"The right to criticize government is also an obligation to know what you are talking about."

-Lent Upson, first director of Citizens Research Council

Please add eric.lupher@crcmich-newsletter.com to your safe sender/contact list

March 14, 2025

The Citizens Research Council is excited to announce the launch our first professionally produced "commercial" -- a short video that delivers concise yet compelling information. For those who don't know who we are -- and maybe even some who do -- it tells our story, what we do and why it's so important.

Good government -- democracies -- survive and flourish when public policy is based on information that is fact-based, nonpartisan, independent and credible. Everyone in Michigan has access to the state's premier resource for this at: crcmich.org.

Please share this video with your family, friends and colleagues. We are here for you.

Detroit Free Press politics reporter Clara Hendrickson, sat down with infrastructure research associate Eric Paul Dennis and senior research associate for state affairs Bob Schneider to catch up on all the latest and greatest proposals, plans and frameworks put forth on road funding. In addition to discussing the pros and cons of plans and frameworks put forth by Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Speaker Matt Hall, they discussed who or what the different revenue-raising proposals would hit the hardest and maybe more importantly: what is not being discussed to improve Michigan's roads.

Catch Up on Recent Podcasts:

• If lawmakers are serious about reforming budget earmarks, they should put it in law
• Gov. Whitmer's new budget plan: funding bumps for students, new sin taxes and more
• Estimated revenue bumps for next fiscal years should make negotiations slightly easier

It’s that time of year - pothole season! We invite members of the Emerging Leaders Council to join the Citizens Research Council and special guest host John Truscott on Thursday, March 27 from 3-5 pm in Lansing to discuss one of the most pressing issues facing state lawmakers: road funding, aka: fixing the damn roads!

How much funding is needed? Who will pay? How would a road funding plan alter the next fiscal year’s budget as proposed by the Governor on February 5? There are currently two competing road funding frameworks, one offered by Speaker Matt Hall and the other by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. How do they differ?

We will pose these and other questions to John Truscott, who offers a unique perspective as former Governor John Engler’s communications director. He was with the Governor in 1998 when a previous massive road deal was struck. We will ask him how they sold a bipartisan road plan decades ago. What was the “art of the deal” in 1998? How was the deal struck? We will lay out the current proposals with John and discuss some of the tradeoffs that will likely need to happen.

Free ramp parking provided.

On April 1, join us for a webinar being held exclusively for ELC members with Research Council Infrastructure Analyst Eric Paul Dennis will discuss a comprehensive, data-heavy study and a novel approach to the road funding discussion in Michigan.  His research will demonstrate methodologies used for state road funding, road funding levels nationwide, funding among peer states and how Michigan stacks up. It also looks at, through data driven metrics, whether more money means better roads.

Once you become an ELC member, a registration code will be sent to you.

Become a member today: https://crcmich.org/elc.

ELC members receive access to public policy leaders and can participate in critical conversations facing our local and state governments, as well as other networking opportunities. Members can also join us at our annual fall policy dinner at a 50 percent discount ticket rate.

Local governments continue to face fiscal consequences of two landmark property tax limitation constitutional amendments without a strategy to address their faults. Of particular interest is the authority to increase millage rates that were reduced under the Headlee Amendment to be reinstated without voter approval (known as a “Headlee rollup”).  State and local policymakers should address Headlee Rollups together with overall local government fiscal reforms.

IN A NUTSHELL

 -- The fiscal consequences of the Headlee Amendment and Proposal A, Michigan’s two landmark constitutional property tax limitations, continue to challenge local governments that are heavily reliant on property tax revenues.  

 -- Local Governments are supporting a change in law to allow millage rates that were reduced under the Headlee Amendment to be reinstated without voter approval (known as a "Headlee rollup"). They best begin with a review of the original intent of the Headlee Amendment as well as a legal assessment.

 -- State and local policymakers should launch a deliberate and comprehensive review of Michigan’s local government fiscal system. Establishing a state-level expert-supported commission to examine overall local funding challenges, including the impact of Headlee millage limitations will go a long way to identify durable reforms that benefit both local governments and taxpayers. 

Catch Up Other Recent Papers:

• Policymakers at All Levels Can Work Toward Better Indoor Air Quality
• Bringing Oversight and Transparency to Legislative Earmarking
• Consequences of State-Directed K-12 Funding: Loss of Local Decision-Making
• Getting the "Dys" out of Michigan's Dysfunctional Legislature

Senior Research Associate for State Affairs Bob Schneider was invited to present before the Senate Committee on Economic and Community Development, chaired by Sen. Mallory McMorrow, on the findings of his August report examining state investments in innovation and entrepreneurship programs.

Senior Research Associate for State Affairs Robert Schneider

The Research Council is thrilled to announce the arrival of Mary Woloskie as our fundraising director. Mary is a seasoned fundraiser with over 20 years of experience working with not-for-profit, for-profit, federal, and tribal organizations.  She has secured over $4 million for various organizations during her career.  This includes writing the testimony before Congress that secured $174 million to increase airport interoperability security after September 11. She is a graduate of Oakland University. Welcome, Mary!

Tax relief, road projects competing for dollars in Lansing, Detroit News (March 12)

Michigan road funding efforts have stalled before. Can new plans break the traffic jam?, Detroit Free Press (March 12)

MI House Republicans shock Democrats with introduction - and quick passage - of budget bills in Lansing, WCMU Public Media (March 7)

Tax, cut or both? Gretchen Whitmer needs House GOP help to fix Michigan roads, Bridge Michigan (March 6)

A year later, Whitmer silent on MSU board’s request to remove 2 trustees for misconduct, Lansing State Journal (March 6)

Hall Not Sold on Final Book Closing, MIRS News (March 5)

Detroit’s Mayoral Race Heats Up as Candidates Battle for the City’s Future and the People Trust, Michigan Chronicle (February 21)

Detroit’s finances are stable. Can the next mayor keep it that way? Crain’s Detroit Business (February 20)

Michigan’s highway funding becomes the white whale of public policy, City Pulse (February 19)

Student enrollment down as state considers more K-12 funding, The Center Square (February 18)

Whitmer, Hall’s Road Funding Proposals Leave CRC Scratching Its Head, MIRS News (February 18)

Spotlight on the News: Michigan public policy, WXYZ Detroit (February 14)

Left to right: MTA Legal Counsel Rob Thall, Eric Lupher, MTA Executive Director Neil Sheridan, MTA President Connie Cargill

Eric Lupher, president of the Citizens Research Council, last week presented before nearly 200 township officials from across the state as they convened in Lansing for the Michigan Townships Association’s (MTA) 2025 Capital Conference. He discussed property tax reform and an assessment of the AxMiTax, a proposed constitutional amendment that will begin collecting petition signatures in a few weeks.

The annual conference provides insights and information on key township issues at the forefront in Lansing, including the critical need for preservation of local control, and adequate funding and investments in Michigan’s communities, local roads and infrastructure.  The Michigan Townships Association advances local democracy by fostering township leadership and public policy essential for a strong and vibrant Michigan.