Social Program Spending and State Fiscal Crises
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Vetoes and Venues: Economic Crisis and the Roads to Recovery in Michigan and Ontario
Vetoes and Venues: Economic Crisis and the Roads to Recovery in Michigan and Ontario JOHN CONSTANTELOS Grand Valley State University The Great Recession in 2008–2009 was devastating to the Great Lakes region, exacerbating a nearly decade-long industrial crisis that had already eliminated one million manufacturing jobs. This article examines how subnational governments in Canada and the United States adjusted to the cascading economic disaster. It compares and analyzes the cases of Ontario and Michigan, which have similar economies but important politi- cal institutional differences, notably in the executive-legislative relationship and in their policy-making power. These cases, which share an international border, offer control over an unusually large number of alternative explan- atory factors, permitting a focused analysis of the impact of divided govern- ment and fiscal decentralization on executive policy making. The analysis draws on and integrates the veto player and venue shopping literatures. After presenting the research problem and design, the article turns to the two case studies. These review executive responses to the economic challenges in the years leading up to, during and immediately after the Great Recession. The article finishes with a comparative evaluation of the executives’ economic strategies and the factors that explain the observed differences. The main thesis is that Ontario’s more robust policy response to the economic crisis was related to its institutional advantage of having greater fiscal resources than Michigan and a parliamentary system instead of a separation of powers and divided government. Limited resources and Acknowledgments: My thanks go to Angela Foreman, Ashley Vande Bunte, Abby Vance and Kylene Kalawart for their research assistance, to Michaël Tatham for the ab- stract translation and to Paul Cornish, Polly Diven, Peter Graefe, Lotte Jensen, Francesco Stolfi and the journal’s anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments on earlier versions of this article. -
A Case for Political Reform in Michigan Michigan Campaign Finance Network
A Case for Political Reform in Michigan MICHIGAN CAMPAIGN FINANCE NETWORK BOARD OF DIRECTORS John Chamberlin Jan Dolan Patricia Donath Andy Draheim H. Lynn Jondahl John M. Koval Lynne Martinez John P. Mayer Susan Grimes Munsell Rich Robinson, executive director The work of the Michigan Campaign Finance Network is sustained by contributions from concerned Michigan citizens and the generous support of the Joyce Foundation of Chicago. ©2007 Michigan Campaign Finance Network Michigan Campaign Finance Network 200 Museum Drive, Lansing, MI 48933 Phone: (517) 482-7198 • Email: [email protected] • Web: www.mcfn.org Introduction and Executive Summary....................................................1 Campaign Finance – Failures of Limits and Accountability..............3 Too.infrequent.reporting Contribution.limits:.Some.committees.have.them,.some.don’t Extraordinary.self-funding Limits.for.lame.ducks Table.of. Late.independent.expenditures.are.reported.too.late Contents Issue.advocacy:.A.convenient.fiction Public.financing.of.gubernatorial.campaigns Public.financing.of.Supreme.Court.campaigns Public.financing.for.all.State.campaigns Lobbying – Insufficient Disclosure........................................................16 Insufficient.disclosure Slowing.the.revolving.door Ethics – High Standards for All..............................................................19 Standards.of.conduct.for.all Disclosure.of.personal.financial.interests Term Limits – The High Cost of Inexperience....................................21 Redistricting – Competition -
State Senator Richard Posthumus: a Profile
State Senator Richard Posthumus: A Profile by David Kimball, Senior Consultant for Public Policy At age 40 Senator Dick Posthumus regularly is heralded as one of the brightest stars of Michigan's Republican Party. His star still is rising: The election that just gave Posthumus his third Senate term also propelled his close, longtime friend John Engler to the governorship, and in the Senate Republican caucus last week Posthumus won the majority leader's post, a position formerly held by Engler. Respected by his colleagues and widely considered a born politician with uncanny tactical instincts, Posthumus is unassumingly self-confident and wears an easy smile on a youthtd, untroubled countenance. He credits much of this interpemnal ease to the fact that he punctuates his time at the capitol with the daiIy commute to his AIto (near Grand Rapids) home where he grows cash crops on a 600-acre family farm. "You can get so deeply into politics that everything else becomes secondary and family life tends to be destroyed," he says. "When I first decided to xun I made a commitment that I was not going to let that happen-that my family was going to come first no matter what. One of the ways I accomplish that is by going home every night." Although Posthumus occasionally stays in Lansing after a late session, these exceptions are relatively rare. "When I get home, there are four kids dngaround hollering, and all of a sudden I'm back to reality. There's no lobbyist taking me out to dinner telling me what a great legislator I am." "I can honestly say," he muses, "that I could walk away from this job tomorrow-not without some feeling of loss-but with no regret. -
