By AP’s Kevin Freking, Lisa Mascaro, with additional reporting from WDET’s Russ McNamara

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans muscled President Donald Trump’s tax and spending cut bill through the House on Thursday, the final step necessary to get the bill to his desk by the GOP’s self-imposed deadline of July 4.

At nearly 900 pages, the legislation is a sprawling collection of tax breaks, spending cuts and other Republican priorities, including new money for national defense and deportations.

Democrats united against the legislation, but were powerless to stop it as long as Republicans stayed united. The Senate passed the bill, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tiebreaking vote. The House passed an earlier iteration of the bill in May with just one vote to spare. It passed the final version 218-214.

Here’s the latest on what’s in the bill.

Tax cuts are the priority

Republicans say the bill is crucial because there would be a massive tax increase after December when tax breaks from Trump’s first term expire. The legislation contains about $4.5 trillion in tax cuts.

The existing tax rates and brackets would become permanent under the bill, solidifying the tax cuts approved in Trump’s first term.

It temporarily would add new tax deductions on tip, overtime and auto loans. There’s also a $6,000 deduction for older adults who earn no more than $75,000 a year, a nod to his pledge to end taxes on Social Security benefits.

“It delivers on promises made to hardworking families and businesses in Michigan: no tax on tips or overtime, permanent tax relief, an expanded Child Tax Credit, and more,” said Rep. Tom Barrett (R-MI), who voted in favor of the bill.

It would boost the $2,000 child tax credit to $2,200. Millions of families at lower income levels would not get the full credit.

A cap on state and local deductions, called SALT, would quadruple to $40,000 for five years. It’s a provision important to New York and other high tax states, though the House wanted it to last for 10 years.

There are scores of business-related tax cuts, including allowing businesses to immediately write off 100% of the cost of equipment and research. Proponents say this will boost economic growth.

The wealthiest households would see a $12,000 increase from the legislation, and the bill would cost the poorest people $1,600 a year, mainly due to reductions in Medicaid and food aid, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analysis of the House’s version.

Money for deportations, a border wall and the Golden Dome

The bill would provide some $350 billion for Trump’s border and national security agenda, including for the U.S.-Mexico border wall and for 100,000 migrant detention facility beds, as he aims to fulfill his promise of the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history.

Money would go for hiring 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, with $10,000 signing bonuses and a surge of Border Patrol officers, as well. The goal is to deport some 1 million people per year.

Barrett praised the provision, calling it “the largest border security investment in American history,” and highlighting its funding for “701 miles of wall” and “next-generation surveillance technology.”

To help pay for it, immigrants would face various new fees, including when seeking asylum protections.

For the Pentagon, the bill would provide billions for ship building, munitions systems, and quality of life measures for servicemen and women, as well as $25 billion for the development of the Golden Dome missile defense system. The Defense Department would have $1 billion for border security.

How to pay for it? Cuts to Medicaid and other programs

To help partly offset the lost tax revenue and new spending, Republicans aim to cut back on Medicaid and food assistance for people below the poverty line.

Republicans argue they are trying to rightsize the safety net programs for the population they were initially designed to serve, mainly pregnant women, the disabled and children, and root out what they describe as waste, fraud and abuse.

The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and food stamps, including older people up to age 65. Parents of children 14 and older would have to meet the program’s work requirements.

There’s also a proposed new $35 co-payment that can be charged to patients using Medicaid services.

More than 71 million people rely on Medicaid, which expanded under Obama’s Affordable Care Act, and 40 million use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Most already work, according to analysts.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034 if the bill became law and 3 million more would not qualify for food stamps, also known as SNAP benefits.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) called the bill “an act of violence against our communities,” warning that it would kick “over 450,000 people in Michigan” off health care coverage and result in “over 50,000 people” dying unnecessarily each year.

Republicans are looking to have states pick up some of the cost for SNAP benefits. Currently, the federal government funds all benefit costs. Under the bill, states beginning in 2028 will be required to contribute a set percentage of those costs if their payment error rate exceeds 6%. Payment errors include both underpayments and overpayments.

But the Senate bill temporarily delays the start date of that cost-sharing for states with the highest SNAP error rates. Alaska has the highest error rate in the nation at nearly 25%, according to Department of Agriculture data. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, had fought for the exception. She was a decisive vote in getting the bill through the Senate.

Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) echoed those concerns of Tlaib, saying, “Hospitals are going to close. Children, people with disabilities, seniors, veterans — all are going to lose their health care. It’s going to make premiums and deductibles and co-pays increase for millions.”

A ‘death sentence’ for clean energy?

Republicans are proposing to dramatically roll back tax breaks designed to boost clean energy projects fueled by renewable sources such as energy and wind. The tax breaks were a central component of President Joe Biden’s 2022 landmark bill focused on addressing climate change and lowering health care costs.

