I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
DETROIT—A judge ruled against a ballot initiative to have city council members elected by districts instead of at-large on Friday, calling the language of the amendment “insufficient” according to the Detroit Free Press.
The community coalition Detroiters for Council by Districts filed the lawsuit with City Clerk Janice Winfrey for holding the proposal from the Nov. 3 ballot after questions arose regarding the language of the proposal and its legality.
Attorney General Mike Cox and Governor Jennifer Granholm have both issued opinions in support of the proposal but Wayne County Circuit Judge Virgil Smith sided with Winfrey.
Cox sent the language of the proposal to city council for revision on Tuesday, but the council sent it back with more legal questions instead of adjusting the proposal.
The ballot initiative, titled “Proposal D” would have seven city council members elected by district and two elected at-large.
The Detroit Law Department and the city council’s Research and Analysis Division have both issued opinions that such a proposal contradicts the city charter and state law because it calls for changes too broad to put for an amendment. City lawyers believe such a change would have to be an act of the Charter Revision Commission, a nine member board that will be elected in November to update the city’s governing document.
Sixteen of the 18 candidates running for Charter Revision Commission publicly support electing city council members by district. Charter Revision candidate Rose Mary Robinson is the only one who has cautioned against the measure, saying it may cost the city money and divide an already divided city.
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