LANSING, MI — Michigan lawmakers are considering sweeping updates to the state’s Public Health Code and identification laws, which include provisions for gender marker changes on birth certificates, state identification cards, and driver’s licenses. The proposals have ignited debate, with supporters emphasizing inclusivity and detractors raising concerns about societal and administrative implications, particularly regarding the age at which such changes should be allowed.

Overview of the Proposal

The proposed legislation includes:

• Gender Marker Flexibility: Individuals may select "M," "F," or "X" as their gender on birth certificates, state IDs, and driver’s licenses without requiring additional medical or legal documentation, except for a court order in cases involving name changes.

• Streamlined Birth Certificate Updates: New certificates can be issued for changes in paternity, adoption, or gender identity.

• Privacy Protections: Victims of stalking, domestic violence, or human trafficking could request confidential records or name changes.

Support for the Legislation

Advocates argue the changes reflect a growing societal recognition of diverse gender identities. LGBTQ+ organizations and civil liberties groups say the proposed amendments simplify processes for individuals seeking to align their legal documents with their gender identity, fostering greater dignity and reducing bureaucratic barriers.

“This is about ensuring that all Michiganders, regardless of gender identity, can have documentation that accurately represents who they are,” said a representative from an LGBTQ+ advocacy group. “These changes bring Michigan’s laws in line with federal standards and practices in other progressive states.”

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Proponents also highlight the importance of privacy protections for victims of violence, saying that shielding sensitive information could save lives.

Michigan Rep. Brad Paquette posted the following on his X account:

“House Democrats would not let me speak in opposition to HB5300-5303, which allows children as young as 14 years old to change their sex on identifying documents like birth certificates... without even parent consent. They will also have the option to change it to an "X". Speaker Pro Temp Pohutsky took me aside and insinuated it was because @libsoftiktok saw my post covering the committee hearing on the bills. I was out of order for addressing the rest of the democrats and letting them know that we will allow appropriate dissent on every piece of legislation when we take the gavels back in January.”

 

 

Criticism of the Proposal

Critics, however, raise questions about the implications of allowing gender marker changes without medical or psychological evaluations, particularly for minors. Some argue that such decisions could have long-term consequences that young individuals might not fully understand.

“It’s one thing to respect an individual’s right to identify how they choose, but it’s another to allow these changes without sufficient checks and balances,” said a critic of the bill. “This legislation could have unintended effects, especially if minors are involved.”

The proposal does not specify a minimum age for requesting gender marker changes, which has sparked concerns from family advocates who believe that allowing such changes without parental consent or professional guidance could be problematic.

Click the bill number to read the legislation: Bill 5300, Bill 5301, Bill 5302, Bill 5303,

Broader Concerns

Business and administrative groups have also voiced concerns about potential implementation challenges. Adjusting systems to accommodate non-binary and changing gender markers could require significant investment and training, especially for smaller government offices.

Additionally, some question whether the legislation strikes the right balance between individual freedoms and broader societal norms. “While inclusivity is important, we need to consider the long-term effects of making these changes so easily accessible,” said a policy expert.

Impact on Michigan Families

The proposal has also drawn attention to questions about parental involvement. Critics argue that gender marker changes for minors, especially those under 18, should involve a higher degree of scrutiny, including medical or psychological evaluations and parental consent. Proponents counter that such restrictions could disproportionately harm young people struggling with gender dysphoria.

Next Steps

The bill is expected to undergo committee review and public hearings before it moves to a vote in the legislature. Both supporters and opponents plan to mobilize their efforts to influence the outcome.

“This is a conversation that requires thoughtful consideration of all perspectives,” said one lawmaker. “It’s about balancing individual rights with societal responsibilities.”

If passed, Michigan would join a growing number of states that allow flexible gender markers on legal documents, but the debate underscores the complex and deeply personal nature of these issues.

 

NEWARK, NJ - What in the world are these mysterious drones that have been flying over New Jersey the past couple weeks? Or, at least, we believe they’re drones. Nobody has really gone up there to confirm, and no one has brought one down to take a look at these things. Instead, for some bizarre reason, we’ve just been letting them fly around up there, causing a ruckus in the news and most government officials to simply shrug their shoulders. Are they new government technology, drones from a foreign adversary, a hobbyist project, or are they UFOs and UAPs?