Democratic Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden went so far as to call the GOP provisions a “death sentence for America’s wind and solar industries and an inevitable hike in utility bills.”

A tax break for people who buy new or used electric vehicles would expire on Sept. 30 of this year, instead of at the end of 2032 under current law.

Dingell, whose district includes major auto industry hubs, warned the change would damage the state’s economy. “They have eliminated the EV tax credit effective in September. That’s going to hurt the domestic auto industry,” she said.

Meanwhile, a tax credit for the production of critical materials will be expanded to include metallurgical coal used in steelmaking.

Trump savings accounts and so, so much more

A number of extra provisions reflect other GOP priorities.

The bill creates a new children’s savings program, called Trump Accounts, with a potential $1,000 deposit from the Treasury.

The Senate provided $40 million to establish Trump’s long-sought “National Garden of American Heroes.”

There’s a new excise tax on university endowments and a new tax on remittances, or transfers of money that people in the U.S. send abroad. The tax is equal to 1% of the transfer.

A $200 tax on gun silencers and short-barreled rifles and shotguns was eliminated.

One provision bars for one year Medicaid payments to family planning providers that provide abortions, namely Planned Parenthood.

Another section expands the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, a hard-fought provision from GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, for those impacted by nuclear development and testing.

Billions would go for the Artemis moon mission and for the exploration of Mars, while $88 million is earmarked for a pandemic response accountability committee.

Additionally, a provision would increase the nation’s debt limit, by $5 trillion, to allow continued borrowing to pay already accrued bills.

Last-minute changes

The Senate overwhelmingly revolted against a proposal meant to deter states from regulating artificial intelligence. Republican governors across the country asked for the moratorium to be removed and the Senate voted to do so with a resounding 99-1 vote.

A provision was thrown in at the final hours that will provide $10 billion annually to rural hospitals for five years, or $50 billion in total. The Senate bill had originally provided $25 billion for the program, but that number was upped to win over holdout GOP senators and a coalition of House Republicans warning that reduced Medicaid provider taxes would hurt rural hospitals.

The amended bill also stripped out a new tax on wind and solar projects that use a certain percentage of components from China.

What’s the final cost?

Altogether, the Congressional Budget Office projects that the bill would increase federal deficits over the next 10 years by nearly $3.3 trillion from 2025 to 2034.

Or not, depending on how one does the math.

Senate Republicans are proposing a unique strategy of not counting the existing tax breaks as a new cost because those breaks are already “current policy.” Republican senators say the Senate Budget Committee chairman has the authority to set the baseline for the preferred approach.

Under the alternative Senate GOP view, the bill would reduce deficits by almost half a trillion dollars over the coming decade, the CBO said.

Democrats say this is “magic math” that obscures the true costs of the tax breaks. Some nonpartisan groups worried about the country’s fiscal trajectory are siding with Democrats in that regard. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says Senate Republicans were employing an “accounting gimmick that would make Enron executives blush.”

Tlaib described the approach as “a gift to Trump’s billionaire donors” and said, “Every member who voted to pass this disastrous budget betrayed the people they represent to serve the rich and powerful.”

Soak up the sun this holiday weekend with outdoor festivals, food truck rallies and concerts. Or, beat the heat at an art gallery or crafting workshop. Either way, we’ve got you covered with these metro Detroit arts and culture events. Read on to learn more.

Outdoor dining

Royal Oak Taco Fest returns to metro Detroit this weekend with tacos, tequila and more from Thursday, July 3 through Sunday, July 6. This street festival features food from over 50 vendors and live entertainment across three stages from a wide variety of talent — including WDET favorites Elspeth Tremblay & The Treatment, the debut performance of alt-rock band SHÜ, and a special appearance by Tommy Chong of comedy duo Cheech & Chong. Other activities include mechanical bull rides, taco-eating contests, tequila sampling and more. Tickets are $12 and children 3 and under get in for free. For more information, visit royaloaktacofest.com.

Michigan’s largest weekly food truck rally, Downtown Street Eats, is back for its 13th season, bringing a variety of food trucks, carts and local restaurant pop-ups to the heart of Downtown Detroit. On Tuesday, July 8, they’ll have Cousins Maine Lobster, The Chubby Batch Cookies, Grand Traverse Pie Company, Impasto, Little Caesars, Sonny’s Hamburgers and Twisted Street BBQ. Food trucks are available in Cadillac Square from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and prices vary by truck. For more information, visit downtowndetroit.org.

The Downtown Detroit Partnership’s Tacos & Trivia Tuesdays series continues on July 8 on the second floor of Cabana 313 in Campus Martius Park. Guests are invited to play for free for a chance to win fun prizes, no registration required. Tacos and drinks will be available for purchase, and the series is supported in part by Corona Extra. For more information, visit downtowndetroit.org.

