Source: https://crcmich.org/publications/2010s/
Timestamp: 2018-10-22 23:44:59
Document Index: 2870764

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 2', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 5', 'art 6', 'art 7', 'art 8', 'art 9', 'art 10', 'art 11', 'art 12', 'art 13', 'art 14', 'art 15', 'art 16']

2010s – Citizens Research Council of Michigan
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Memorandum 1151 ( September 2018 ) 8 pages
Statewide Ballot Proposal 2018-2 — Redistricting Reform
Memorandum 1150 ( September 2018 ) 12 pages
Memorandum 1152 ( October 2018 ) 20 pages
Report 403 and Memorandum 1149 ( August 2018 ) 38 pages
– Public health is a central and yet broadly misunderstood function of government that focuses on prevention of disease and injury and management of environmental factors (physical and social) that affect health. Medicine improves the health of one individual at a time; public health improves the health of entire communities.
– In recent years, the state has invested little more than what was needed to draw down federal public health funding. This leaves the state heavily reliant on diminishing federal funds. This disinvestment has affected the ability of state and local health departments to provide essential services. Michigan lags the nation in both per-capita funding for public health and measures of population health.
– Improvement may be needed for Michigan’s system of public health service delivery, fragmented between multiple state departments. A “health in all policies” approach should be adopted statewide so that every government policy (from schools to roads to criminal justice) includes assessment of associated health risks and/or benefits. State and local health departments should coordinate public health across sectors and elevate the public’s understanding of public health.
Report 402 and Memorandum 1148 ( June 2018 ) 5 and 50 pages
– The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that partisan gerrymandering is subject to judicial review, but has not accepted a standard that can be used to evaluate whether any state redistricting plan violates the U.S. Constitution.
– While the U.S. Supreme Court sent recent cases back to the district courts, it is likely new cases will attempt to set a standard for how the courts should evaluate gerrymandering.
– Michigan’s congressional and legislative district maps fail several tests that are currently being discussed to evaluate partisan gerrymandering.
Evaluating the Effects of Term Limits in Michigan
Report 401 ( April 2018 ) 30 pages
– Legislative term limits in Michigan have failed to achieve their proponents’ stated goals: Ridding government of career politicians, increasing diversity among elected officials, and making elections more competitive.
– Term limits have made state legislators, especially House members, view their time as a stepping stone to another office. Term limits have failed to strengthen ties between legislators and their districts or sever cozy relationships with lobbyists. They have weakened the legislature in its relationship with the executive branch.
– The chief problem rests not with term limits, but with the fact that among the 15 states with term limits, Michigan has the shortest and strictest limits. Lengthening time in office would help, as would improving the redistricting process and reforming the primary election system.
Report 400 ( April 2018 ) 40 pages
– Most of Michigan’s residents are located in the state’s urban areas, but those urban areas comprise little of the state’s land area. Relative to the rural areas, the populations in urban communities are growing faster, have more diversity in race and ethnicity, and include more immigrants from a wider cross section of nations.
– Both rural and urban areas have wealthy and less wealthy communities. While poverty is often associated with Michigan’s core urban communities with their deep levels of poverty and need, many rural communities have low income individuals that are frequent users of food stamps and Medicaid.
– While there are some differences, such as more college graduates per capita, a greater frequency of crime per capita, and greater access to broadband Internet service in urban areas, going by the data, urban and rural Michigan have far more in common than not.
Report 1147 ( February 2018 ) 12 pages
– In Michigan, the current local government revenue structure is largely disconnected from the local economy. In Detroit the tax structure is more connected to the local economy than in other cities in the state, but many of Detroit’s revenue streams have suffered from the city’s decline. City revenue trends are not reflecting the resurgence in economic activity taking place within parts of the city and Detroit would benefit from more mechanisms to capture the renewed economic activity taking place within its boundaries.
– Many other states afford their cities and regions a number of tax options – sales, income, motor fuel, vehicle registration, alcohol, cigarette, utility users, hotel/motel, restaurant meals, vehicle rental, and entertainment/amusement – that create diverse revenue streams.