Let’s start with what might probably be the easiest explanation. Most officials who have looked into the matter have stated these drones are not a hobbyist project. Given the scale of these objects, the numbers of them, and the sophistication of the technology they seem to display, if this were to be some sort of side project by a drone enthusiast, then this particular person (or group) would have to be wealthy or, at least, very well-funded. Sure, I could purchase a good-quality commercial drone for a few hundred dollars, but that’s not what we’re talking about here. These particular drones appear to be about six feet in diameter and contain a technology that eludes radar detection and is making it difficult for officials to track. The couple times police helicopters have gone up to take a look, the drones have turned off their lights and have seemingly disappeared into the night sky. However, to this point, these craft have only been witnessed over New Jersey which indicates a local point of origin. Could this be a billionaire’s practical joke? Click here to read more.

 

LANSING, Mich - Democrats in Lansing on Wednesday rammed a raft of anti-gun measures through two separate House committees.

Collectively, House Bills 6183, 6184 and 6185 would eliminate the firearm industry’s civil liability protections. It would also allow civil actions against firearm industry members for “contributing to a public nuisance” by manufacturing and distributing products or failing to implement “reasonable controls.”

On Wednesday, the Michigan House Committee on Judiciary voted 8-5 along party lines in favor of the three measures. The measures are part of a series of anti-gun bills Lansing Democrats filed in their last days holding majorities in the House and Senate.

State Rep. Andrew Fink, R-Adams Township, and other Republicans opposed the push as an attack on the firearm industry and a way to hinder lawful gun ownership.

“This legislation effectively suggests that a manufacturer of a product that Michigan citizens have a constitutional right to use, keep, and own could be held liable for the proper functioning of said product,” Fink said in a statement. “This would be like a car manufacturer being sued for a vehicle being used to intentionally harm another individual. The driver should be responsible for that crime, not the manufacturer. In this case, if a firearm is used for the purpose of committing a crime, it appears to me that this legislation would allow the attorney general or citizen to file an injunction against the manufacturer.” Click here to read more.

 

DEL RIO, TX - The Biden administration is using its final weeks to haul a massive amount of border wall materials away from the southern border to be sold off in a government auction, an apparent effort to hinder President-elect Donald Trump’s effort to secure the border, The Daily Wire has learned.

Videos obtained exclusively by The Daily Wire from a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent show unused sections of the wall being hauled away on the back of flatbed trucks from a section of the border just south of Tucson, a hotspot for illegal crossings during the Biden administration. The agent estimates that up to half a mile per day of unused border wall is being moved.

“They are taking it from three stations: Nogales, Tucson, and Three Points,” the border patrol agent, who was granted anonymity to speak freely, told The Daily Wire. “The goal is to move all of it off the border before Christmas.” Click here to read more.

 

WASHINGTON D.C. - Twenty-six confidential human sources (CHS) cooperating with the FBI were in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021, in connection to the Capitol riot, a report from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) revealed Thursday.

The CHSs, who were not undercover employees, provided information to FBI “handling agents,” the report states. FBI field offices tasked three of the sources to “report on domestic terrorism subjects” in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6.

The OIG noted that none of the CHSs were authorized to enter restricted areas — including the U.S. Capitol — or violate the law. Four sources, however, were inside the Capitol during the riot, and 13 entered a security perimeter around the building.

“None of the CHSs who entered the Capitol or a restricted area has been prosecuted to date,” the report states.

One CHS was reimbursed for travel on Jan. 6 and the inauguration, according to the report. The CHS was not tasked with attending the electoral certification, the OIG noted. Click here to read more.

 

OLYMPIA, Wash. — Washington state's governing body for high school athletics announced Tuesday it is considering forming a separate division for transgender athletes to compete in.

The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) currently allows high schoolers in the state to compete in sports based on gender identity. However, a proposed policy amendment would require athletic programs to be offered separately for a boys' division, a girls' division and an "open" division.

Any athletes who wish to compete based on their gender identity would be required to participate in the "open" division, according to the proposal. Eligibility for the "open" division would also include athletes "in the process of transition that have undertaken medical changes," the proposal says.

A separate proposed amendment would also require participation in girls' sports to be limited to students whose biological sex is female. The amendment, modeled after guidance in Alaska, acknowledges such a move may spark legal challenges due to some interpreting the policy as "discriminatory."

However, the language asserts the proposed change "emphasizes inclusivity" and still encourages transgender students to participate in athletics. Click here to read more.

 

 

Michigan taxpayers are slated to give $259 million to a mystery company to build a semiconductor plant near Mundy Township in Genessee County.

The Charter Township of Mundy entered a nondisclosure agreement with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation on Sept. 9, 2022, which Michigan Capitol Confidential obtained through a records request.

State officials approved a total of $259 million in Strategic Site Readiness Program funds, which will go to local agencies involved in preparing a large parcel of land for development. The project could be eligible for more grants.