Arts and crafts

Decked Out Detroit offers a wide variety of activities and entertainment along throughout the summer. On Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays on the 1200–1400 blocks of Woodward Avenue, visitors can enjoy acoustic music, pose for personalized watercolor portraits, build a bouquet from the flower cart and more — all free of charge. While most of their activities will be closed on Thursday, July 3, the CREATE DIY workspace on 1413 Woodward will still be open, and is offering a free craft workshop for kids and adults from 4–7 p.m. For more information on their summer lineup, visit deckedoutdetroit.com.

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Summer in Sosnick Festival kicks off on Wednesday, July 9 and goes through Sunday, July 20. This series features two weeks of free performances in Sosnick Courtyard, the DSO’s community green space. Events include a concert of works by living BIPOC composers, a yoga and music program, a sensory-friendly concert and more. For more information, visit dso.org.

Or, beat the heat by checking out the Michigan Watercolor Society’s 78th Annual Exhibition at the Janice Charach Gallery in West Bloomfield. The exhibition features works from over 60 of Michigan’s finest watercolor artists, ranging from traditional landscapes to stunningly realistic portraits. Admission is free and open to the public, and the show runs through July 23. For more information, visit thejdetroit.org.

Detroit officials say they’ve filed the “largest blight lawsuit in its history” against a blockchain-based real estate platform after it failed to maintain hundreds of residential properties in the city.

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Real Token, also known as RealT, is a Florida-based company that markets itself as a decentralized real estate security token platform. In the lawsuit, the city alleges that the company’s co-founders, brothers Remy Jacobson and Jean-Marc Jacobson — and their 165 affiliated companies — have neglected over 400 properties in Detroit by failing to maintain basic health and safety requirements, leading to widespread code violations and blight.

Detroit’s Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallet says the city wants them to pay $500,000 in blight tickets and ensure their properties pass compliance inspections.  

“We are also asking the judge to hold the Jacobson brothers personally liable for the circumstances that their tenants find themselves,” he said. “We are also asking the judge to take control of the entire process so that even the vacant properties are properly attended to [and] properly registered.”

Mallet says Real token used a complex web of shell companies to avoid responsibility for keeping up their properties.  

Real Token says it paid their parties to manage the properties and blamed them for the problems.  

“We are sending a message,” Mallet wrote in a statement, “no matter how innovative your business model may be, you cannot hide behind technology or corporate formalities to evade your responsibilities as a property owner.”

Other headlines for Thursday, July 3, 2025:

• More than 6,000 signatures have been collected by the group Dearborn Wants Wards to change the city council from an at-large body to district-based seats.
• The Michigan House has passed two bills that give police the ability to test for controlled substances during traffic stops.
• AAA says it expects almost 2.5 million people in Michigan to travel this Fourth of July weekend. State officials say they are suspending roadwork at more than 100 project sites over the holiday weekend to help ease traffic congestion.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

In late March, a severe ice storm struck the northern part of Michigan.

Tree branches and limbs, weighed down by ice, broke and fell to the ground, leaving towering toothpick trees behind. Many roads, campgrounds, forests, boat launches and other facilities managed by the state were closed as a result. 

Months later, most areas have reopened to the public, but the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is warning visitors to be cautious and expect some trail and road closures to still be in place for their safety. 

Most trails, campgrounds open

The DNR staff went to work to ensure all campgrounds opened at the start of the season on May 15. Some state forests and boat access sites lagged behind, but most are open and ready for Fourth of July weekend.

Kerry Heckman, from the DNR’s Ice Storm Response team, said that travelers should be aware that some roads running through state forests are blocked off. Likewise, some trails may be blocked for visitor safety. 

“If you are going to be just in the forest itself, just be aware that there are a lot of hazards that remain,” Heckman warned, adding that trees that are leaning or limbs caught in the tree canopy are still at risk of falling suddenly. 

She said parts of State Parks Onaway, Clear Lake and Petoskey are temporarily closed. Additionally, Cheboygan State Park is closed for the summer for regularly scheduled updates unrelated to the ice storm. 

Forest recovery efforts continue

It will take a while for the forest to fully recover from the cold snap, Heckman said.

 ”We’ll be working for many years to replant, and bringing the forest back to what they were prior to the storm,” she said.

Heckman says the DNR is also working to salvage fallen trees for timber as fallen limbs are cleared.

Finding new uses for the fallen wood and clearing it out is essential to minimize potential harms to the environment, though the dead branches have benefits as well. 

Long-term impacts on the environment

The influx of fallen timber and moisture leads to a number of environmental impacts, Heckman said.

Forest health is a concern due to the rapid change, but the woods are resilient. 