– Expanding access to local-option taxes in Detroit requires the state to authorize the city to levy more taxes, but it does not require the city the levy them. The expansion would simply provide Detroit with more options to fund city services. Ultimately, voters must decide the appropriate menu and level of services and the taxes to finance the services. Expansion of local-option taxes may be best suited to the regional level of government (e.g., Wayne County or Southeast Michigan region).
Report 399 ( February 2018 ) 80 pages
– In Michigan, the current local government revenue structure is largely disconnected from the local economy, leaving them vulnerable to macroeconomic trends and unable to provide the services needed. Communities need more mechanisms to capture the economic activity taking place within their boundaries.
– Many other states afford their local units of government a number of tax options – general and selective sales, income, transportation, various tourism, and others – to capture economic activity and to create diverse revenue streams.
– Expanding access to local-option taxes in Michigan requires the state to authorize local units to levy different taxes, but would not be levied unless acted upon by the local government and submitted to the voters for approval. Expansion of local-option taxes could be offered to cities and townships, but may be best suited to the regional level of government (e.g., counties or larger regions).
Report 398 ( December 2017 ) 44 pages
Michigan was one of several states that participated in the Medicaid expansion program that provides Medicaid health care coverage to people earning too much to qualify for conventional Medicaid coverage but not enough to afford private health insurance. This paper will examine the short history of the program.
State Budget Note 2017-01 ( November 2017 ) 13 pages
The state has been stashing away money in its Rainy Day Fund since 2011. Is that funding enough? How do Michigan’s reserves compare to the efforts in other states?
Memorandum 1146 ( September 2017 ) 12 pages
The failure of the 2016 Regional Transit Authority millage question in Southeast Michigan raised issues about governance of major regional authorities and the best methods for funding regional services such as transit. This paper explores whether special authorities with the power of taxation and the authority to direct significant federal dollars should be subject to the same one-person-one-vote requirement that affects state and local governments. (September 2017)
Report 397 ( August 2017 ) 19 pages
Although the state budget has been balanced for several years, relatively weak economic growth and a series of promises for future appropriations will strain the General Fund in future years. This paper identifies those pressures and assesses the structural balance going forward.
Progress Report on Detroit Public Schools Community District Finances
Memorandum 1145 ( May 2017 ) 12 pages
One year into operation of the “new” school district, it is expected that the district will finish the fiscal year with a surplus. Some of that surplus is attributed to a regional enhancement millage and one-time revenues. This paper assesses factors that could derail the district’s financial turnaround.
2017 Edition ( May 2017 ) 104 pages
2017 update of resource on Michigan tax structure.
Report 396 ( May 2017 ) 35 pages
Proposals to eliminate or cut the tax rate of the state personal income tax have garnered much news coverage for the Michigan Legislature this year. To help inform the debate on this issue, this paper reviews the history of the state income tax and the role that the income tax plays in funding Michigan’s state government (and by extension many local governments). It also looks at whether tax revenues are adequate and reviews available options if the rate is cut or the tax is eliminated.
Report 395 ( March 2017 ) 55 pages
Memorandum 1144, ( March 2017 ) 4 pages
Michigan counties providing certain services in a more efficient way could be the regional approach needed to help local city, village and township governments balance their budgets and better serve their residents according to this new report.
Report 394 ( December 2016 ) 77 pages
The Citizens Research Council of Michigan quantified the severity of lost taxable value for the general-purpose local governments in the state in this report. The slow rate of growth is evident among the individual local governments. In 2016, 85 percent of Michigan cities and townships have less taxable value than they did at their peaks before the Great Recession. Because the period just before the Great Recession includes what many perceive as an artificial inflation of property values, the Research Council also compared 2016 taxable values to the inflation-adjusted 2000 values. This comparison revealed that 16.4 percent of the cities and townships have less taxable value in 2016 than they did in 2000. These local governments are located throughout the state, but roughly half of them are located in Southeast Michigan and along the I-75 corridor. Nine counties have less tax base in 2016 than they did in 2000 when adjusting for inflation.
