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Mich GOP: No attempt to make interim Emergency Manager law referendum-proof

By on December 9, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers, Rick Snyder

With the news that Michigan Republicans are already writing legislation to replace the Emergency Manager law if it is stopped by the referendum petition drive being conducted by Michigan Forward, many of us are concerned that they will put an appropriation into the bill. If this is done, it will make the law “referendum-proof” because Michigan law prohibits referendums on bills with appropriations (money set aside for some particular use.)

These are worthy fears since the GOP has already done this on a number of occasions this year. For example, in the bill to “reform” Michigan’s no-fault auto insurance rules, there is a $50,000 appropriation.…


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Rachel Maddow: Mich Emergency Manager story “the most important & under-covered story of the year”

By on December 9, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Last night, on his MSNBC show, Ed Schulz finished the evening with a piece about the Emergency Manager issue in Michigan. One particularly interesting point made by Rev. Alexander Bullock from the Greater St. Matthew Baptist Church of Highland Park, MI and also of Rainbow Push Detroit was that Emergency Managers can take control of the Clerk’s office when they take over a city. Since the City Clerks run the local elections, that has ominous portent for the future of democracy in our state.

During the hand-off from Ed Schultz to Rachel Maddow, it became clear that there was much more to come on the subject of Michigan’s Emergency Managers and indeed there was.…


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Detroit Free Press Brian Dickerson: Emergency Mgr Law’s impacts not racially-motivated

By on December 8, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Detroit Free Press Deputy Editorial Page Editor Brian Dickerson has an op-ed this morning titled What’s really driving state takeovers: It ain’t race. In his piece, he argues that the disparate impact of Michigan’s Emergency Manager Law on minority populations isn’t related to race but rather to the shrinking populations of the cities involved.

As the prospect of some sort of state-supervised receivership looms larger for Detroit, politicians who exploit racial division for fun and profit are fond of pointing out that all four of the Michigan cities currently under such supervision are predominantly African American. [...]

It’s the same with the four cities in which Gov.

…


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Muskegon Heights school board votes to ask for an Emergency Manager – UPDATED

By on December 7, 2011 in Education, Emergency Managers, Teachers

Tonight, the school board of Muskegon Heights voted to ask the Snyder administration to assign an Emergency Manager to the district.

Muskegon Heights school officials will ask the state to appoint an emergency financial manager to take over operations of the district after Superintendent Dana Bryant retires at the end of this month.

The school board met Wednesday in a two-hour closed session with officials from the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District, including Deputy Superintendent Marios Demetriou, whom Muskegon Heights will ask be given emergency financial manager authority.

Bryant’s retirement was termed “one of several cuts” made by the district. MAISD Superintendent Dave Sipka will serve as the district’s interim superintendent.

…


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Rep Conyers: US Atty General Holder ALREADY investigating impact of Michigan’s Emergency Manager law

By on December 6, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers, Rick Snyder

My, my. THIS is interesting.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is reviewing whether the state of Michigan can legally appoint an emergency manager to oversee the Motor City’s finances, Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, said late today.

Conyers said he spoke to Holder about his request that the government move to block the law.

“(Holder) said, ‘I’ve got my lawyers working on it right now,’ ” Conyers said, adding he spoke to the attorney general about 4 p.m. today. “He’s trying to find out if my allegations of great constitutional concerns are valid. That’s what he’s got several hundred lawyers for.”

This could conceivably be the biggest news yet with regard to Michigan’s anti-democratic, disenfranchising Emergency Manager.…


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Flint’s new Emergency Manager starts off by violating the city charter, fires staffers, mayor & City Council

By on December 6, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Buried in the lede of the news about Flint Emergency Manager Michael Brown firing seven staffers and essentially firing the the Mayor and City Council, as well, is this little tidbit:

In his first orders as emergency manager, Michael Brown on Friday fired seven City Hall staffers — including the mayor’s second-in-command — and eliminated pay and benefits for the mayor and Flint City Council. [...]

Although the roles of the city ombudsman and Civil Service Commission are mandated by the Flint City Charter, Brown’s order removing Purifoy and Parker cited state law that says an emergency manager can remove any local government appointee.

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Flint Emergency Manager eliminates pay and benefits for mayor and City Council, fires others

By on December 5, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Newly-minted Flint Emergency Manager Michael Brown got right to work last. On Friday (pdf) he fired seven staff members at City Hall and then eliminated pay and benefits for Flint’s newly-elected mayor and the City Council. The order says:

  1. Mayor Dayne Walling’s salary and all other compensation and benefits, including the accrual of post-employment benefits, are eliminated.
  2. Flint City Council members’ salaries and all other compensation.

Brown’s appointment as EM of Flint came the same day Mayor Walling was re-elected to his position as mayor. Walling issued a statement acknowledging and thanking the fired staffers for their service.

While the elimination of pay and benefits may appear a bit audacious, I think it’s at least more consistent than what happened in Benton Harbor where the City Commissioners continued to be paid for a job that Joe Harris made them incapable of doing.…


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Emergency Manager near for Inkster. With Detroit and Inkster, OVER HALF of Michigan blacks disenfranchised.

By on December 3, 2011 in Detroit, Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

Lost in the media hubub regarding the possibility that Detroit may be put under the control of an Emergency Manager (EM) was related news about Inkster, Michigan. I reported in October and then again in November that Inkster is on a glide path toward a take over by an EM. The penultimate step toward that final outcome was taken this week as Governor Snyder established a team to review Inkster’s finances.

The state took a big step today towards making Inkster the next Michigan city to fall under the oversight of an emergency manager.

Governor Snyder has appointed a seven-member review team to delve deep into Inkster’s city finances.

…


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Michigan Rep. John Conyers: Emergency Manager law violates the US Constitution

By on December 2, 2011 in Emergency Manager Law, Emergency Managers

The Emergency Manager law, Public Act 4, is alread being challenged on two fronts. First with a petition drive by Michigan Forward to put it on the 2012 ballot as a referendum. They are nearing their signature goal and, once they have enough signatures certified, the law is immediately put on hold.

Second, the Sugar Law Center and its partners are challenging the constitutionality of the law, saying it’s a violation of the Michigan state constitution.

Yesterday, Congressman John Conyers opened a third front. He’s asking the Justice Department to investigate the Emergency Manager law for potential violations of the U.S.…


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Eclectablog on Fox News with Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero and Nolan Finley

By on December 2, 2011 in Emergency Managers

Here’s the video from my appearance on Fox News Detroit’s “Let it Rip” show last night. I shared the riser with Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero who ran against Rick Snyder in the gubernatorial race last year and Nolan Finley, the very conservative Editorial Page Editor from the Detroit News. The topic was the announcement that Governor Rick Snyder will be starting the process that could result in an Emergency Manager for Detroit.

With five of us on the show and only 15 minutes to work with, there wasn’t a lot of time for anyone to say much of anything but I felt like I was able to make a couple of decent points in the few minutes I got.…


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