The dead wood will provide food for woodpeckers and pests like the pine bark beetle, whose population is expected to explode and cause further damage to trees. Exposed wood is also vulnerable to diseases.

One additional danger of having so much timber on the forest floor is providing fuel for potential wildfires, she said.

The open canopy gives room for new plant growth, including that of invasive species.

As the fallen branches decompose, they will replenish the soil. This — in addition to the moisture delivered by the storm — will promote the growth of fungi.

“For people who love morel mushrooms, that’s going to be amazing,” said Heckman.

This story is part of WDET’s ongoing series, The Detroit Tree Canopy Project.

Michigan school districts face tough choices as their fiscal years began Tuesday while the Legislature remains deadlocked on the state K-12 budget.

The Republican-controlled House and the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats, adjourned and left town earlier this week after it became clear they would not reach a deal by the July 1 deadline set in state law. There are big differences between the chambers’ differing versions and it appears possible if not likely the budget will hang fire into the fall.

“We’ve seen school districts passing budgets that make cuts, that pink slip employees, that dip heavily into their reserve funds that they aren’t supposed to be touching,” said Robert McCann, executive director of the K-12 Alliance of Michigan.

McCann said this outcome was foreseeable as the budget process lagged months behind the typical process and missed key benchmarks, including getting initial versions adopted in the spring so they could move to bicameral, bipartisan conference committees to hammer out final versions. Those conference committee versions would have to be approved without amendments in up-or-down votes of the House and Senate before they would go to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for her signature.

“And instead we were left with this sort of chaos situation of trying to scramble something together before the deadline and, ultimately, there wasn’t the will or the way to make that happen and it’s really because of months and months of inaction,” said McCann. “This failure has been happening over the past five, six months now of delays and inaction and seemingly not caring about the urgency of getting a K-12 budget done on time.”

There are no consequences to lawmakers for missing the July deadline, which was enacted by the Legislature after a 2007 deadlock between then Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) and a politically divided Legislature led to a brief partial government shutdown.

The state’s fiscal year begins in three months on Oct. 1, when the Michigan Constitution requires a balanced budget to be signed.

Two protesters were arrested on Detroit’s west side Monday after police say they attempted to prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers from detaining a resident in the neighborhood.

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ICE was in the area to arrest a Honduran man who had already been deported twice but returned to the U.S. each time. Protesters say the immigration officers failed to show a signed warrant for his arrest. Officers used pepper spray on protesters when confronted.

At a Detroit City Council meeting Tuesday, Councilmember Gabriela Santiago-Romero said ICE could have avoided the protest by simply showing a signed warrant.

“The family knew their rights. They said they didn’t show us the warrant. They didn’t even leave me a copy of the warrants,” she said. “That, to me, seems like a very basic, simple solution to this not getting out of hand…” 

At least one of the two protesters arrested have been charged in federal court for allegedly blocking ICE agents from leaving after making the arrest.

Police Chief Todd Bettison says protesters should stay peaceful, and warned that anyone who interferes with federal agents will be arrested.

Other headlines for Wednesday, July 2, 2025:

• The Department of Natural Resources’ explorer guide program is offering more than 100 free activities over the July Fourth holiday weekend. DNR guides will lead programs at 30 state parks Friday through Sunday, with activities ranging from poetry writing to fossil-hunting. 
• The Brightmoor Artisan Collective will host a Nigerian cooking class at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 9, offered in partnership with the Detroit Partnership for Food Learning and Innovation program through Michigan State University Extension. The registration fee is $15 per person. Register by emailing edwar649@msu.edu.
• The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) is hosting a drop-in summer studio, with the next session taking place on Thursday, July 3. Visitors of all ages will have the chance to make art with some creative prompts and materials provided. Next week, MOCAD will welcome families for its Family Day with free exhibitions for kids, teens and parents.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

Detroiters have so much LOVE for where they live. That’s why when the city falls on hard times, it’s often community members stepping up and holding down their blocks. 

This is true of the Hubbell-Puritan neighborhood and surrounding area. It’s an area that residents love, but one that doesn’t offer people all the services they need. While there are six schools within a mile and a half, there are zero public libraries and very few community parks nearby.

Many people living and working in Hubbell-Puritan-Schaefer are trying to change that. Among them are Jerjuan Howard, founder and executive director of  Umoja Village and the Umoja Debate League; and HUG Haven Founder Chelsea Walker, who will be leading Peace on Puritan yoga classes at Umoja Village this summer.

Umoja Village will be hosting “7-2 Day” — an annual event celebrating community pride on Puritan Avenue — on July 5-6, featuring a 5K run, a neighborhood cleanup, little library installations, mural painting and more.

