October 24, 2014 Budget

Oct. 24, 2014 – Week 7
To: CNS Editors
From: Eric Freedman & Sheila Schimpf
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COMMUNITY COLLEGES AHEAD: We will interview Michael Hansen, president of the Michigan Community College Association, next Monday, Oct. 27. Potential topics include tuition trends, preparing students for “green economy” jobs, student debt patterns, legislative priorities and international student enrollment trends.
HERE’S YOUR FILE:
COMMISSION: Two legislators from Canton and Muskegon want the state to set up a commission that would focus on equal pay. The bill has been stalled in committee for months but it has the support of the Michigan AFL-CIO. We talk to the AFL-CIO’s Karla Swift and the Department of Civil Rights. By Jordan Bradley. FOR GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL & ALL POINTS.
WOLVESMICHIGANCANADA: Hunting isn’t the only issue in the debate about wolves in Michigan. Other factors include population size, public attitudes toward the animal and management of wolves on both sides of the international border. By Anthony Cepak. FOR MARQUETTE, BAY MILLS, SAULT STE. MARIE, CHEBOYGAN, ST. IGNACE & ALL POINTS.
w/WOLVESMICHIGANCANADAGRAPHIC: Michigan’s wolf population, 1998-2013. Source: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
w/WOLVESMICHIGANCANADAPHOTO: Credit: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
NATIONALGUARDWIND: The National Guard is spending $1.5 million on two new machines to generate electricity from wind at Camp Grayling and the Fort Custer Training Center. Unlike traditional windmills, the system captures wind from all directions and will be built by a Roscommon County company. We hear from the manufacturer, the National Guard and a wind funnel skeptic. By Qing Zhang. FOR CRAWFORD COUNTY, STURGIS, THREE RIVERS, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS & ALL POINTS.
w/NATIONALGUARDWINDGRAPHIC: Design of the wind funnels to be installed at Camp Grayling and Fort Custer. Credit: Sheerwind Co.
FALLCOLORS: Fall colors are slower to peak this year than usual, and last winter’s extreme cold is to blame. About 2 million people traveled in Michigan to see fall colors last year, and fall color tours contributed about $294 million to the economy. Pure Michigan and an MSU horticulturalist explain. By Juliana Moxley. FOR MARQUETTE, SAULT STE. MARIE, CHEBOYGAN, TRAVERSE CITY, HARBOR SPRINGS, ALCONA, ALPENA, CADILLAC, LUDINGTON, GLADWIN, CRAWFORD COUNTY, MANISTEE, LAKE COUNTY, PETOSKEY, HERALD STAR, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS & ALL POINTS.
w/FALLCOLORSPHOTO: This tree has turned a brilliant red at a Michigan state park. Credit: Pure Michigan.
CEMETERY: Old cemeteries contain the history, the fashions and the hopes of generations now gone, Thomas Dilley says in his new book, “The Art of Memory: Historic Cemeteries of Grand Rapids, Michigan,” a new book published by Wayne State University Press ($39.99). Dilley is the expert on Grand Rapids cemeteries, leading tour groups, researching markers and linking them to people and national trends. The thing is, Dilley says, almost every old town that once had a flourishing industry also had a cemetery of note, and the stories are there for the taking. We talk about touring cemeteries with Dilley and someone from the Marquette Regional History Center and add Elmwood Cemetery in Detroit for good measure. By Sheila Schimpf. FOR GREENVILLE, GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS, MARQUETTE, DEADLINE DETROIT, MICHIGAN CITIZEN & ALL POINTS.
w/CEMETERYCOVER: Credit: Wayne State University Press.
VOTERID: Courts in other states are wrestling with challenges to voter ID laws but Michigan’s law remains firmly in place. Supporters argue they prevent fraud, while critics counter they discourage citizen participation. Michigan is more restrictive than many other states on absentee ballots, early voting and vote-by-mail. It’s an issue in the secretary of state contest. We hear from the AFL-CIO president, ACLU and Mecosta and Crawford county clerks. By Eric Freedman: FOR MICHIGAN CITIZEN, BIG RAPIDS, CRAWFORD COUNTY, DEADLINE DETROIT, LANSING CITY PULSE & ALL POINTS.
WILDFIRES: Michigan had an unusually small number of wildfires this year. Credit an unusually large amount of rain. Meanwhile, a small number of counties have developed DNR-approved community wildfire protection plans, including Oceana, Newaygo, Lake, Crawford, Manistee, Baraga, Marquette, Alger and Luce. We talk to the DNR, the Huron-Manistee National Forest and fire chiefs in Alpena and Grand Traverse counties. By Eric Freedman. FOR MANISTEE, ALPENA, LUDINGTON, CRAWFORD COUNTY, ALCONA, MARQUETTE, SAULT STE. MARIE, CHEBOYGAN, PETOSKEY, GLADWIN, TRAVERSE CITY, LAKE COUNTY, CADILLAC & ALL POINTS.
w/WILDFIREPHOTO: Credit: Department of Natural Resources.
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