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.
The Detroit News reports on the many ways that the merger of the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Environmental Quality in Michigan has undermined environmental enforcement in the state and put our natural resources and the health of our citizens at risk.
“It’s unfortunately a combination of two underfunded agencies into one bigger underfunded agency,” said James Clift, policy director for the Michigan Environmental Council. “So we’re continuing to see the erosion of their ability to fulfill their basic mission.”
The fallout is everywhere: State campgrounds have closed. The number of deer check stations has been reduced. Funding for cleaning up abandoned industrial sites is gone, and funding for addressing underground storage tanks is going fast. It’s taking longer for the department to process environmental permits for businesses and fewer personnel mean a reduced ability to oversee those businesses.
The total number of employees at the combined agencies has gone from 3,137 in 1997 to 2,697 employees today. It’s simply not possible to keep up with all of the inspections and work required by law with fewer and fewer people to do the work.
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