Insider Intelligence

According to numbers released by the Department of Technology, Management, and Budget, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate last month was 5.3%.  The rate is 0.1% higher than the prior month and 0.3% higher than February 2016.  The increased rate is being attributed to more workers entering the market.  Year-to-year total employment growth increased by 1.8% […]

On Thursday, the Senate Economic Development Committee reported a bipartisan three-bill package aimed at attracting new and expanded business investments in the state, providing high-wage jobs.  Under the legislation, business expansions or new locations creating at least five hundred qualified new jobs that pay the prosperity region average wage or higher would be eligible to […]

This week, the 2016 Michigan Human Trafficking Commission Report was provided to state legislators and released to the public.  The report highlights the work completed and the ongoing work by the Commission, including; September’s statewide conference, reviewing state law and policies to make recommendations, and working with experts to develop training videos.  To view the […]

This week, the House Commerce and Trade Committee held a hearing on legislation ending the twice-annual time change in Michigan.  Representative Peter Lucido (R-Shelby Township) introduced House Bill 4011 in January, with the goal of keeping Michigan on daylight savings time year-round.  According to the bill sponsor, time changes are disruptive, make employees late to […]

Last Friday, Governor Rick Snyder announced the appointments of new terms on the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) for Norm Saari and Sally Talberg.  Additionally, the reappointment of Rachel Eubanks to the commission was announced.  Their appointments are subject to the advice and consent of the Senate.  The MPSC is a three-member commission providing regulatory […]

This week, the first budget was reported by an Appropriations Subcommittee, to the full Appropriations Committee.  The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Community Colleges reported their recommendations for the upcoming 2017-2018 Fiscal Year.  Most significantly, when Governor Rick Snyder presented his executive budget recommendations in February, he did not include an increase to community college operations […]

Representative Tommy Brann (R-Wyoming) was first elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in November 2016, representing the 77th House District.  His district is in Kent County and includes Byron Township and Wyoming. Representative Brann has been working in the restaurant business since the age of seventeen.  At the age of nineteen, he opened his […]

Below are some of the articles that the MLC lobby team has been reading this past week.  We hope you find them as interesting and useful as we do. The Busier You Are, the More You Need Quiet Time – Carving out quiet time in your day provides a wide range of benefits. Inside the […]