO AGAIN AN ISSUE IN BUDGET SUPPLEMENTAL
The Detroit Zoo became an issue again as the House put its final stamp of approval on a current year supplemental appropriations bill Wednesday.
Rep. Leon Drolet (R-Clinton Township) introduced an amendment to SB 242
Mr. Drolet said he did so because one of the arguments the City Council had made in rejecting the transfer of the zoo to the society because of discussions on quotas and hiring practices. “I want to take race out of the zoo issue,” he said.
However, Rep. Bill McConico (D-Detroit) said that asking the city to adopt such a resolution would go against its affirmative action policies.
“Affirmative action will be debated throughout the summer and the fall. That’s where it’s appropriate,” he said.
For it to be attached on a supplemental budget bill is “wrong and it’s ridiculous and tantamount to blackmail.”
Rep. Steve Tobocman (D-Detroit) said the amendment promoted the wrong type of regional cooperation. “We need to be able to negotiate our solutions and not dictate terms.”
Mr. Drolet requested a record roll call vote on the amendment, to which Rep. LaMar Lemmons III (D-Detroit) questioned the germaneness of the amendment to the bill. Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Jerry Kooiman (R-Grand Rapids) ruled that the amendment was germane, to which House Minority Floor Leader Mary Waters (D-Detroit) challenged that ruling, however, the judgment was eventually upheld by the majority.
The amendment, however, did not have as much luck, falling by a vote of 46-59 to be adopted. Eleven Republicans joined all minority Democrats in opposing the amendment: Rep. Bill Caul (R-Mount Pleasant), Rep. Ed Gaffney (R-Grosse Pointe Farms), Rep. Roger Kahn (R-Saginaw Township), Mr. Kooiman, Rep. David Law (R-Commerce Township), Rep. Tom Meyer (R-Bad Axe), Rep. Gary Newell (R-Saranac), Rep. Mike Nofs (R-Battle Creek), Rep. Tom Pearce (R-Rockford), Rep. John Proos (R-St. Joseph) and Rep. John Stewart (R-Plymouth). Two members were absent when the vote was taken; they were Rep. Judy Emmons (R-Sheridan) and Rep. Virgil Smith (D-Detroit).
Rep. Chris Kolb (D-Ann Arbor) also tried to amend the bill, but then Majority Floor Leader Chris Ward (R-Brighton) called for a roll call vote, which brought on shouts from Democrats. Mr. Ward eventually withdrew his motion for a roll call vote and Mr. Kolb then withdrew his amendment.
The supplemental also includes funding for the agreed upon accelerating of transportation funds (see Gongwer Michigan Report, April 20, 2006).
The bill passed on 101-5 votes, with Mr. Drolet, Rep. Bob Gosselin (R-Troy), Rep. Joe Hune (R-Hamburg), Rep. Jack Hoogendyk (R-Portage) and Rep. John Garfield (R-Rochester Hills) voting against the bill. Mr. Smith was absent for the vote.
The House also took a vote on SB 838
D.H.S. PLAN TO SAVE $12 MILLION, GET MORE FROM WELFARE TO WORK
In the face of ensuing federal penalties for not meeting welfare-to-work requirements, the Department of Human Services on Wednesday released a plan that it says will not only bring the state into compliance with federal work requirements but will save $12 million in 2006-07.
The department’s proposal came after legislative Republicans announced their own initiative. Some of those legislators said the DHS plans won’t work fast enough to avoid federal sanctions if at least half of welfare recipients aren’t working by October 1, and estimate their own plan will save about $67 million in next fiscal year’s budget.
Rep. Jerry Kooiman (R-Grand Rapids) said he applauds DHS’ announcement that it will expand its JET (Jobs, Education and Training) program to serve 49 percent of the targeted welfare population, up from the 15 percent it is currently helping.
But, he said: “They’re proposing a JET expansion. We’re proposing an express jet. If we’re really going to be serious about meeting federal targets, 49 percent won’t get us there.”
