An increase in Michigan’s minimum wage and required sick leave is set to take effect in February. This week on MichMash, host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow sit down with Chris White, Michigan director of the Restaurant Opportunities Center; and Justin Winslow, president and CEO of the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association; to share their positions on the new law.

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• How the new minimum wage law will affect employees and businesses
• How 9/11 influenced the Restaurant Opportunities Center
• Concerns the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association has with the rate of increase

Following the recent Michigan Supreme Court ruling connected to the state’s new minimum wage and sick leave laws, the legislation is slated to take effect early next year.

Michigan’s $10.33 minimum wage will climb above $12 by February 2025 — and to $15 an hour by 2029. Additionally, the law will require all Michigan employers to offer up to 72 hours of paid sick leave per year to their employees, and end the tip credit system.

White says the law changes are necessary for progress.

“They don’t make enough money. They are essential workers. The cost of living is going up, so wages should go up with that cost of living,” he said.

However, not all Michigan residents and business owners agree that the changes will be beneficial to the state, and especially for small businesses.

“I think the rate and the speed by which we increase the minimum wage is important to the industry, like it would be any small business operator,” Winslow said. “But for the restaurant industry specifically, the tip credit really means life or death for a lot of folks; service, restaurants, dine-in restaurants.”  

Stakeholders are now urging the Legislature to amend the laws set to take effect in February.

More from WDET:

• How Michigan Supreme Court’s ruling on minimum wage, sick leave will affect workers and businesses
• 2024 bringing boost in state minimum wage to $10.35
• Michigan appeals court ruling reverses minimum wage increase, paid sick leave revision

More from Gongwer:

• Groups push to preserve tipped wage; Singh hopeful for deal

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan public school reading scores have been taking a hit. MichMash host, Cheyna Roth, and Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow find out why with Peter Spadafore who’s with the Michigan Alliance for Student Opportunity. 

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• The latest Michigan public school reading scores and why they are are so low
• The lasting effects of the pandemic on students
• Policy interventions to help students improve their education

Results from this year’s Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP) were released this week, showing that 39.6% of third graders across Michigan passed the state’s English language arts (ELA) test, compared to 40.9% in 2023.

Spadafore, who serves as executive director for the Michigan Alliance for Student Opportunity, said the results were concerning but not surprising.  

“I think like every observer around Lansing and across the state, we were disappointed in the numbers, but also not entirely surprised to see the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Spadafore. “The state superintendent talks a lot about the impact of virtual instruction. When we were not able to be in classrooms having an impact on those early learners when we’re trying to get at them, soon and quickly to grasp those early reading skills.”

Lansing is hard at work to pass laws to remedy this issue. But Spadafore said they need to make sure they pass the correct laws to intervene with the reading levels.   

“It’s important that they move the bills when they’re right now. They’re overly prescriptive and change a whole lot of state law when really what we’re seeing is if we would have a better screening tool to identify students reading disabilities and characteristics of dyslexia, I think that’s when, we could be supportive of legislation.” 

Spadafore says it will take collaboration between educators, lawmakers, the union, parents and more to help reading levels improve.

More from WDET:

• Rep. James tries to drum support for federal education tax credit legislation
• Detroit Evening Report: Detroit Education Narrative Collective offering up to $5,000 in grants to craft education stories
• Detroit Evening Report: Gov. Whitmer launches new education-focused department MiLEAP

More from Gongwer News Service:

• M-STEP Scores Show Student Economic Advantage Gap Still Prevalent

Supporters of increasing the state’s minimum wage and earned sick leave received a ruling from the Michigan Supreme Court on Wednesday that’s in their favor. This week on MichMash, host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Alethia Kasben sat down with Crain’s Detroit Business senior reporter Dave Eggert to discuss the ramifications of the ruling on the state’s businesses. 

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• The origins of the adopt and amend legislative tactic
• The future of minimum wages in Michigan
• Michigan businesses’ reaction to the increase in minimum wage and earned sick leave

The Michigan Legislature’s controversial “adopt and amend” tactic refers to the legislature adopting a ballot measure before allowing it to go to voters and then amending it significantly during the legislative session.