Of Money and Judicial Independence: Can Inherent Powers Protect State Courts in Tough Fiscal Times? Michael L
Kentucky Law Journal Volume 92 | Issue 4 Article 5 2004 Of Money and Judicial Independence: Can Inherent Powers Protect State Courts in Tough Fiscal Times? Michael L. Buenger Supreme Court of Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/klj Part of the Courts Commons Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits you. Recommended Citation Buenger, Michael L. (2004) "Of Money and Judicial Independence: Can Inherent Powers Protect State Courts in Tough Fiscal Times?," Kentucky Law Journal: Vol. 92 : Iss. 4 , Article 5. Available at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/klj/vol92/iss4/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Kentucky Law Journal by an authorized editor of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Of Money and Judicial Independence: Can Inherent Powers Protect State Courts in Tough Fiscal Times? BY MICHAEL L. BUENGER* The complete independence of the courts ofjustice is peculiarlyessential in a limited constitution. Without this, all the reservations of particularrights or privileges would amount to nothing.' We are looking at the dismantlingof our court system; it is a very painful process.2 3 We're talking about things that are simply horrendous. INTRODUCTION I t is described as "the worst budget crisis among the states since World War II."' State officials across the country have likened it to B.A. (cum laude) 1983, University of Dayton; J.D. (cum laude) 1989, St. -
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 390 434 IR 055 781 TITLE a Manual For
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 390 434 IR 055 781 TITLE A Manual for Michigan State Documents Deposi,tory Libraries. INSTITUTION Michigan Library, Lansing. PUB DATE 94 NOTE 65p. PUB TYPE Guides Non-Classroom Use (055) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC03 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Depository Libraries; *Government Publications; *Library Administration; Library Materials; Library Networks; Library Role; Library Services; *Library Technical Processes; State Programs IDENTIFIERS Historical Background; Library of Michigan; *Michigan ABSTRACT This manual contains information about the Michigan Documents Depusitory Library Program as administered by the Library of Michigan, a brief history of the program, the types of publications distributed, and guidance on handling and processing depository shipments. The first section briefly outlines the history of the Michigan documents depository library program. Section 2, "Library of Michigan Administration of the Depository Program," contains details about the role the Library of Michigan plays in overseeing the program, a profile of the member libraries, some general procedures, and information about how depository documents are distributed. The third section, "Guidelines for Managing a Michigan Documents Depository," explains how depository documents should be dealt with after their arrival at the depository, including technical processing, claim procedures, and retention and weeding policies. "Resources for Effective Public Services," the fourth section, serves as an introduction to document acquisition and to some online search tools; it includes a suggested core list of Michigan state documents. Seven appendices contain laws pertaining to the depository library program, a directory of the depository library system, a sample shipping list, classification scheme, filing rules, a bibliographic aid for locating pre-1952 documents, and a document price list.(BEW) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. -
Proposal for Improving the Congressional Budget Process July 2015
Proposal for Improving the Congressional Budget Process July 2015 Written by: Alice M. Rivlin and Pete Domenici Authors Pete V. Domenici Former Senator from New Mexico, BPC Senior Fellow Alice M. Rivlin, Ph.D Former Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office Staff G. William Hoagland Senior Vice President ACKNOWLEDGMENTS “This report would not have been possible without the insights and hard work of BPC Senior Vice President G. William Hoagland. Bill’s knowledge and experience with the budget process are legendary. We are both deeply grateful for Bill’s loyalty, wisdom, and friendship over many years, as well as his major contributions to this report.” — Alice M. Rivlin and Pete Domenici This paper was also produced with oversight from the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Economic Policy Project, Democracy Project, and the Bipartisan Policy Center Advocacy Network. The authors would like to thank Barry Anderson, Len Burman, Stuart Butler, Richard Kogan, Jim Dyer, Alan Frumin, Scott Gudes, Jim Hearn, Phil Joyce, Brett Loper, Donald Marron, Joe Minarik, Jim Morhard, Rudolph Penner, Billy Pitts, Paul Posner, Robert Reischauer, Peter Robinson, and John Sullivan for their comments and suggestions. The authors also wish to acknowledge those congressional staff who also provided early input into issues surrounding the congressional budget process. Ultimately, however, the recommendations herein are those of the authors, and those who provided input into the development of this paper may not support many individual recommendations herein. DISCLAIMER The findings and recommendations expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s founders or its board of directors. -
Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project John Engler Interviewed by Richard Norton Smith January 27, 2010
Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project John Engler Interviewed by Richard Norton Smith January 27, 2010 Smith: First of all, thank you so much for doing this. Engler: Well, thank you, I’m happy to sit down. Smith: I want to talk a little about you and your entry into the big ring, if you will. You were a leading member of this whole generation of Republican governors, conservative Republican governors, who nevertheless were seen as creative in their conservatism, as problem solvers. I don’t know whether pragmatists is a misnomer or a pejorative, but in any event I would have thought that would have been very, very much Gerald Ford’s style; very reflective of his approach as well. Tell us about your life before it crossed paths with President Ford. Engler: My first meeting with Gerald Ford that I can recall, where I actually had a chance to sit and talk with him, was when Elford [Al] Cederberg, one of his colleagues from the Congress, brought him to Mt. Pleasant, Michigan to speak to a little Lincoln Day dinner for Isabella County. It always struck me, the humility of the leader of the Republicans of the United States House of Representatives out on the road. And, of course, it was only later – I was a rookie state representative, it may have been my first or second term, so I’m in my early twenties in office – and I’m meeting this leader of the Republicans, who’s been in Congress a long time. I was born in ’48; so roughly at the time I was born, he goes there. -
Balanced Budget Objectives and the Role of Executives: the Cases of Italy, Spain and US States
Rivista N°: 2/2019 DATA PUBBLICAZIONE: 17/04/2019 AUTORE: Mario Iannella Balanced Budget Objectives and the Role of Executives: The cases of Italy, Spain and US states Introduction; 2. Eurozone Cases: Centralisation in Italy and Spain; A. Crisis, supranational intervention and constitutional reform in Italy; B. Crisis, supranational intervention and constitutional reform in Spain; C. Reshaping Relationships between State and Autonomies; D. Balance between Executive and Legislative; E. Centralisation and Vertical Integration; 3. The Case of the US states; A. The Role of Executives; B. The Effects of Constraints on Intergovernmental Relationships; C. The Effects of Vertical Integration on State Budget Management; 4. Cen- tralisation process. Causes and Consequences; A. Differences and Similarities in Budget Constraints in the EMU and US; B. The Need for a Responsible in Budget Management; 5. Conclusions 1. INTRODUCTION In recent years, the economic crisis in Europe has led to several reforms in the institutional frameworks of the Member States and the EU.1 The new governance of fiscal policies has been characterised at the supranational level by the adoption of stricter budget rules 2 and at the national level, in the modification of national laws amidst the crisis. In particular, in the countries affected by severe financial downturns, these changes took the form of wide-ranging reform plans, including both constitutional amendments and socio-economic restructuring. In this process, a new frame of internal relationships between the centre and the periphery and a new role for central government emerged. These elements partially redefined the national Constitutions even more radically than the formal reforms had required.3 Dottore di ricerca in Persona e Tutele giuridiche nella Scuola Superiore Sant’ Anna di Pisa. -
Case 2:17-Cv-14148-ELC-DPH-GJQ ECF No. 268 Filed 04/25/19 Pageid.11559 Page 1 of 146
Case 2:17-cv-14148-ELC-DPH-GJQ ECF No. 268 filed 04/25/19 PageID.11559 Page 1 of 146 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ) OF MICHIGAN, et al., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) No. 2:17-cv-14148 ) JOCELYN BENSON, in her official ) OPINION AND ORDER capacity as Michigan Secretary of ) State, et al., ) ) Defendants. ) ) ___________________________________ ) BEFORE: CLAY, Circuit Judge; HOOD and QUIST, District Judges. CLAY, Circuit Judge. The League of Women Voters of Michigan (“League”), numerous League members (“League Plaintiffs”), and several Democratic voters (“Individual Plaintiffs”) bring suit against Jocelyn Benson, the Michigan Secretary of State in her official capacity, under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1988, alleging that Michigan’s current legislative apportionment plan (the “Enacted Plan”), which the state legislature implemented as Michigan Public Acts 128 and 129 of 2011, violates Plaintiffs’ Fourteenth Amendment equal protection rights and First Amendment free speech and association rights by deliberately discriminating against Democratic voters.1 (See Compl., ECF No. 1.) After Plaintiffs filed suit, several parties moved to intervene. Ultimately, intervention was granted to several of the Republican members of Michigan’s United States congressional delegation and two Republican state house members (together “Congressional and State House 1 When referring to the League, League Plaintiffs, and Individual Plaintiffs together, the Court uses the term “Plaintiffs.” When referring only to the League Plaintiffs and the Individual Plaintiffs, separate from the League as an organization, the Court uses the term “Voters.” -1- Case 2:17-cv-14148-ELC-DPH-GJQ ECF No. 268 filed 04/25/19 PageID.11560 Page 2 of 146 Intervenors”) (see ECF Nos. -