In January, the federal government changed the year it used as a benchmark for state caseload reductions from 1995 to 2005, which essentially eliminated a credit states received on their funding. Michigan deleted thousands of welfare cases in the mid-1990s after reforms were implemented under former Governor John Engler, which boosted the state's credit, but has since been lingering in the 78,000-case range.
Michigan currently has about 34 percent of welfare recipients working.
Mr. Kooiman said 100 percent of the people on welfare assistance need intensive service, getting help with basic skill training and referrals to disability rehabilitation or Supplemental Security Income.
The DHS plan also would provide advocacy and support to those who apply for disability services and would provide supportive services to clients who face serious barriers to work, such as illiteracy or lack of basic math skills.
The JET program, DHS Director Marianne Udow has said, is the best way to help welfare recipients become permanently attached to the workforce.
“The program fundamentally changes the way we move families off welfare and toward self-sufficiency,” Ms. Udow said in a prepared statement. “Instead of telling those on welfare to ‘get a job, any job,’ the program supports them in developing job skills and moving permanently off of the welfare rolls.”
For those who fail to work, the Republican plan suggests cutting off assistance for up to a year as a sanction and a lifetime cash assistance limit of 48 months.
Mr. Kooiman said legislators plan to introduce legislation that would include their suggested changes in the coming weeks.
HOUSE PASSES FREE I.D. CARD, INACTIVE VOTER LIST BILLS
The approximate 350,000 residents of Michigan without a state-issued identification card could receive one for free if they showed the Department of State they are unable to pay under legislation passed on split votes by the House Wednesday.
HB 6007
Free cards are already given to people over the age of 65, said bill sponsor, Majority Floor Leader Chris Ward (R-Brighton), but this legislation would open up the program to more people. Not only does this issue have the potential to apply to voting, but also in a post-September 11 world, people should have some sort of identification for safety issues, Mr. Ward said.
But Democrats, who also took issue with the bill when it was before the House Oversight, Elections and Ethics Committee earlier in the day, said that while the actual card may be free, people without the proper documents, such as a birth certificate, could not get a card without them. And getting copies of those documents would still come at a cost, they said.
They also suggested that the department do more outreach to get people applying for a card, which has been suggested by national experts. Rep. Matt Gillard (D-Alpena) said in committee that SOS offices have been closing across the state. “We should go to them.”
On the floor Rep. George Cushingberry (D-Detroit) argued that the cost would disenfranchise voters. But Mr. Ward argued that those without a card are already disenfranchised from other activities such as crossing the Canadian border and buying items like cigarettes and that people who were concerned about disenfranchising voters should support the bill.
The bill was amended on the floor to urge the department to conduct more outreach and passed on 63-43 votes.
The chamber also approved HB 6022
The Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks had shown support for the bill earlier in the day, saying that voting equipment and ballots are bought based on voters’ registration and can be more costly than it needs to be because there are some people who don’t vote. The Michigan Townships Association testified to be neutral on the bill at the moment, but was concerned that creating a list would be another procedure clerks would have to deal with.
The bill was passed on 58-48 votes.
In keeping with voting-related issues, the House also voted on HB 4755
Mr. Ward, who also sponsored the bill, said the legislation would increase voter turnout and cut local costs. The legislation is supported by the clerks association.
But Democrats argued that it was too determine that the consolidated elections plan isn’t working and the decision to hold an election should be made by locals. The bill passed on 60-46 votes.
The chamber also approved HJR V
D.E.Q. CRITICISM CONTINUES AS HOUSE PANEL PASSES BUDGET
Although the Department of Environmental Quality budget is higher under a bill approved by a House panel, the tongue lashing the department received in the Senate continued Wednesday in the lower chamber subcommittee.
House Appropriations Environmental Quality Subcommittee Chair Rep. John Pastor (R-Livonia) told the department that lawmakers have received several a call on the actions of the DEQ and that “These are folks across the state that think the DEQ is worse than the IRS.”
“We need the DEQ to go around and tell people how they can comply and not what they are doing wrong,” he said. “We don’t need the DEQ to force more manufacturing out of this state.”