Memorandum 1143 ( October 2016 ) 7 pages
The question of increasing property taxes for enhanced transit services is one of the more significant questions that appeared on the 2016 ballot in four Southeast Michigan counties. To help voters understand the question before them, the Citizens Research Council of Michigan has published an analysis of the question that explains the tax, describes the relatively new Regional Transit Authority (RTA), describes how revenues from the tax would supplement existing locally-raised revenues, and explores the potential impact on metropolitan Detroit.
Note 2016-01, ( October 2016 ) 4 pages
Michigan will spend nearly $100 million this year to support the education of nonpublic school students, up from $57 million just four years ago. This report documents the increased participation in “shared time” arrangements across the state – a program that allows public schools to enroll private school students in non-core classes and claim state funding.
Memo 1142, ( September 2016 ) 14 pages
This report examines the ways in which Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) can help solve many of Michigan’s healthcare issues, namely accessible and affordable healthcare. The report examines the key issues in expanding APRN practice to encompass a broader range of tasks that they are educated and trained to perform. In addition to benefits and considerations in expanding scope of practice, the report outlines the steps that policymakers could take if they choose to alter the laws that restrict APRN practice.
Memo 1141, ( June 2016 ) 13 pages
This report shows that the out-migration from Detroit and the increasing use of school choice is changing the composition of students in the Detroit Public Schools, and those changes are creating costs for educating special education students that are proportionately larger than the state average or for the charter and traditional school districts that surround Detroit.
Report 393, ( May 2016 ) 98 pages
Document was revised in July 2016 to incorporate suggested edits from program administrators
To serve interested parties in understanding of the changing landscape of early childhood financing streams, the Citizens Research Council of Michigan released a comprehensive Catalog of Early Childhood Funding in Michigan. The catalog provides a detailed, yet accessible, overview of 13 different federal and state programs that make up the core of early childhood funding in Michigan, including Head Start, child care subsidies, and Michigan’s Great Start Readiness Program for pre-school children.
Memo 1140, ( May 2016 ) 12 pages
This updated interstate comparison shows that Michigan’s tax burden is now below average. After Michigan’s “lost decade” of economic malaise, the Great Recession, and a number of significant tax policy changes, 2013 U.S. Census Bureau data show that Michigan’s state and local tax burden was ranked 35 among the 50 states and Washington, D.C. Michigan’s total tax burden per capita was 82 percent of the national average, and the state’s tax burden as a percent of personal income was 93 percent of the national average.
Tax Outline, ( April 2016 ) 104 pages
The Tax Outline is also a resource for understanding tax changes over the past year. After the May 2015 voter rejection of the constitutional amendment proposed to bring about increased road investment, a package of bills was enacted late in the legislative session affecting motor fuel, motor vehicle registration, and personal income taxes.
Memo 1139, ( March 2016 ) 15 pages
Since 2010 and the signing of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, Michigan hospitals have seen a transformation of their finances. From Medicare rates to Medicaid expansion, federal and state changes to healthcare policy have impacted hospital revenues. This report provides an overview of the financial picture of Michigan hospitals during this period of major policy implementation.
Note 2016-01, ( March 2016 ) 10 pages
A case before the U.S. Supreme Court could have changed how House of Representatives, Senate, and Congressional districts are drawn by changing the way that the population in each district is counted. The Evenwel v. Abbott case asked whether the “one person, one vote” principle outlined in Reynolds v. Sims and the equal protection provisions set forth by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution had been too broadly interpreted to define “people” as those counted in the decennial census. The Court considered the use of an alternative measure of population, such as the citizens of voting age population (CVAP), which counts only citizens of the United States that are of voting age (at least 18 years old) and not those incarcerated or otherwise disqualified. Such a change could have had a significant impact on the political balance within certain regions of the country.
Report 392, ( February 2016 ) 166 pages
As Michigan’s economy continues its recovery from a prolonged recession, both state and local officials are renewing their focus on economic development efforts. In 2015, both policymakers and the media turned their attention to state and local efforts to attract a large Nevada-based data center campus to Grand Rapids. Flint’s water infrastructure needs and the long-term consequences of its contaminated water supply are renewing interest in the challenges of attracting and retaining businesses to this already struggling city. Throughout Michigan, municipalities, counties, and the state are constantly engaged in efforts to expand their tax bases by attracting companies to their communities.