The Michigan Supreme Court’s 4-3 ruling on Wednesday found that the legislative tactic — used by the Legislature in 2018 to gut a voter-approved ballot initiative to increase the state’s minimum wage — was “unconstitutional” because it circumvented the petition initiative process.

“It was very controversial in the moment. The legislature at the time was controlled by Republicans,” Eggert said. “Ballot initiatives generally are thought to generate extra turnout, particularly on those issues, probably for Democrats; for Republicans and business groups, they feel like the laws were unwieldy.”

The ruling, which will allow for an increase to the state’s minimum wage and tipped minimum wage — as well as an expansion of the state’s earned sick time laws — will have a big impact on local businesses.

Some critics of those changes suggest exemptions for small businesses.

“Do they go and try to go back to exempting all businesses with 50 or fewer employees? That could be a pretty tough lift in the Democratic-led legislature” Eggers said.

The new minimum wage law will take effect in February 2025. 

More from WDET:

• How Michigan Supreme Court’s ruling on minimum wage, sick leave will affect workers and businesses
• Michigan Supreme Court sets stage for minimum wage boost
• Karamo forcibly removed from Michigan GOP convention; party chooses Fink, O’Grady for state Supreme Court

More from Gongwer:

• Impossible Or Inevitable? Adopt-And-Amend Fallout Continues

After the 2020 elections, false voter fraud accusations have caused there to be a greater focus on county clerks who oversee the voting process. On this week’s episode of MichMash, Gongwer News Services’ Zach Gorchow and Alethia Kasben sat down with Republican Clerk of Macomb County, Anthony Forlini, and Democratic Clerk of Kalamazoo County, Meredith Place, about their confidence in the voting process.

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• Debunked voter fraud accusations about the 2020 presidential election
• Proposal 2 and the growing prevalence of early voting
• Confidence in the 2024 voting process

Forlini and Place both expressed their confidence in the voting process, rejecting false claims made about widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

Forlini specifically addressed the claims made by his party about voting machines that were allegedly tampered with in the 2020 election. In response to the allegations, ballot machine maker Dominion Voting Systems filed several defamation lawsuits against those who spread conspiracy theories blaming its election equipment for Trump’s loss — including Fox News, which settled with the company for $787 million last year.

“President Trump never brought up the machines were corrupt. He never brought that up. If he did, he would have been sued,” Forlini said. “I think people are taking the concern they had and applying it to the tabulators. That’s not where they belong. I haven’t seen any instance in the state of Michigan where tabulators were compromised. It may be more human issues than the tabulators themselves.”  

Early voting has grown in popularity since the 2020 elections, Place says, adding that it’s something voters are going to have to get used to.

“The first time I ever voted was in my dorm using early voting. When Prop 2 passed, like most clerks, I was a little nervous because of the amount of changes,” said Place. “However, I was excited to get to work and to get to work with the 19 local clerks throughout Kalamazoo County on implementing all of the requirements that were passed by our voters in 2022.” 

The 2024 election is on Nov. 5.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation with Forlini and Place.

More from WDET:

• Whitmer shares goals for Democratic Party, Michigan ahead of DNC address
• Requests for November absentee ballots now open
• Distrust in political system could keep many Detroiters from voting, U-M survey shows

Back in April, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) was granted the ability to use $60 million state funds to help increase housing in the state.

Gongwer News Services Alethia Kasben and Zach Gorchow chat with the MSHDA Executive Director, Amy Hovey, to discuss how the MI Neighborhood program can help build more housing and stabilize the market.

In this episode:

• MSHDA’s initiatives based on the MI Neighborhood program
• How Michigan businesses are affected by the housing crisis
• What’s needed to stabilize the housing market in the state

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Historically, MSHDA hasn’t received support from the state, but the $60 million in state funding is giving them resources to help more Michiganders.

Hovey explained that the state funding helps the agency use grants.

“We’re able to do grant programs, which make it easier for folks that aren’t typically in the housing development arena, [to] get involved in utilizing programs,” said Hovey.  

According to Hovey, local businesses were having a tough time with staffing because of the housing crisis in Michigan. They hired workers from out of state or someplace far from the company’s location that would require the employee to relocate. The lack of housing gave businesses a tough time to secure employees.

The funding from MI Neighborhood can change that.