Howard and Walker joined The Metro on Wednesday to talk about 7-2 Day and their shared goals of driving positive change and unity within their community.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

Volunteers with the Michigan-based nonprofit Rank MI Vote have been working hard to get ranked choice voting on the general election ballot in November 2026.

Their effort just passed the state board of canvassers on Friday. Now they need to get hundreds of thousands of signatures over the next 180 days to get the initiative on the ballot. If passed, voters would be able to rank political candidates by their preference.

Pat Zabawa, executive director of Rank MI Vote, joined The Metro on Wednesday to make the case for ranked choice voting and why he says it would more accurately reflect the will of Michigan voters.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

Last week, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin gave a speech at a progressive think tank where she gave a stern warning about America’s shrinking middle class.

She says the middle class has been shrinking since the ’70s, making it more challenging for young Americans to become as affluent as their parents. Part of the reason for that, she says, is how much the economy has changed structurally, and the failure of government to change along with it.

“We were already taking on water as the middle class, and now we’re about to hit a Category 5 hurricane in the form of artificial intelligence,” she said. “We gotta reset on how we do the basics of government and of our lives and focus on those essential things.”

Slotkin says part of the solution is to build more housing, expand access to health care, invest more resources in small businesses and to ban donations from corporate Political Action Committees. 

Metro Producer Sam Corey spoke with the senator about her “economic war plan” to build up the middle class, and why she says Democrats should be on the offense right now. 

—WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

Heat is now the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S. — with 12,000 lives claimed annually — and this number is expected to increase significantly by the turn of the century.

In large cities, temperatures in the summer can reach even higher than normal due to the “urban heat island” effect. 

New data compiled by the nonprofit American Forests and the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation identifies areas in cities across the United States that lack enough protection from the sun.  These areas are known as “shade deserts.” 

The new shade map covers more than 100 of the country’s biggest urban areas, including Detroit.

One effective way to stay cooler is by increasing shade, especially through planting trees, which can reduce the effects of high temps significantly. But according to American Forests a lack of shade in Detroit — especially at bus stops and along roadways — is harming thousands. 

Less than 60% of households in Detroit have air conditioning, said Chris David, vice president of GIS & Data Science at American Forests. Additionally, he says those using public and alternative transit are even more at risk of heat-related illness and death. 

“I think there’s about 5,000 bus stops in Detroit,” David said. “About 90% of those 5,000 bus stops have poor shade.” 

He says bus shelters provide “very little” sun protection, with only about 5% of bus stops in the city covered.  

“That means we estimated about 85,000 daily transit riders in Detroit….they’re left exposed to the sun when they’re waiting for the bus… and that can have dire effects,” David said.

David says Detroit will benefit from a strategic plan to increase the tree canopy, with groups like the Greening of Detroit working toward that goal in partnership with city government. 

You can view the American Forests/UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation shade map here. 

This story is part of WDET’s ongoing series, The Detroit Tree Canopy Project.

The director of the Michigan State Police spent an hour and a half Tuesday testifying and taking questions from lawmakers about morale in a department that appears skeptical of his leadership.

Col. James Grady II had to answer for trooper and officer surveys showing widespread dissatisfaction with his leadership. Grady told House lawmakers he does not trust the accuracy of the trooper and command officer union surveys. He said the department has its measuring tools that do not show similar results.

But, mostly, Grady said that is because he is not hearing complaints from the troopers and officers under his command.

“They tell me how happy they are with the work that they’re doing — that they’re satisfied with the work that they’re doing, that they’re satisfied with the support that they have in our agency,” he said. “So, I get it face to face because I am that type of person that will strike up a conversation with anyone.”

But Rep. Jaime Greene (R-Richmond) said it is not just the union surveys that are concerning. Committee members have been meeting with MSP staff, who she said shared in private interviews that they feared retaliation. She read some of the responses to him.

“These are from your own officers that they feel as if they are being retaliated against,” she said. “How have they come to that conclusion?”  

Grady repeated he does not believe officers under his command fear retaliation. Grady also said he doesn’t believe the Michigan State Police has a serious morale problem. The proof of that, he said, is officers showing up and doing their jobs and the reduced violent crime rate in Michigan.

But Rep. Jason Woolford (R-Howell) told Grady he should take those union survey findings seriously.

“When people lose faith in their leader, the result is a cascade of issues, and we’re seeing that,” Woolford said. “There’s low morale, poor cohesion and, at the end of the day, a mission that’s going to be compromised.”  

Both the Michigan State Police Troopers Association and the Michigan State Police Command Officers Association have called on Grady to resign.  

Grady was a 25-year veteran of the department in 2023, when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed him to the post. In a statement sent to Michigan Public Radio, Whitmer Press Secretary Stacey LaRouche said the governor remains confident in Grady.