Memo 1138, ( January 2016 ) 13 pages
Despite repeated calls from Detroit community leaders and Governor Snyder, state lawmakers closed out the legislative year without taking action to address either the financial or academic crisis facing Detroit Public Schools (DPS). This report analyzed the various debts facing the struggling school district and some of the challenges lawmakers could face in developing a plan to assist the district with debt relief.
Memo 1137, ( September 2015 ) 12 pages
Michigan lawmakers continue to work towards a permanent road funding solution amounting to at least an additional $1.2 billion annually. In legislative deliberations targeting this amount, discussions seem to be coalescing around a potential solution that combines raising new transportation tax revenue and redirecting existing state funds toward roads. This CRC report highlights that redirecting existing state dollars for roads is made more difficult by the growing amount of earmarked tax revenues and the shrinking share of discretionary resources available to policymakers.
State Budget Note 2015-1, ( August 2015 ) 13 pages
Memo 1136, ( July 2015 ) 4 pages
The ballot initiative season is heating up. Special interests inside and outside of state government are researching, drafting, or circulating petitions to place statutory initiatives or constitutional amendments on the November 2016 general election ballot. CRC is calling upon state lawmakers to place on the November ballot constitutional amendments that would clean up the Michigan Constitution.
Report 391, ( July 2015 ) 26 pages
How can we know the true cost that proposed legislation would impose on Michigan’s local governments, businesses, and individuals? The report explores how Michigan’s legislative fiscal agencies might go about estimating costs for proposed legislation that is aimed at those outside of state government. In Michigan, these estimates, called fiscal notes, are critical in informing state policymakers of the true spending and revenue impacts of legislation.
CRC Notes 2015-01 ( June 2015 ) 4 pages
Report 390 ( June 2015 ) 40 pages
Primary care physician shortages in some parts of the state are severe and may be compromising access to quality, affordable health care. Renewed by implementation of the Affordable Care Act and by the state’s expansion of Medicaid, concerns about primary care shortages are unabated. In a new report, Where are the Primary Care Doctors?, the Citizens Research Council of Michigan examines the primary care physician shortage data, looks at the causes for these shortages, and provides some options for policymakers to both increase the supply of primary care physicians and alleviate some of the service demand placed on these providers.
Memorandum 1135 ( April 2015 ) 8 pages
A recent report addressing the future of public education in the City of Detroit recommends that the State of Michigan assume responsibility for certain debts of Detroit Public Schools as part of a larger plan to reform governance and finance for all public schools in the city. A new Citizens Research Council of Michigan (CRC) report, “State Assumption of School Debts,” examines the issues created by a state assumption of school debts by examining the consequences associated with previous instances where the state assumed responsibility for school debts. The CRC report urges policymakers to develop a statewide policy for dealing with school district debts, especially if the state is going to make additional resources available for such purposes.
Report 389 ( March 2015 ) 32 pages
Proposal 15-1, which will appear on the statewide ballot at a special election on May 5, 2015, has the dual objective of increasing state funding for transportation repair and maintenance and modifying the taxation of motor fuels to guarantee that all taxes paid at the pump are directed to transportation purposes. If approved by voters, the proposal would change Michigan’s tax structure to generate additional revenue for transportation infrastructure improvements as well as address the funding displacement to public schools and local governments caused by removing motor fuels from the base of the sales tax. The CRC analysis provides voters with an accessible and objective explanation of the issues surrounding the proposal and its ramifications for Michigan residents.
Memo 1133 ( March 2015 ) 9 pages
Introduction of the Governor’s budget proposal last week once again draws attention to a long-standing program of distributing state funding to local governments. Michigan’s state revenue sharing program has provided a decreasing amount of assistance to local governments over the last decade. Not only does the law fail to provide a method to distribute funds, but policymakers have been diverting funding from state revenue sharing to balance the state’s budget. This report describes the role of the revenue sharing program and provides alternatives that would provide a better foundation for the future distribution of revenue sharing dollars.
