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.
Doug Pratt, spokesman for the Michigan Education Association, says the union believes the Michigan Campaign Finance Act should be amended to regulate robocalls.
Under current law, robocalls do not have to be reported in campaign finance reports nor do those who run them have to file statements with the Secretary of State showing how much was spent on the calls, and who financed them.
“Voters have a right to know who is paying for those ads and who is behind them,” Pratt told Messenger in a phone interview.
Pratt also said his group would explore whether or not it can file a complaint with the FCC over the calls. As Michigan Messenger reported Wednesday, the three robocalls that hit voters homes over the weekend may have been illegal under federal law.
Federal law requires all telephone calls using pre-recorded messages to identify who is initiating the calls and include a telephone number or address whereby the initiator can be reached. None of the three calls identified who was initiating the call or a way to contact that initiator.
Pratt said he would discuss the issue with MEA legal staff, in the meantime, he said state officials should be taking interest.
“Both the attorney general and the secretary of state should be taking interest in what could illegal election year activity,” Pratt said. He also noted that such anonymous robocalls “just add to the cynicism of voters.”
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