The township entered that agreement at least a year before voters discovered giveaway of state dollars. On Nov. 5, 2024, voters ousted township supervisor Tonya Ketzler and elected Jennifer Stainton, who opposed the giveaway.

“My position has been on the opposition side due to the lack of transparency on behalf of Mundy Township board members,” Stainton told CapCon in an email. “Signing a NDA is unacceptable to hide things from your elective public you represent. Until we see transparency from the township and from the Genesee Economic Alliance, my fight is to protect and serve my Community of Residents who put me in office.” Click here to read more.

 

DETROIT– The Michigan chapter of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) sent an email to its members and supporters asking them to protect the rights of students who are illegal immigrants.

The message also includes a link to the national AFT union advice to illegal migrants on how to handle ICE.

The national union advises illegals: “Do not open the door. ICE authorities cannot come in without a signed judicial warrant. Tell them to pass the warrant under the door before you open it.”

AFT-Michigan President Terrence Martin wrote this message in his Dec. 9 President’s Update correspondence: “AFT members who work in schools—from teachers, school support staff and nurses, to bus drivers—can play a critical role in helping end the cruel criminalization, detention and deportation of students and families,” Martin wrote.

AFT-Michigan has about 35,000 members and represents the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Click here to read more.

 

SAN DIEGO, CALIF - On Tuesday, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 3-1 for a policy that would turn the jurisdiction into a “super sanctuary” county, thereby preventing its sheriff’s department from notifying ICE about illegal immigrants who had committed violent crimes.

The policy goes beyond California state law and will require a judge’s order for ICE to receive assistance from the county to transfer illegal immigrants convicted of violent crimes to immigration authorities.

San Diego County Sheriff Kelly A. Martinez immediately responded, issuing a statement that said: “The Sheriff’s Office will not change its practices based on the Board resolution and policy that was passed at today’s meeting. The Board of Supervisors does not set policy for the Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff, as an independently elected official, sets the policy for the Sheriff’s Office. California law prohibits the Board of Supervisors from interfering with the independent, constitutionally and statutorily designated investigative functions of the Sheriff, and is clear that the Sheriff has the sole and exclusive authority to operate the county jails.”

“I think this policy goes beyond California’s existing sanctuary laws by adding an additional layer of bureaucracy that hinders local law enforcement from directly notifying ICE about illegal immigrants who are currently in our jails,” Supervisor Jim Desmond, the lone dissenting vote, declared. “And they have committed heinous crimes, including child abuse or endangerment, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, but only if this conviction is for a felony, possession of an unlawful deadly weapon, gang-related offenses, a crime resulting in death or involving personal affliction or great bodily injury, possession or use of a firearm in the commission of an offense, torture, rape, and kidnapping. That’s the population we’re talking about.” Click here to read more.

 

DEL RIO, TX - The incoming Trump administration intends to scrap a longstanding policy that largely prevents federal immigration authorities from arresting illegal migrants in areas that are known as “sensitive” locations, according to an NBC News report.

President-elect Donald Trump would like to allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to begin arresting illegal migrants at or near hospitals, schools, churches and other areas deemed to be “sensitive” locations without needing prior approval from their supervisors, according to NBC News. Trump, who won the presidential election with a hardline immigration platform, may issue the rule change as soon as his first day in office.

The reported policy change could allow ICE agents to better follow through on one of the president-elect’s most notable campaign promises: conducting the largest deportation operation in American history.

A policy of not conducting apprehensions at sensitive locations — with exceptions relating to terrorism, national security threats or other imminent dangers — has been on the books for over a decade within the agency. Then-ICE Director John Morton issued a memo in October 2011 that largely prohibited agents from operating in schools or churches, establishing a policy that extended into the Trump and Biden administrations. Click here to read more.

 

LOS ANGELES, CALIF - An audit released this week by Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia found over $200 million in taxpayer dollars went to waste on anti-homelessness initiatives.

On Tuesday, Mejia released the Pathways to Permanent Housing Homelessness Audit, which examined city initiatives to help move homeless residents to permanent housing from 2019 to 2023. That report noted, however, “a woefully inadequate number of people” staying in interim facilities moved on to permanent housing.

One in four interim beds went unused, according to the report, costing taxpayers roughly $218 million over five years. While the programs aim to have a 95% occupancy rate, they did not exceed 78% in any year. The lowest occupancy rate was 64% in 2021.

“For beds that were occupied, less than 20% of people were successfully housed and more than half returned to homelessness/unknown destinations,” the report reads. “In addition, there are concerns about long-term stability for many people who were placed into permanent housing.”

Mejia called on Los Angeles officials to do better for the homeless population.

Click here to read more.