Memo 1131 ( January 2015 ) 8 pages
State policymakers have altered school funding and governance policy to fit the circumstances of the day. This new report suggests that policymakers once again need to alter state policies because of statewide declining student enrollment. The new report examines the causes, challenges, and possible state policy responses to declining student enrollment.
Joint Report ( November 2014 ) 57 pages
A new report released by CRC and Public Sector Consultants (PSC) suggests that state policymakers can make targeted investments in evidence-based programs to help ensure Michigan’s youngest children are ready to succeed when they reach kindergarten. The jointly authored report analyzed current research on early childhood programs with the goal of identifying those most likely to produce the best outcomes for Michigan’s children and for the state as a whole.
Memorandum 1130 ( October 2014 ) 7 pages
Memo 1129 ( September 2014 ) 8 pages
Memo 1127 ( June 2014 ) 10 pages
Memo 1126 ( January 2014 ) 11 pages
Report 386 ( January 2014 ) 113 pages
The report examines how Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance system is contributing to higher health care spending in the state and outlines a variety of policy options that could be implemented to reduce the insurance system’s medical costs.
State Budget Note 2013-02 ( July 2013 ) 8 pages
State Budget Note 2013-01 ( May 2013 ) 17 pages
Michigan public schools have seen fewer dollars remain available for classroom education in recent years as more of their revenues have been needed to meet unfunded retirement system liabilities.
Joint Paper with Public Sector Consultants ( March 2013 ) 20 pages
Michigan Virtual University (MVU), a private nonprofit Michigan corporation established by the State of Michigan to serve as a champion for online learning, commissioned Public Sector Consultants (PSC) and the Citizens Research Council of Michigan (CRC) to answer two questions:
What is the future of education in Michigan?
What role does/could technology play in that future?
Report 382 ( April 2013 ) 62 pages
Report 380 ( July 2012 ) 50 pages
Beginning in the fall of 2012 all educational services in the Muskegon Heights School District will be turned over to a charter school operator and the District will no longer be involved in the direct provision of such services under a plan proposed by the state-appointed emergency manager. This plan would be implemented under Public Act 4 of 2011. As part of this “charter conversion” plan, the District’s multi-year accumulated operating deficit, projected to be $12 million as of June 30, 2012, effectively will be eliminated through a state bailout.
Citizens Research Council is pleased to announce the publication of a new report on the financial organization and structure the City of Detroit municipal government. This report is part of a series occasioned by the cityï¿½s narrowly averted cash crisis, by state intervention under Public Act 4 of 2011 and the adoption of a consent agreement establishing a Financial Advisory Board, and by continuing efforts to find effective solutions to intractable municipal problems.
Report 378 ( March 2012 ) 65 pages
As Detroit and Michigan officials work to resolve the financial crisis facing this stateï¿½s largest city, it may be instructive to revisit a similar situation: the 1975 financial crisis in New York City. Comparing the factors that led to the crisis, the negotiations, and the structure that was put in place to resolve the crisis and place New York City firmly on the road to financial recovery and sound budgeting and financial management may help in assessing the stateï¿½s efforts to ensure a viable future for Detroit.
Report 377 ( March 2012 ) 34 pages
CRC’s study was commissioned through the Shared Public Services Initiative, a collaborative project involving local, state and non-profit organizations administered through the Michigan Municipal League Foundation. CRC was asked to explain the merger options and to analyze the costs and benefits of consolidating the Village of Onekama and the Township of Onekama in Manistee County. Even while CRC was studying the issues and preparing its analysis, the community was working with Eric Lupher, the Citizens Research Council of Michigan’s Director of Local Affairs, to learn about the possibilities and implications of consolidating the two governments.
Proposal A of 1994 and the related school finance reforms met many of their initial goals, most notably greater equalization of per-pupil funding across Michigan districts. While the wide variance in revenues per pupil was a public policy problem that plagued the state for many years prior to Proposal A, the prescription to this problem has created new issues. Distribution of State Aid to Michigan Schools identifies a number of important issues that policymakers should consider when contemplating changes to Michigan’s school funding model.
