Michigan in Focus

 Addressing chemical contamination in Michigan waterways, farmland and military bases remains a critical and complicated issue for legislators going into a new administration, Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., said on a telephone town hall Monday night. PFAS, or Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of industrial chemicals, commonly used in manufacturing to make heat resistant, water repellent, and non-stick products. Dubbed “forever chemicals” because of their long half-life in the human body and environment, effects of prolonged exposure include cancer, high blood pressure, and pregnancy complications.

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Michigan lawmakers are launching bipartisan efforts to increase police recruitment and benefits as the number of law enforcement officers trends downward in the state. U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., introduced legislation Friday that would provide $50 million annually to state and local law enforcement agencies to create “Pathways to Policing” programs aimed at boosting recruitment in the field. The programs would specifically target candidates from underrepresented communities or with non-traditional educational and career backgrounds. The number of law enforcement officers in Michigan has decreased by more than 4,000 since 2001, according to statistics from the state’s Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity.

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Michigan House lawmakers are taking steps to increase online child safety by introducing a bill that would impact minors, their parents and social media companies. The Social Media Regulation Act, introduced by State Rep. Mark Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills, would require social media companies to verify the ages of new and existing users, restrict companies from collecting data or sharing minors’ personal information, and provide extensive parental controls. Among other requirements, social media companies would have to obtain express parental consent if the user is a minor and automatically prohibit minors from accessing their accounts between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.

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 Seven Michigan public school districts, the recipients of the first electric school buses in the state, reported mixed but mostly positive experiences about the vehicles since adopting them five years ago. The Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy released summaries of feedback on electric buses’ real-world performance, coming from public school districts in Ann Arbor, Gaylord, Kalamazoo, Oxford, Roseville, Three Rivers and Zeeland. Within the past two years alone, Michigan has directed more than $239 million in federal and state taxpayer dollars to electric school bus infrastructure.

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Following a Michigan Department of Education report showing drops in reading and math proficiency in some grades, Michigan House Republicans have unveiled a multi-step plan to boost student achievement and teacher support. The plan would provide extra funding for school safety and mental health resources, waive state fees for teachers and modernize the standard curriculum, State Reps. Jaime Greene, R-Richmond, and Nancy DeBoer, R-Holland, announced Monday.

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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers addressed concerns voiced by Michigan lawmakers about the shipment of radioactive waste to Wayne Disposal, assuring the public all proper safety measures are in place and that environmental surveillance will continue throughout the transport process. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, had submitted a series of questions to the USACE, asking for details about its unexpected plan to ship 6,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil and concrete and 4,000 gallons of contaminated groundwater from the Niagara Falls Storage Site to Wayne County.

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The Michigan Department of Education is awarding nearly $25 million in grants to local public education agencies to fund K-5 mathematics programs aimed at improving math instruction and learning recovery. The announcement follows MDE data released last week showing mixed progress in mathematics learning in schools across the state.

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 Michigan’s U.S. Senate candidates are running on their records regarding labor and economic policy, but they are opposed on the role of electric vehicles.  Democrat Rep. Elissa Slotkin’s approach to labor policy focuses primarily on supporting domestic manufacturing. Republican former Representative Mike Roger’s approach to labor policy focuses primarily on encouraging innovation and reducing government regulation, particularly for small businesses. 

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 New data released from Michigan's Department of Education reveals mixed student progress in 2024, with some grades scoring higher on standardized tests than last year and others performing their lowest in years. Math, English language arts and science scores were gathered through the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress, or M-STEP, for grades three through seven, while scores for older students came from PSAT and SAT results. Eleventh-graders had the worst overall decline, scoring lower than last year in all three subjects, with a drop of 3.6 percentage points in math.

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 Detroit’s Election Commission is facing a lawsuit for selecting a disproportionately high number of Democrat poll workers in the August primaries, a possible violation of Michigan election law. The commission appointed about 2,337 Democrat poll workers and about 310 Republican poll workers, an imbalance of more than 7 to 1. Poll workers, also known as election inspectors, assist voters and manage ballot counting. They also identify and report any irregularities or issues that arise during the election process. The state’s election law requires the board of election commissioners “shall appoint an equal number, as nearly as possible, of election inspectors in each election precinct from each major political party,” to help ensure election transparency and fairness.

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