LANSING, Mich - Michiganders will pay higher fees for vehicle registration, boating, and fishing if the state enacts the $84.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2026 that was recently passed by the Michigan Senate.
The recommendation exceeds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s budget by more than a billion dollars but still requires the approval of the Michigan House.
The fee increase comes after a six-year period during which Michigan’s budget has grown by 47%.
Lawmakers want to require every Michigander who registers a vehicle to pay an extra $10 for a recreational park pass, a purchase that has been optional to date.
Michigan aims to raise $43.5 million in revenue through the higher recreational fee. The higher hunting and fishing fees are intended to raise $28.8 million, and the higher boating fee aims to bring in $12 million. The new Department of Natural Resources nudget would hire 29 new full-time employees. Click here to read more.
CLOVID, CALIF - Over the weekend, this sleepy San Joaquin Valley suburb of Fresno became the focus of the national transgenderism debate. The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), the governing body for California high school athletics, hosted the statewide track and field championships at Clovis’s Buchanan High School, during which a boy, AB Hernandez, dominated several of the girls’ events.
Hernandez, a junior from Jurupa Valley High School, located near Riverside, is a boy who claims to be a transgender girl. Under CIF rules and California law, Hernandez has been permitted to compete in girls’ sports. On Saturday, May 31, Hernandez took first place in the girls’ triple jump, tied for first place in the girls’ high jump, and got second place in the girls’ long jump.
Yes, that’s right, the California state girls’ champion in the high and triple jump . . . is a boy. Click here to read more.
WASHIGNGTON D.C. - Since President Trump took office in January, some of the world’s largest and most prominent companies have made a clear choice: They are staking their future on a growing presence in the United States. Many of these companies are in the tech sector, and it’s welcome news as the U.S. seeks to secure its leadership position in the race for global technological dominance.
The running tally of new investments to make technology products in America is long, and the investments are substantial. The White House just launched a website called “The Trump Effect,” which lists more than $5 trillion of investments since Mr. Trump began his second term. Click here to read more.
WASHINGTON D.C. - Conservative and faith-based services are sounding the alarm about ways that Washington politicians could restrict the freedom to practice their beliefs, citing new provisions that narrowly failed during last week’s passage of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful” tax cut legislation.
Congressional action around election integrity is the impetus for increasing concern that religious freedoms may be caught in the crossfire. Provisions in the legislation would have allowed for expanded surveillance of sensitive areas such as churches, synagogues, and mosques, areas that have historically allowed civic associations to congregate.
The language was nearly included in last week’s omnibus bill passed by the U.S. House, which would have given the federal government additional authority to expand the definition of foreign election interference by nonprofit organizations. Religious advocates say this could jeopardize their tax-exempt status and even their relationships with federally backed banks, which may revoke their accounts. Click here to read more.
MURPHY, Texas - A suspect is in custody after police say a Texas elementary school teacher was attacked and robbed outside her school.
Parent Amber Beayrd says a Boggess Elementary School teacher was attacked last Thursday morning just steps from the school building. Several students, including her fourth grade son, witnessed what happened.
“They were outside for the recess activities. He heard some screaming going on, and that’s when he looked and saw everything happening,” Beayrd said.
Arrest documents state Daniel Okungbowa approached the teacher outside the school, asking questions about her job. Police say when the woman walked away, the suspect ran up behind her and grabbed her in a full-body hold. Click here to read more.