“Thanks to the work of Colonel Grady and troopers across the state, in partnership with local law enforcement, Michigan has seen major drops in violent crime recently,” she said. “He’s also had troopers’ backs by fighting for pay raises for the men and women who risk their lives every day to keep our state safe. We have full confidence in Colonel Grady to continue getting the job done.”

Michigan lawmakers left the state capitol Tuesday night again without passing a new state budget for K-12 schools.

Tuesday was the statutory deadline for passing an entire state budget. But lawmakers likely won’t be back for a couple of weeks.

That means school districts have started a new fiscal year without knowing how much money they’ll be getting from the state. 

The Democratic-controlled Senate adjourned first, throwing in the towel in the late afternoon. Leadership said the Senate and the Republican-led House were still worlds apart in their negotiations.

Speaking to reporters, Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) said she’d like schools to have more reassurance when it comes to their funding.

“I think we’re in a position where, when we can give them more certainty, sooner is better, and we will do everything we can to get there,” Brinks said before adding, “There’s not much more that they can learn this week. I think we’re continuing to hear from school leaders in our community that the want a better budget — not a fast budget — so that is our guiding principle at this point.”

There are several differences not only between each chamber’s proposals, but how they’re approaching the talks themselves.

The Senate has been adamant about wanting a full budget passed at the same time. House leadership has shut down that idea, instead arguing that a schools budget and a separate roads funding plan that could have implications for school money should go first.

Beyond that, the House schools proposal would raise the base-level funding for schools but cancel out directed spending on items like free school meals or mental health support. House Republicans say it would give districts more flexibility on how they spend their money.

The Senate also proposes more per-student funding but Senate Democrats want that directed spending maintained.

House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp) said he still hoped the House could pass a new proposal with bipartisan support after the Senate walked.

Hall said, as a way to pressure the Senate, he offered House Democrats restored funding for school meals and rural school transportation to gain their votes. He called that deal a win-win, and said a similar deal was on the table with the Senate.

“We win because we keep pressure on to get a school budget done quickly and also to get roads done and they win because they can establish relevancy in the budget process. I thought that was a critical opportunity for them and I think they missed that opportunity,” Hall said.

That plan never came to fruition. After session Tuesday, House Democrats said they didn’t feel Hall was working in good faith.

No budget means schools still don’t know how much money they’ll get for things like teachers, resource officers, or free meals for students.

Depending on when you’re reading this, you may only have a matter of hours in which to cast YOUR vote for this year’s Sounds Like Detroit Showcase! If you happened to catch MI Local, you heard three more artists who are currently on the ballot; last week I featured Tariq Gardner, Imani Bloom, and Angela Davis, but this week, I featured songs from Aisha Ellis (jazz), Nadim Azzam (hip-hop/folk) and B’Witches (lo-fi electro/bedroom-pop). Click here for more info and to vote!

With MI Local, you’ll always hear the latest and greatest tracks from artists around metro Detroit and all across the state of Michigan — a promise certainly kept this week with premieres from The Remants (indie-rock), Nancy Friday (lo-fi dream-pop/folk), and a sneak preview of the upcoming album by longtime local psych-rockers WICCANS!

The Remnants just released their debut full-length, “Strange Things Change Brings,” and they’re coming to you from Huron Township, which is way southwest of Detroit, pretty much halfway to Ypsilanti!

Nancy Friday is the moniker of Vanessa Beard, who not only makes mesmerizingly fuzzy and heart-heavy slow-dance drifter ballads, but also runs Porcelinen out of Hamtramck! WICCANS, meanwhile, are the wicked hard-rock brain-child of singers/songwriters Aran Ruth and Kelly Jean Caldwell; their forthcoming album “WICCANS BY WICCANS” is already decreed to be their final album.

We also heard new tracks from Carmel Liburdi (alt-folk), The Microplastics (indie-rock/punk/pop), and electronic music artist Rebecca Goldberg! Goldberg’s hosting a special listening party this Thursday, celebrating the release of her new full-length “Dancing Dreamland.” 

You’ll always get a zesty blend of genres on MI Local, including a foray this week into some potent punk and experimental sounds, coming from Detroit’s own lo-fi quirk-pop group Dori; ferocious new punk sounds out of Kalamazoo from Today’s Milk; and the long-running project out of Detroit known as Tyvek, which celebrates its 20th anniversary next Saturday at the Outer Limits Lounge!

Remember to vote for this year’s Sounds Like Detroit Showcase! You can choose which artist comes to the stage at our upcoming concert at Batch Brewing on Aug. 14! Remember, keep supporting local music and keep supporting local radio! Thanks for listening!!