“This state funding is immensely important to be able to meet that demand across the state for all different types of income levels,” said Hovey.

When it comes to the exact funds needed to solve Michigan’s housing crisis, Hovey doesn’t know what that number is, but says, “…without incomes going up, there’s always going to be a gap in what it costs to build versus what the average Michigan family can afford to purchase. So we do need to look at incomes at the same time as housing subsidy.”

More from WDET:

• MichMash: Whitmer announces energy and housing initiatives at Mackinac Policy Conference
• Detroit Council President Pro Tem James Tate talks affordable housing, 2024 agenda and more
• Detroit Evening Report: Bills to combat housing discrimination heading to Whitmer

The federal government is considering rescheduling cannabis as a less dangerous drug, which will impact consumers and businesses alike across the state. MichMash host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Alethia Kasban sat down with Brian Hanna, executive director of the Cannabis Regulatory Agency in Michigan. They discuss how there may be a need for thorough guidance from the federal government if this change is made. 

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• Why the federal government is proposing to reschedule marijuana
• The current state of the marijuana industry in Michigan
• Why marijuana companies can’t file for bankruptcy

Hanna says while the Michigan marijuana industry is large and successful, it’s still new and therefore needs direction from the federal government — especially so if marijuana is rescheduled.

“What we hope when we talk about rescheduling is that there’s some form of guidance from the federal government, of what could possibly change with rescheduling,” Hanna said. “But as of right now, we just don’t have those answers. And that’s why we were asking for guidance.” 

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency proposed to reschedule marijuana to a less restrictive category in April, 

While the move would not legalize the drug outright for recreational use, reclassifying it as a less dangerous drug could affect many facets of the industry, Hanna said.

“You hear terms like market corrections and market correcting itself when it comes to free market; there are businesses that succeed and there are businesses that do not succeed,” he said. “Those that do not succeed have the opportunity to file for bankruptcy. Marijuana businesses do not have that opportunity because of its Schedule I status at the federal level.” 

As a Schedule III drug, marijuana would still be regulated by the DEA. Ultimately Hanna believes streamlining regulation would make the industry operate smoother.  

More from WDET:

• Bipartisan package seeks to unify recreational and medicinal cannabis licensing
• Detroit Evening Report: Biden says he’ll pardon simple federal marijuana possession convictions
• The Metro: Exploring Michigan’s marijuana tax revenue and consumer concerns

More from Gongwer News Service:

• Cannabis Agency: If Feds Reschedule, Clear Guidance Needed

It’s been another week of major historic political events. President Biden walked away from his race for reelection, and Vice President Kamala Harris came sprinting in to pick up the baton. On the latest episode of MichMash, host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Alethia Kasben sat down with former state Rep. Adam Zemke from Ann Arbor to talk about her chances of winning. 

Subscribe to MichMash on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode:

• President Biden dropping out of the race for reelection
• How the election cycle for 2024 compares to 2016
• Vice President Kamala Harris’ chances of winning the election

Zemke defended Biden after the debate, saying that criticisms about his cognitive ability were unwarranted.  

“I watched his NATO Q&A. That was really what did it for me. That hour-long Q&A that was, off the cuff with reporters. I watched all of that intently, and I sent out a tweet afterwards saying I didn’t see any cognitive decline at all,” said Zemke. “I thought he was very sharp on policy.”

The former representative compared that moment in the media to when Hilary Clinton emails were brought up in 2016. He said both moments were overly criticized and received unbalanced attention from the media.  

In regards to Harris succeeding Biden in his run for office, Zemke said we learned a lot as a people during that time.

“In 2016, I think people did think, ‘how could Donald Trump actually win? They had more supporters that voted. The reality is this, I think people are hell-bent on making sure that that doesn’t happen again.” he said. 

He added that both Hilary Clinton and Harris bring different qualities and background to the table. That along with the experience from 2016 makes Zemke feel Harris has a shot to make it in November.  

More from WDET:

• MichMash: How do we navigate the modern political climate peacefully?
• VP Kamala Harris touts domestic EV initiatives in Detroit
• Created Equal: Maternity care deserts and the loss of health care access for women

More from Gongwer News Services

• Whitmer on VP speculation: ‘I’m not going anywhere’