Michigan Advance

08/01/2026

Zero utility rate hikes, community transparency and other guarantees should be the starting place for any negotiations with developers of AI data centers if they want to do business in Michigan, according to Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

The candidate, who is in a three-way race for the Democratic nomination against U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Birmingham) and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), said Thursday that he would adopt those metrics if elected to ensure that the state’s large utility companies have some accountability to the public if data centers proliferate in Michigan.

Zero utility rate hikes, community transparency and other guarantees should be the starting place for any negotiations with developers of AI data centers if they want to do business in Michigan, according to Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. The candidate, who is in a three-way race f...

08/01/2026

The fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Wednesday—after the agent fired through the window of her car—has renewed national scrutiny of ICE’s expanding role and the growing involvement of local law enforcement in federal immigration operations.

As federal immigration enforcement expands nationwide, a growing number of local law enforcement agencies, including in Michigan, are entering formal agreements with ICE, potentially reshaping the relationship between federal and local policing.

In Michigan, where seven agencies have signed agreements under different enforcement models, police chiefs and sheriffs say the partnerships largely formalize long-standing cooperation with federal authorities—setting the stage for renewed scrutiny of a program with a long and contested history.

The fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Wednesday—after the agent fired through the window of her car—has renewed national scrutiny of ICE’s expanding role and the growing involvement of local law enforcement in federal immigration operati...

08/01/2026

As part of its deportation efforts, the Trump administration has ordered states to hand over personal data from voter rolls, driver’s license records and programs such as Medicaid and food stamps.

At the same time, the administration is trying to consolidate the bits of personal data held across federal agencies, creating a single trove of information on people who live in the United States.

Many left-leaning states and cities are trying to protect their residents’ personal information amid the immigration crackdown. But a growing number of conservative lawmakers also want to curb the use of surveillance technologies, such as automated license plate readers, that can be used to identify and track people.

From Stateline

Many left-leaning states and cities are trying to protect their residents’ personal information amid the immigration crackdown. But a growing number of conservative lawmakers also want to curb the use of surveillance technologies.

08/01/2026

PORTLAND, Ore. — One year into President Donald Trump’s second term, Democratic attorneys general have filed 71 lawsuits against the administration.

There’s more to come in 2026. The lawsuits are part of a coordinated legal strategy by Democratic AGs in 22 states and the District of Columbia to resist the ever-widening power of the executive branch.

It’s not unusual for states to sue an administration; the party not in the White House has often turned to the courts. But it’s one of the few pathways for Democrats now, since Republicans hold the presidency, both chambers of Congress and have appointed a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court. And Trump in his second term has taken a much broader view of presidential power than previous administrations, asserting far more authority than his predecessors.

From Stateline

One year into President Donald Trump's second term, Democratic attorneys general have filed 71 lawsuits against the administration.

08/01/2026

Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield) called the event horrific, and said the Department of Homeland Security’s public statements on the fatal shooting were “not only reckless – they appear to be outright falsehoods. If this Administration can label anyone a domestic terrorist to deflect responsibility, then every American is at risk.”

Michigan’s Democratic congressional representatives from Detroit, U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib and U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, both decried the killing.

“ICE shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis today while she was trying to drive away from them,” Tlaib said. “Her killer must be held accountable and brought to justice. We need this rogue agency out of our neighborhoods.”

“It’s clear ICE is a group of untrained thugs, and they should not be above the law,” Thanedar said. “I will continue fighting to end qualified immunity to ensure ICE agents are held to the same legal standards as every other American.”

As the Trump administration and its allies in the national Republican Party double down on their belief that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent acted in self-defense Wednesday when he fatally shot an American woman in Minneapolis, who was observing their activity in the city, Michigan Demo...

07/01/2026

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump defended a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis Wednesday, while congressional Democrats universally condemned the action.

Video obtained by the Minnesota Reformer shows an ICE officer demanding the driver of a maroon SUV get out of the vehicle. As the vehicle begins to pull away, an officer fires three shots through the windshield and driver-side window. The video shows no apparent harm to the officer, who walked away from the vehicle shortly after the shooting.

But Trump wrote on social media that “it is hard to believe he is alive.”

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump defended a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis Wednesday, while congressional Democrats universally condemned the action. Video obtained by the Minnesota Reformer shows an ICE officer demanding the driver of a...

07/01/2026

As Congress looks to create an alternative to the Affordable Care Act, or bow to pressure from constituents who will lose access to health care en masse by extending the premium tax credits that lapsed last month, U.S. Rep Rashida Tlaib said she will continue the fight to do the latter.

Tlaib (D-Detroit) discussed the lapsed ACA tax credits in a press call hosted by Protect Our Care Michigan, which also featured Detroit City Councilwoman Mary Waters and Michigan League for Public Policy Senior Policy Analyst Amber Bellazaire.

