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LANSING, Mich - Senate Bill 911, passed today by the Michigan Senate, would put teachers and taxpayers at risk by reducing pension contributions into the school retirement system. The Michigan House may consider the legislation next week.
Below is a statement from James Hohman, director of fiscal policy at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.
“Michigan owes $29.9 billion more than what has been saved. Lowering the amount of money going into the teacher retirement fund isn’t doing teachers or taxpayers any favors. Reducing pension contributions just pushes the debt further down the road, racking up interest and raising costs. The Michigan House should reject this legislation.”
School employees are the state’s largest creditors, because the state promised pension benefits but did not set aside enough money to pay for them. The legislation would allow the state to redirect more than $600 million — which is currently going toward paying down pension debt — and spend it on other priorities. The bill would delay debts from being paid down, costing taxpayers an additional $1.4 billion. Click here to read more.
EL PASO, TX - A pair of illegal aliens — now accused of murdering 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray in Houston, Texas — were released into the United States by President Joe Biden’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after they crossed the southern border, reports indicate.
As Breitbart News reported, Venezuelan nationals 22-year-old Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel and 26-year-old Franklin Pena were arrested and charged by the Houston Police Department with murdering Jocelyn Nungaray in the early morning of June 17.
A spokesperson with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has since told Fox News’s Bill Melugin that Martinez-Rangel and Pena are “illegally present Venezuelan nationals.” Click here to read more.
LANSING, Mich - Lansing Democrats on Thursday approved legislation to force homeowners associations to back their green energy agenda, preventing HOAs from restricting solar panels, rain barrels, EV chargers, and other “energy-saving improvements.”
House Bill 5028 cleared both chambers of the Michigan Legislature on partly-line votes, and Democrats sent the measure to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer following a final vote on Thursday.
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The legislation requires HOAs to adopt a policy in favor of solar energy that aligns with language in the bill within a year, essentially “forcing the association to make statements in favor of a state policy it may not agree with,” Todd Skowronki, who represents the Michigan chapter of the Community Association Institute, told Crain’s Detroit Business.
“We don’t believe that’s good,” he said, noting the potentially unconstitutional bill “fundamentally infringes on HOAs’ rights to govern their own aesthetics.” Click here to read more.
ORLANDO, FLA - TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida announced on Friday that the state’s real gross domestic product growth rate has doubled the national rate over the last five years.
The GDP grew by 21.9% in the state from the first quarter of 2019 to the first quarter of 2024, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office. The national rate grew by 11.1% in that same time.
“With yet another major economic milestone like this, Florida demonstrates to the nation that leadership matters,” DeSantis said.
“Our responsible governance and fiscal constraint mean our state economy has significantly outperformed the national economy, with nearly double the GDP growth rate,” he said. Click here to read more.
A former news reporter recently organized a fundraiser so that a 90-year-old Air Force veteran, who had to work to pay his bills, could retire.
Coming upon him pushing carts in the parking lot of a Louisiana grocery store in humid 90°F weather, the reporter shot a video that inspired over $200,000 in donations.
Karen Swensen was a New Orleans news anchor, and would have no doubt presented some amazing stories in her career, but was nevertheless stunned when she saw 90-year-old Dillon McCormick pushing carts in the Metairie store parking lot.
A former Air Force member who served in Colorado and Greenland, McCormick told Swensen that he needed about $2,500 to make ends meet, but got only half of that from his Social Security checks, which is why he took the job.