Affordable Care Act Entrenchment
ARTICLES Affordable Care Act Entrenchment ABBE R. GLUCK* & THOMAS SCOTT-RAILTON** The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is the most challengedÐand the most resilientÐstatute in modern American history. Through and despite hun- dreds of court challenges, scores of congressional repeal efforts, unex- pected state resistance, gutting by the Supreme Court, unprecedented administrative strangulation, and criticism from the beginning that the statute did not go far enough to embrace the principle of universal healthcare, the ACA has changed the way many Americans and the polit- ical arena think about healthcare and the entitlement to it. Over its ten-year lifespan, the ACA went from being the rallying cry of the GOP in 2010, to the center of the Democratic platform in 2018, cata- pulting universal healthcare to the top of the 2020 Democratic presiden- tial primary agenda. It began as a statute criticized for its practical compromises and its incrementalismÐincluding leaving most insurance in the private market and retaining state control over large swaths of health policyÐbut those very compromises have, surprisingly, proved key to the ACA's resilience. They have also been instrumental in the ACA's entrenchment of not only its own reforms but also a broader, emerging principle of a universal right to healthcare. The idea of health- care for all Americans administered through the federal government was long viewed as political suicide, including as recently as the 2016 presi- dential election. In an astonishingly fast turnaround, that idea has now been considered and debated by every Democratic presidential hopeful. The ACA's principles have been codi®ed outside of federal law and into state law, voted on in ballot initiatives, and advocated for on late- night TV. -
Five Michigan Political Leaders: Evolving Roles and Early Tests
Five Michigan Political Leaders: Evolving Roles and Early Tests by Craig Ruff Political leaJership is tested most in periods of change. Political leaders know that events, public opinion, leadership dynamics, and the times affect their roles and actions and test their flexibility and adaptability. The five men who lead Michigan's legislative and executive branches of government are undergoing metamorphoses in response to the political change wrought by voters last fall. They are: John Engler (governor), Dick Posthumus (Senate majority leader), Art Miller (Senate minority leader), Lew Dodak (Speaker of the House), and Paul Hillegonds (House minority leader). Change itself is neither inherently good nor bad, but its consequences may be positive or negative. The consequences of the 1990 elections are being felt just now not only by the general public but by the people invested with political leadership. This Commentary examines the styles of the five leaders, their roles, their interaction, and what the future may bring them. GOVERNOR JOHN ENGLER John Engler won the bully pulpit and political brass ring of Michigan-the governorship. Twenty years L a legislator, a retailer in both chambers of his Republican principles, and a skillful strategist and political organizer, Engler came to the governorship with more battle-tested legislative savvy than any predecessor. Engler's tactical mettle resembles Lyndon Baines Johnson's. LBJ was, and Engler is, the consummate maneuverer/insider/strategist, and he has shown considerable brinkmanship in the current budget crisis. John Engler is not timid. He never has been, even when his arsenal-namely Republican control only of the Senate-was paltry. -
The Legal Framework for Budget
«OECD Journal on Budgeting OECD Journal on Budgeting 4, Volume No. 3 Special Issue Special Issue The Legal Framework for Budget Systems The Legal AN INTERNATIONAL COMPARISON Framework for The legal basis for budget processes and budget actors varies enormously across OECD countries. For example, the United States has a dozen major laws Budget Systems to support federal government budget processes, while Denmark and Norway have never adopted any such law. AN INTERNATIONAL To understand this situation, this book compares legal frameworks for budgeting COMPARISON in 13 selected OECD countries. It presents detailed case studies of national budget system laws and identifies why the legal frameworks differ so much. The book also looks at theories of public finance and constitutional political economics, and discusses norms for an optimum legal framework. With a focus on similarities and differences in formal laws (constitutions and statutes relating to the budget system), the comparative analysis will be useful for any government planning to reform its budget laws. OECD Journal on Budgeting OECD’s books, periodicals and statistical databases are now available via www.SourceOECD.org, our online library. This book is available to subscribers to the following SourceOECD themes: Finance and Investment/Insurance and Pensions Governance [email protected] www.oecd.org ISSN 1608-7143 42 2004 05 1 P 2004 SUBSCRIPTION (4 ISSUES) Volume 4, No. 3 -:HRLGKI=\VYUUW: Volume 4, No. 3 OECD Journal on Budgeting Volume 4 – No. 3 ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT The OECD is a unique forum where the governments of 30 democracies work together to address the economic, social and environmental challenges of globalisation.