See the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

MI Local Playlist for July 1, 2025

• “Seeing’s Believing” – The Remnants
• “Summer Moon” – The Microplastics
• “69” – Carmel Liburdi
• “Retrieve” – Chris DuPont ft. Olivia Dear
• “Old Town” – Rebecca Goldberg
• “Run Out” – Today’s Milk
• “Overground” – Tyvek
• “Phone’s Suck” – Dori
• “Fire & Flame” – The Whiskey Charmers
• “Move Now” – Marshall Crenshaw
• “Valentine” – B’Witches
• “Jam Three Twenty One” – Aisha Ellis
• “Zen” – Nadim Azzam
• “House of Glass” – Nancy Friday
• “The Dance” – WICCANS
• “Crash Out Kid” – Hondo

Longtime musician and event promoter Hugh Leal has been curating jazz events in the Windsor area since 1976.

Thanks to his efforts, established jazz artists from Detroit, New York, Chicago and beyond came to Windsor to perform, including some of the last surviving jazz musicians of the 1920s and ’30s.

Leal has continued to promote jazz performances in Windsor over the years, going on to help launch the nonprofit Windsor Jazz Concert Series — the latest in a string of jazz concert series that have taken on various names — now considered the longest-running jazz concert series in Canadian history.

He joined The Metro on Tuesday (Canada Day!) to talk about his extensive efforts to bring live jazz music to Windsor, and to discuss the upcoming Port Windsor Jazz & Arts Festival in Sandwich Town this Sunday.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

Today on The Metro, we continue our coverage on the fight over public media funding and what’s at stake for local news and music stations across the country.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to eliminate funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) due to alleged bias. Now, in the House Rescissions Act of 2025 — which narrowly passed the House last month — he’s asking Congress to claw back CPB funding that has already been approved.

The Senate Appropriations committee held a hearing on the bill last month, and the Senate will need to vote on the package by July 18.

If passed, local stations — including WDET and the programs you love — would face profound impacts. At WDET, about 6% of our annual budget comes from CPB.

Kelly McBride, senior vice president at the Poynter Institute, serves as NPR’s public editor. She says in her role with NPR, she serves as an independent critic of NPR reporting, engaging with listeners and critiquing public media stations when appropriate.

McBride spoke with Metro co-host Robyn Vincent about how public editors at major media outlets help hold journalists accountable, and how NPR could improve its coverage of federal funding cuts to public media and allegations of bias.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

Southwest Detroit native and entrepreneur Arnold Boyd is one of two write-in candidates competing against nine others in the city’s mayoral race.

Boyd, the founder of a school bus transportation company, launched his campaign in May and was one of the last to join the packed field of candidates facing off in the upcoming Aug. 5 primary.

Running on a platform of expanding skilled trades, making it easier to start a business, offering legal aid to senior citizens facing foreclosure and more, he says he would bring something new and different to the city.

“I’m running for mayor because I feel the city…all too often we vote for people that have name recognition or people that are career politicians,” Boyd said. “It’s time for the city to vote for people that come from their own.”

Boyd joined The Metro on Tuesday to share more details about his vision for Detroit and how he plans to achieve it.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

More stories from The Metro

The city of Detroit announced on Monday that it has received a credit upgrade from the credit rating agency Moody’s for the 11th year in a row. 

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Detroit’s rating went up one notch from Baa2 to Baa1 with a positive outlook, the city reported. The city’s financial resiliency and its operating performance over time were key reasons behind this year’s upgrade, Moody’s said in a statement.

Moody’s cited key projects underway — such as the new Hudson’s development, the expansion of Henry Ford Hospital’s campus, and the new Water Square development — as positives, adding that the city’s tax base has more than doubled in the past five years. 

The city’s credit rating hit an all-time low at Caa3 — considered “junk bond” status — in June 2013 after declaring bankruptcy.

“This is what happens when elected leaders set aside us-versus-them politics and work together,” Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said in a statement. “Our CFO team, department heads and City Council all have demonstrated tremendous fiscal discipline over the past 11 years to help bring us to where we are today and to lay a strong foundation for years to come.”

Other headlines for Tuesday, July 1, 2025:

• Residents on Detroit’s east side are speaking out about gun violence after two young people were killed at a city playground near Denby High School on Friday. Police are still investigation the shooting, which claimed the lives of 4-year-old Samir Grubbs and 18-year-old Daviyon Shelmonson-Bey and left another teenager wounded. No suspects are in custody.
• The Motown Museum has reopened its “Motown Mile” art installation along the Detroit riverfront with a new exhibition honoring the legacy of Motown Museum founder Esther Gordy Edwards, titled “Keeper of the Dream.”
• Detroit’s neighbors across the river are celebrating Canada Day on Tuesday, commemorating the country’s “confederation.” Windsor residents celebrated with a parade down Ouelette Avenue late Tuesday morning.
• Detroit is getting a new WNBA team. The league announced the new team on Monday. Tom and Holly Gores will be the controlling owners of the new franchise, set to play in 2029. Other expansion teams will also be launched in Cleveland and Philadelphia that year. Detroit’s previous WNBA team — the Detroit Shock — played from 1998 until 2009, winning three championships during that time.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

A ballot campaign plans to launch in July to ask voters to ban political donations from committees affiliated with utility monopolies and from businesses with substantial state contracts.  

