Spartan Newsroom (https://news.jrn.msu.edu/category/news/government/state-government/)
St. Clair County Schools are following a program set in place last month by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called MI Safer Sports Testing, which states students between the ages of 13 and 19 must be tested for the coronavirus weekly to participate in their sport or extracurricular activities, like theater. The testing protocol started April 2.
LAWYER LEGISLATORS: Where have all the lawyers gone? Not to the Legislature, which has a scarcity of attorneys in its ranks, although they dominate the House Judiciary Committee. This year is the first time in Michigan history when the Senate has none. The 13 in the House include representatives from Hillsdale, Grand Rapids, Metro Detroit and Lansing. By Eric Freedman. FOR GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, HILLSDALE, LANSING CITY PULSE, DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.
Allies of transgender athletes are speaking up against the increasing wave of bills — including in Michigan – seeking to restrict transgender students from participating in youth sports.
SYNTHETIC URINE: The Senate has overwhelmingly passed a bill, sponsored by a Ludington lawmaker, to outlaw the sale of synthetic urine, used to cheat on drug tests. However, a Detroit lawyer who specializes in cannabis cases says there are better ways than drug tests to determine if an employee is impaired. Another pending anti-drug bill with sponsors from Caco Township and Dearborn, would ban billboards advertising recreational and medicinal marijuana. By Chloe Trofatter. FOR LUDINGTON, HOLLAND, DETROIT, LAKE COUNTY, MANISTEE, LEELANAU, CADILLAC, BENZIE, TRAVERSE CITY, LANSING CITY PULSE, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS & ALL POINTS.
HOUSING WOES: A Detroit wheelchair-using tenant in federally subsidized housing says life is a nightmare with a plague of bedbugs that leaves her sleeping in the bathtub and other problems that neither the property owner nor government agencies have resolved. Such experiences are commonplace for tenants with disabilities, she and a former tenant say. We also hear from the Disability Network of Wayne County-Detroit. By Sheldon Krause. FOR DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.
MOSS BALLS: The new hitchhikers in the Great Lakes region aren’t stopping drivers with a thumbs up. They’re riding moss balls across the ocean, and aquarium owners should be on the lookout for invasive zebra mussels. The warnings come from MSU Extension, Michigan and Wisconsin natural resource departments and the U.S. Geological Survey. By Taylor Haelterman. FOR ALL POINTS.
NATIONAL GUARD RECRUITMENT: Michigan Army and Air National Guard recruiters are adapting to challenges created by the pandemic. For example, a recruiter based in Sault Ste. Marie invites her son’s high school friends to do their homework in the armory. They’re using social media a lot more, and one Air Guard member, from Macomb County, said she was more comfortable being interviewed remotely rather than in-person. March 2020 enlistments were higher than in pre-pandemic March 2019. By Elaine Mallon. For SAULT STE. MARIE, CRAWFORD COUNTY, ST. IGNACE, BAY MILLS, MARQUETTE, DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.
MSU students engage with state representatives and university officials to advocate repealing mensural hygiene products tax in Michigan.
FEDERAL SPENDING: Michigan ranks in the middle of states based on their reliance on federal money, a new analysis shows. That includes a lot of federal dollars in pandemic-related relief. We talk to a Northern Michigan University political scientist, the Department of Technology, Management & Budget and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, in Midland. By Sheldon Krause. FOR MARQUETTE, SAULT STE. MARIE, CORP! GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS AND ALL POINTS.
U.P. CHARGING STATIONS: A new report from the UP Energy Task Force urges state support to expand charging stations for electric vehicles, a goal endorsed by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and the state Office of Future Mobility and Electrification. It fits with the Biden administration’s new infrastructure proposal that includes creation of a national network of charging stations. By Elaine Mallon. FOR MARQUETTE, BAY MILLS, SAULT STE. MARIE, ST. IGNACE, CHEBOYGAN AND ALL POINTS.
FISHING: Charter boat operators sound optimistic about prospects for spring and summer business, thanks in part to pandemic-related travel restrictions that keep anglers closer to home. Captains from St. Joseph, Charlevoix and Traverse City explain. By Sheldon Krause. FOR HOLLAND, LUDINGTON, MANISTEE, PETOSKEY, HARBOR SPRINGS, ALCONA, TRAVERSE CITY, LEELANAU, CHEBOYGAN, ST. IGNACE, MARQUETTE, SAULT STE. MARIE, BENZIE, OCEANA AND ALL POINTS.