Mr. Pastor said that he is alarmed that an online survey of the department showed the 85 percent of respondents thought the DEQ issued too many permits. At a time when Michigan is losing jobs, that policy has got to stop, he said.
And Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Midland) said that while everyone has priorities for human safety and a clean environment, the department has been arrogant and counterproductive to job growth.
But Rep. Chris Kolb (D-Ann Arbor), the only Democratic member on the panel, said that the job undertaken by the department is one of the most important and that the DEQ has shown that it is working with communities and streamlining the permit process.
The Big Three automakers have given the department a thumbs up for its efforts, he said, but Mr. Pastor countered that that was because the automakers were afraid of what the department would do in retribution for opposition, like it has done with other businesses in the past.
The budget (HB 5779
D.L.E.G., M.E.D.C. BUDGETS MOVE FORWARD
Local communities with state facilities would get $3.7 million restored in fire grants under a 2006-07 budget approved by the House Appropriations Economic Development Subcommittee.
The restoration of grants, back to the $10.9 million that was provided two years ago, is in the $47.4 million general fund budget for the Department of Labor and Economic Growth (HB 5785
The overall budget is set at $1.217 billion, a 2.8 percent increase.
The only deviation from the governor’s proposal was the addition by the subcommittee of $100,000 for a grant to the National Federation of the Blind newsline to support providing access to newspaper and magazine information to persons with vision impairments.
Language was also added to the bill to require annual reports summarizing the decisions of administrative law judges.
M.E.D.C.: The budget for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation also tracks the executive recommendation almost exactly, providing $32 million in general funds, or 2.3 percent more than the current year. The overall budget is set at $80.5 million, a an increase of .5 percent.
BIG THREE UNIVERSITIES ARGUE FOR FUNDING SEPARATION
The heads of the state’s three largest public universities argued before members of the House Appropriations Higher Education Subcommittee Wednesday the need to separate funding out for them, but also the need to not do that on the backs of other schools.
The University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Wayne State University represent 41 percent of all students enrolled in four-year institutions the state, and have 67 percent of international students attending college in Michigan.
All medical degrees and 48 percent of all health-related degrees come from students graduating from either of those three schools, said MSU President Lou Anna Simon. The universities also represent 54 percent of all science and engineering degrees and 95 percent of all research and development expenditures.
“Across the three of us we touch every industry in the state,” Ms. Simon said. “The costs we are talking about are the costs associated being at the cutting edge. The cost structures reflect the competitiveness of an international market.”
While worldwide rankings are not the most important thing, Ms. Simon said U-M’s 21st MSU’s 77th and WSU’s 298th marks are a reflection of the people of Michigan.
And U-M President Mary Sue Coleman said that investment in the Big Three has been shown to provide results for decades and that the universities are ready to diversify the state’s economy.
The subcommittee has already passed out the budget, which provided a funding formula focused on math and science degrees, graduation rates and enrollment. Wayne State lost out by $4 million in funding under that plan with MSU and U-M coming up with more money, but officials from the three schools argued that that should not be the case and that they are hopeful that as budget talks continue that will not occur.
“At some point you have to ask whether this is a vote of no confidence on the institution,” said Wayne State President Irvin Reid.
Rep. Jerry Kooiman (R-Grand Rapids) in explaining the budget decision, said that the three schools receive 57 percent of the funding because of their research, medical schools and faculty and that the House formula already segregates the three, but it’s based on outcomes.
Western Michigan University President Judith Bailey, who also presented testimony, said that all 15 public universities have a caliber of education and that if you separate the three that opens the door to separating other schools for different programs they offer.
“That begins to fragment the picture,” she said.
SENATE COMMITTEE OKS PANDEMIC BILLS
The state would have to establish and maintain a pandemic influenza plan that could include banning all public gatherings, under two bills that were reported to the full Senate by the Health Policy Committee on Wednesday.
Approved were HB 5630
Under HB 5630, the Department of Community Health would have to consult with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to be sure the pandemic plan meets with federal guidelines. The department would also have to prepare an annual report on the plan.