A coalition of progressive organizations are behind the campaign for a voter-initiated law to reign in the influence of utilities and insurance companies with market dominance as well as contractors that do more than $250,000 in business annually with the state, which would appear to include Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan — a prolific political donor.

“This isn’t just another policy tweak,” said Sean McBrearty, Michigan director for Clean Water Action, one of the groups backing the proposal. “It’s a line in the sand. We want to stop corporations from buying off our democracy.”

The Michiganders for Money Out of Politics campaign said Consumers Energy and DTE Energy, in particular, have used their clout to fend off efforts to award bigger paybacks to customers for power losses.

“One of the biggest reasons we don’t see progress in Lansing is because too many politicians are bought and paid for,” said Ken Whittaker with Michigan United. “The political will to fix this mess just isn’t there, but that’s by design. We’re not new to this.”

The campaign needs to collect almost 357,000 signatures of registered voters to qualify for the 2026 ballot. They said the signature-gathering effort will be all-volunteer without using circulators who are paid by the signature. They say the specific language will be revealed closer to having it approved by the Michigan Board of State Canvassers.

But they say it will be very similar to legislation that has stalled in the Legislature already.  

The campaign said utility influence has held back reforms that would improve service and make rates more affordable. Spokespersons for two large Michigan utilities said their companies behave ethically. They said donation decisions are made independently by political action committees run by employees and shareholders.

Statements from Consumers Energy and DTE Energy said they and their corporate political action committees strictly abide by existing campaign finance laws. DTE spokesperson Ryan Lowry noted the utility agreed to publicly disclose all political donations of $5,000 or more as part of a 2023 rate settlement agreement with the Michigan Public Service Commission.

Lowry also said political action committee decisions are made by employees and shareholders.

“These disclosures showcase DTE’s commitment to our customers and communities we serve, helping us meet our aspiration of being best in the world and best for the world,” he said in an emailed statement. “The political contributions the company makes are supported by the DTE voluntary employee PAC or DTE shareholders — not from customer revenue.”  

The U.S. Supreme Court could decide if a case involving the Line 5 oil pipeline stays in Michigan court or goes back before federal judges.

The case began in 2019 when Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel sued in state court to partially shut down Line 5. Nessel cited three state laws to make an environmental case for stopping the project.

It then got moved to federal court in 2021 at the request of Enbridge, the Canadian company that operates the pipeline. That request came much later than a 30-day window to do so, partly because Enbridge says it was waiting on the result of a similar lawsuit from Michigan’s governor.

A lower federal court granted an exception to the timeline. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, however, didn’t buy that argument and sent the case back to the 30th Circuit Court in Ingham County where a hearing was held in January.

The Supreme Court, on Enbridge’s appeal, will decide whether there are exceptions to the 30-day period to remove a case to federal court.

Enbridge argues, while the Sixth Circuit took a narrow view of that time frame, other appellate courts have allowed exceptions. It believes the case belongs in federal court because the matter butts up against international treaty law and some federal laws as well.

In a statement, Enbridge spokesperson Ryan Duffy said the company is “encouraged” by the Supreme Court decision Monday to take up the case.

“The District Court cited the important federal issues in this case, including U.S.-Canada Treaty issues, and the fact that litigation of these issues was already pending in another case in federal court. 

However, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed, deciding that district courts have no authority to give exceptions to the 30-day time limit.

The Sixth Circuit’s remand decision is in conflict with decisions from two other federal Circuit Courts of Appeals, which both held that there can be exceptions to the 30-day limit. The Supreme Court review will resolve this conflict in the courts of appeals,” Duffy said in an email.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General’s office is maintaining its position.

“The Department’s lawsuit is based on state claims and law, and it belongs before a Michigan court.  We remain undeterred in our commitment to protect the Great Lakes, especially from the devastating catastrophe a potential Line 5 rupture would wreak upon all of Michigan,” a written statement from AG spokesperson Kimberly Bush said.

If the case goes back to federal court, the proceedings that have happened in state court may be moot. Meanwhile, the legal fight between Enbridge and the governor is already playing out in federal court.

All this is happening as Enbridge tries to move forward with a project to build a tunnel around a replacement section of the Line 5 pipeline that runs through the Straits of Mackinac. That project is currently in the permitting process.

Enbridge says the tunnel would make the pipeline safer by protecting it from anchor strikes. Environmental groups are fighting it, saying it could potentially rupture and dump massive amounts of oil into the Great Lakes.