Michigan’s legislature currently has a relatively free hand in the redistricting process. Language establishing a redistricting process in Michigan’s Constitution has been ruled invalid by the Michigan Supreme Court. Without a constitutional framework, the legislature can rewrite statutory guidelines as part of the redistricting process. The only redistricting restrictions on the legislature are the limited constraints contained in the U.S. Constitution and the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Michigan’s prolonged economic recession is creating fiscal stress for many local governments and causing city government officials to seek alternative revenue sources. Michigan law has authorized local-option income taxes for city governments since the 1960s, but only 22 cities have chosen to levy this tax. CRC has released a new paper to explain how city income taxes work, analyze the history of the cities levying this tax, and investigate the incentives and disincentives municipal policy makers may wish to consider relative to imposition of this tax.
Statewide Issues on the November General Election Ballot Proposal 2010-02
This report focuses primarily on the state and local revenues available to support public education, with particular attention paid to the structure of the financing system and changes to it over time. This report also covers the major factors, economic, political, and demographic, that influence performance of state and local revenues. Despite the significant resources being dedicated to K-12 education, there are concerns that the system is somehow “broken” and that schools are “under-funded.” Additionally, concerns about the long-term health of the financing system hinge on projections that spending pressures will outpace revenue growth prospectively.
Part 1 — General Revision of the Michigan Constitution
Part 2 — A Brief Michigan Constitutional History
Part 3 — Amending the Michigan Constitution: Trends and Issues
Part 4 — Article I — Declaration of Rights
Part 5 — Article II — Elections
Part 6 — Article III — General Government
Part 7 — Article IV — Legislative Branch
Part 8 — Article V — Executive Branch
Part 9 — Article VI — Judicial Branch
Part 10 — Article VII — Local Government
Part 11 — Article VIII — Education
Part 12 — Article IX – Finance and Taxation
Part 13 — Article X — Property
Part 14 — Article XI – Public Officers and Employment
Part 15 — Article XII — Amendment and Revision
Part 16 — Statewide Issues on the November General Election Ballot: Proposal 2010-01
“A number of local government officials in fiscally distressed communities have in recent months used the terms ‘bankruptcy’ and ‘receivership.’ Use of these words may express the level of concern those officials have, or wish to convey, about the financial condition of their communities, but they are not particularly accurate or appropriate in the context of Michigan local government,” according to Senior Research Associate Bettie Buss.
The “Great Recession” that began in December, 2007 has exacerbated the effects of population loss, poverty, and disinvestment on the City of Detroit. The tax base, already stressed, has deteriorated significantly, as the number of businesses and jobs has declined, unemployment has increased, and population has dwindled. The recently published Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for Fiscal Year 2007-08 (FY2008) indicates that the city’s general fund deficit increased from $155.6 million at the end of FY 2007 to $219.2 million at the end of FY 2008. No CAFR is available for FY2009, but city officials budgeted a $280 million prior years accumulated deficit for FY2010, and they estimate the current year general fund operating deficit to be in the range of $100 million. The Crisis Turnaround Team appointed by Mayor Bing to assess city operations and make recommendations estimated that, absent major changes, the city’s average annual (structural) deficit for Fiscal Years 2010 through 2112 would be $260 million.
A new report by the Citizens Research Council of Michigan analyzes how public education is structured and governed in Michigan. The report finds education governance to be complex with multiple government officials and agencies from all levels of government involved in education governance and policymaking. The report discusses the roles of the federal government, state government, intermediate school districts, local school districts, and public school academies (i.e., charter schools) in Michigan’s education governance system. It used to be that public education in Michigan was the responsibility of local government officials, but now it is considered a high priority by officials at all levels of government mirroring a nation-wide trend toward more centralized education funding and governance. Beyond the formal education governance structure, other groups and actors have influence over education governance and policy, including federal and state courts, unions, state and local education associations, and community interest groups.