gneese@mininggazette.com
HOUGHTON Local and downstate lawmakers visited sites damaged in the 2018 floods last month as part of an effort to encourage the Department of Natural Resources and the state legislature to provide more funds to restore trails.
State Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, and Rep. Greg Markkanen, R-Hancock, organized the event.
“I thank Chairman Ed McBroom and Rep. Markkanen for bringing some pretty heavy hitters up to take a look at the properties we have here that unfortunately we still have not addressed,” Commissioner Glenn Anderson said.
Also in attendance were state Sens. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, and Jon Bumstead, R-Newaygo, both members of the Senate’s Natural Resources Committee. From the House sides were state Reps. John Damoose, R-Harbor Springs and Beau LaFave, R-Iron Mountain.
A Michigan House Republican who has frequently questioned the legitimacy of the 2020 election is backing legislation that would create a state registry of “fact checkers.” The legislation, House Bill 4813, is sponsored by Rep. Matt Maddock, R-Milford. Maddock was one of more than a dozen state representatives who signed onto an unsuccessful federal lawsuit from the state of Texas claiming .
By Kristia Potsema
Capital News Service
Solar rooftop programs have been growing in Michigan, but they’ve hit a cap on customer participation.
A recent bill to eliminate the cap would make it easier for businesses and homeowners to participate in such programs where they can install solar panels and connect them to the energy grid, according to Tim Minotas, the legislative and political coordinator for the Michigan chapter of the Sierra Club.
According to Minotas, solar rooftops often create more energy than the individual business or household needs, and “any excess energy that these solar systems create can be sold back to the grid for credit,” he said.
William T. Perkins
Petoskey News-Review
State legislators representing Northern Michigan are accusing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of blocking roughly $1 billion worth of federal COVID-19 funding allocations.
But the appropriations bills the governor vetoed Tuesday also would have come with certain administrative strings attached, stripping the governor and her administration of many of the powers she and the Michigan health department have employed in response to the pandemic. Despite vetoing part of the $3.2 billion package, Whitmer did approve other parts of the plan. Republicans say the veto represents both an unwillingness to compromise with the legislature, and a disregard for Michigan’s suffering families and small businesses.
by Scott McClallen, The Center Square | February 23, 2021 05:00 PM Print this article
On Saturday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared an energy emergency because of propane delivery delays that jeopardized the heating source for many Michigan homes. The order allows tanker truck drivers to exceed their maximum daily driving limits until Feb. 28.
“With a cold wave gripping the country, our top priority right now is ensuring that Michigan families and businesses have the home heating fuel we need to stay warm,” Whitmer said in a statement. “While I am confident that our state has the energy supply we need to get through these cold winter days, we aren’t taking any chances after what happened in Texas this week.