Michigan news

Democrat Gary Peters is being targeted by the Koch PAC for his support of Obamacare. DEMOCRATS ARE FACING their toughest Michigan Senate fight in two decades. A sour national political climate, a little-known candidate and big…

County Administrator Verna McDaniel says Ann Arbor Commissioners Rabhi and LaBarre asked her to prepare a report that addressed  The Ann Arbor Independent’s March 11 story that documents county employee and elected officials’ stays at Las…

MICHIGAN’S CAMPAIGN FINANCE laws, dating to the mid-1970s, require public disclosure of and set limits on many political contributions. Records for state offices are filed with the Bureau of Elections in the secretary of state’s office in…

by Ron French A BILL TO encourage struggling Michigan schools to convert to a year-round schedule was approved by the House Appropriations Committee last week, and now moves to the full House for consideration. The proposal, sponsored by…

Please note: This article was updated with a quote from Sheriff Jerry Clayton's Executive Assistant, Katherine Wyatt. AN ANALYSIS OF credit card charges made by Washtenaw County employees between 2012 and 2014 shows multiple charges for…

By David Schaeffer AS YOU READ this op-ed, a package of bills aimed at giving big oil further tax breaks and expanding eminent domain rights has already passed through the Michigan House with barely even a glimmer of resistance.  This…

Representative Jeff Irwin, a Democrat, served for a decade as a Washtenaw County Commissioner. In January 2013, he began his second term in the Michigan House of Representatives. In his column, “House Calls,” The Ann Arbor Independent poses…

At one U of M campus 63 percent of students seeking teaching certification passed the examinations. At another U of M campus, only 8 percent of students tested passed.  by Ron French Bridge Magazine—Teacher prep programs at Michigan…

THE MAJORITY OF the new and returning members of the Michigan House of Representatives can boast perfect attendance records with respect to the 534 roll call votes taken between January and December 2013. Michigan legislators earn $71,865…

OFFICIALS IN THE Michigan Department of State determined that “WAR SUX” is a vanity plate request that is “offensive to good taste and decency.” David DeVarti, an Ann Arbor resident, former City Council member and former member of the…