Spartan Newsroom (https://news.jrn.msu.edu/category/news/government/)
The DNR’s Fisheries Division says further cutbacks on staffing and fish stocking are likely as costs of operations rise. The division relies on licenses for much of its budget, but the price has remained consistent for more than a decade. Only restricted, one-time funding was included in the latest state budget. We also hear from the Michigan’s Anglers Consortium. By Anna Barnes.
On Feb. 10, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law two new bills that aim to limit cellphone use in classrooms. While the state law is new, classrooms in Lansing have attempted to curb students’ distraction on their own for a few years. J. W. Sexton High School (JWSHS) in Lansing has had a no-phone policy since 2024.
For every pothole in need of a fresh patch of asphalt along Lansing roads lies a math problem that doesn’t add up. The city has an estimated $300 million in road needs, according to Public Service Director Andy Kilpatrick. But the city’s proposed budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year allocates only $41.4 million across the Major and Local Street Funds. This amount, even with new state funding, leaves a gap between what the city needs and what it can spend.
A $1.2 million cut in state grants to combat invasive species is challenging conservation organizations to rethink how they protect forests, waterways and communities.Michigan awarded $2.4 million in grant funding for invasive species control in 2026, down from $3.6 million in previous years. We talk to Huron Pines in the Northern Lower Peninsula, Three Shores Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area in the UP and the DNR. By Anna Ironside.
Farmland in Michigan is facing increasing development pressure from housing, solar and other expansion projects. For rural farmland, large-scale solar projects often require hundreds to thousands of acres of land, meaning large areas of rural farmland are increasingly being considered for development. Meanwhile in urban and suburban areas, housing expansion is the primary concern for farm and green space preservation.
In 2004, over two decades ago, the East Lansing Department of Parks, Recreation and Arts began the early stages of expansion on the Northern Tier Trail. Now, after securing $100,000 in recent Community Development Grant funds, the department grows closer to adding a piece to the trail connecting the East Lansing Soccer Complex to Coolidge Road.
Newly released data from the East Lansing Independent Police Oversight Commission (ELIPOC) indicates that people of color were involved in a disproportionate amount of use-of-force incidents in 2024 in comparison to the city’s population demographics. The data, which was published in December 2025, comes after criticism of Police Chief Jen Brown following remarks linking minority groups to higher crime rates.
Despite requesting an expansion to the event, the East Lansing City Council chose for Albert EL Fresco in 2026 to feature no road closures and limited outdoor seating following the March 10 discussion-only meeting, and voted unanimously on the downsizing at the March 17 council meeting. While Albert EL Fresco events will still happen over the summer, the evergreen street closures and outdoor seating will not be provided, effectively ending the five-year Albert EL Fresco corridor.
After the six-hour council meeting that ended at nearly 1 a.m., East Lansing City Council reached a decision on ordinances designed to address public camping after postponing the vote for nearly three months. The council voted down Ordinance 1566—which would have introduced jail time for temporarily living in a public space—but approved Ordinance 1565, making the use of parking structures for shelter a civil infraction with up to $100 in fines.
House legislation would update fee requirements and simplify regulations for composts, fertilizers and soil conditioners. It’s backed by the Michigan Recycling Coalition, Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association and Composting Council of Michigan. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has no position. Sponsors are from Clare, Quincy, Bay City and Delta Township. By Georgia Hill.
House Republicans and Senate Democrats have differing visions on how to reward employers with tax credits for creating jobs. The Small Business Association of Michigan and the Detroit Regional Chamber are on opposite sides, the Mackinac Center in Midland doesn’t like either version. We hear from the MEDC. Mentions lawmakers from Richland, Grand Rapids, East Lansing, Au Gres and Rochester Hills. For news and business sections. By Sonja Krohn.