The congresswoman continued to express her outrage at the U.S. House and Senate letting the subsidies lapse, and gave an update on how she and her Democratic colleagues are fighting back — which includes a forced floor vote set to take place on Thursday.

As Congress looks to create an alternative to the Affordable Care Act, or bow to pressure from constituents who will lose access to health care en masse by extending the premium tax credits that lapsed last month, U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib said she will continue the fight to do the latter. Tlaib (D-De...

07/01/2026

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday he will meet with Danish officials next week, following a recent push from the Trump administration to annex or even use the military against Greenland — a course of action questioned by several Republican senators.

Senators sat through a closed, classified briefing Wednesday with Rubio about ongoing U.S. intervention in Venezuela launched over the weekend, and Democrats said afterward that he did not address their concerns about the operation.

In addition, President Donald Trump is considering options to acquire Greenland, including possible military operations, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday.

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday he will meet with Danish officials next week, following a recent push from the Trump administration to annex or even use the military against Greenland — a course of action questioned by several Republican senators. Senators sat through ...

07/01/2026

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments next month in a case against Michigan’s Isabella County that alleges the county violated the constitutional rights of a Michigan family when it seized and sold the family’s home as a tax foreclosure penalty for nearly $120,000 below its assessed value.

The Pung family home was seized by the county over an unpaid $2,242 tax debt, which was owed after a property tax exemption was not applied to the property for several years.

The tax exemption had been granted to Timothy Scott Pung, who bought the home in the 1990s and lived there with his family until his death in 2004, after which point his son Marc and his family moved into the home. Lawyers for the Pung family argue that, under Michigan law, the tax exemption should have automatically been applied, as the property was staying within the family.

https://michiganadvance.com/2026/01/07/u-s-supreme-court-to-decide-if-michigan-family-is-owed-by-county-for-house-seized-over-tax-bill/

07/01/2026

An ICE officer shot a woman driving an SUV through her car window in south Minneapolis on Wednesday morning. The person is dead, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security.

Video of the incident shared with the Reformer shows masked ICE officers approach a Honda Pilot stopped in the middle of Portland Avenue near near 34th Street. One officer tells the driver to “get out of the f*cking car” and tries to open the door. The driver then slowly backs up and appears to be leaving, when another officer fires three shots. The SUV then traveled a short distance before crashing into a parked car.

The witness who took the video, Caitlin Callenson, said she was on a walk when she saw an ICE vehicle stuck in the snow. As more ICE vehicles arrived, bystanders blew whistles in protest, and the driver of the SUV tried to block the ICE vehicles.

Callenson said she did not see ICE agents attempting to detain anyone leading up to or after the shooting.

The driver then slowly backs up and appears to be leaving, when another officer fires three shots.

07/01/2026

The drastic work project cuts made by House Republican appropriations chair Rep. Ann Bolin, and championed by House Speaker Matt Hall, were done through an unconstitutional process that violated the separation of powers clause and other requirements in the Michigan Constitution, Attorney General Dana Nessel said Wednesday.

The determination came after reports of internal pressure for Michigan House Republicans who have tried to backtrack on the cuts that have affected a number of community services and projects that their constituents counted on.

Nessel was asked to give a formal opinion on the cuts in a request from state Sen. Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing). The attorney general wrote in response that the disapproval mechanism used by Bollin (R-Brighton Township) unconstitutionally allowed one legislative committee to unilaterally terminate funding previously appropriated by the full Legislature and the governor.

The drastic work project cuts made by House Republican appropriations chair Rep. Ann Bolin, and championed by House Speaker Matt Hall, were made through an unconstitutional process that violated the separation of powers clause and other requirements in the Michigan Constitution, Attorney General Dan...

07/01/2026

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy has reported progress on multiple longtime areas of concern in a set of reports summarizing its accomplishments in 2025.

With the agency, more commonly referred to as EGLE, overseeing issues like environmental contamination, clean water, and working alongside several partners to protect the Great Lakes and the species that call them home, its year end report for 2025 and its State of the Great Lakes report point to accomplishments like the delisting of Muskegon Lake as a Great Lakes Area of Concern while detailing its continued efforts in fighting algal blooms in Lake Erie, among other issues.

While there are more than 27,000 environmentally contaminated sites across the state, EGLE reported increased cleanup efforts, with the department working on 940 sites in 2025 compared to 870 in 2024. EGLE also addressed a larger number of leaking underground storage tanks, closing 561 sites in the 2025 fiscal year compared to 409 the year prior.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy has reported progress on multiple longtime areas of concern in a set of reports summarizing its accomplishments in 2025. With the agency, more commonly referred to as EGLE, overseeing issues like environmental contamination, clean water,...