Under HB 5631, the Community Health director could issue orders in the event of an outbreak to ban any public gathering to help control the spread of the disease. If the department concluded the outbreak was due to avian – bird – flu, or any other virus spread by contact with animals, then the Department of Agriculture would be compelled to assist in controlling the outbreak.
The state recently received a $3 million grant from the federal government to help in preparations for a possible pandemic, and signed an agreement with the federal government to work on a plan.
STATE 911 GROUP OPEN TO TRAINING STANDARD
Officials overseeing emergency 911 operations across the state are interested in creating a standard on training for the system, a state official told the Senate Technology and Energy Committee on Wednesday.
With controversies erupting over several instances, including two in Detroit, over the failure of 911 operators to dispatch assistance leading to two deaths, Harriet Miller-Brown said Wednesday said in response to a question from Sen. Buzz Thomas (D-Detroit) that officials are looking at options for training standards across the state.
Ms. Miller-Brown made the comments as the committee approved SB 1172
She said the different officials had not agreed on a standard yet, but that officials had agreed there should be some sort of standard was progress.
ENERGY GROUP: Committee chair Sen. Bruce Patterson (R-Canton) said in the next week he will appoint a second workgroup to review the report the first energy workgroup released last month, specifically reviewing it for energy and fuel solutions for the next two years, 10 years and 30 years.
The review will be due by June 10, Mr. Patterson said, and those appointed will be experts in the field.
FORMER PRISONERS CALL FOR MORE DRUG LAW REFORMS
Legislators were both thanked for changes made to Michigan’s mandatory drug laws and urged to make further changes by a former prisoner whose long sentence was commuted.
Brenda Pearson, a New York resident who was extradited to Michigan in the mid-1990s and convicted under the state’s mandatory minimum sentences, urged legislators to consider passage of HB 5654
Appearing along with officials of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, Ms. Pearson said she was grateful her sentence was commuted by former Governor John Engler after serving eight years. Though a resident of New York, Ms. Pearson helped provide heroin to a friend living in Michigan. Federal and New York prosecutors declined to charge her as she too was an addict, but she was charged with 42 counts of delivering drugs under Michigan’s law. She pleaded guilty to 10 counts and was sentenced to five to 20 years in prison for each charge.
Changes were made in 1998 and 2003 to the state’s law, signed in the 1970s, which required that a person convicted of delivering 650 grams of narcotics be sentenced to life in prison without parole. Former Governor William Milliken, who signed the original law, was a strong advocate of changing the mandatory minimum since the law had failed to corral major drug dealers and was used against individual addicts.
Ms. Pearson said “hundreds of people” are still in state prisons under many of the same circumstances she was convicted of. State laws should allow for them to have same opportunity to be released, she said.
FIREFIGHTERS SUPPORT BOWEN: Democratic Attorney General candidate Scott Bowen announced Wednesday that he has received an endorsement from the Michigan Professional Firefighters Union. “Our organization has every confidence that Scott Bowen has the background and experience to be a fine Attorney General serving the peoples interest and not the special interest. Just as fire fighters protect people, the Attorney General should as well,” said Paul Hufnagel of the union.
STAFF CHANGE IN JOHNSON’S OFFICE: Tom Davis will be the new chief of staff to Sen. Shirley Johnson (R-Troy) as current chief Brian O’Connell is leaving May 12 to become the lobbyist for Michigan and Ohio for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. Mr. O’Connell had been Ms. Johnson’s chief of staff since she joined the Senate in 1999. Previously he had worked for former Rep. Jim McBryde.
Mr. Davis is now in the Senate Majority Policy Office and previously had been chief of staff to Sen. Nancy Cassis (R-Novi).
REPORTS OF AUDITOR GENERAL MC TAVISH
Performance audit of the Michigan Disbursement Unit, Office of Child Support, Department of Human Services from October 1, 2003 to July 31, 2004.
Financial audit of the Department of Civil Service, October 1, 2002, to September 30, 2004.
