- Court Ruling to Raise Minimum Wage, Paid Sick Leave Stayed Until February 2023
The recent Michigan Court of Claims ruling that the legislature’s “adopt and amend” strategy used in 2018 to limit the impact of ballot initiatives was unconstitutional has been stayed until February 2023.
Why it Matters: Had it not been stayed, the ruling would have required Michigan businesses to, within 21 days, significantly increase minimum wages and paid sick leave for employees. This would have posed a big challenge for many Michigan businesses, particularly in the hospitality industry.
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- Michigan Plans Statewide Electric Vehicle Charging Network
Michigan submitted a plan to deploy $110 million over the next five years to install quick-charging stations for electric vehicles across the state. The plan was required to receive funds under last year’s federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Why it Matters: Given the significant credits expected to be available for the purchase of electric vehicles under the federal Inflation Reduction Act (pending passage), there are likely to be even more electric vehicles on the road, and a new charging infrastructure will likely help Michigan attract more of those drivers to its roads for tourism and other purposes.
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- Inflation Reduction Act Includes New Minimum Corporate Tax
The U.S. Senate recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the “IRA”). At present, the IRA is only a draft bill and has not been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives nor signed by the President (although its eventual passage and enactment is anticipated). One of the provisions in the proposed bill is a new 15% corporate alternative minimum tax that would be imposed on the adjusted financial statement income of certain large corporations for tax years beginning after December 31, 2022.
Why it Matters: The proposed corporate alternative minimum tax would apply only to certain very large corporations, like Amazon, that have, or are part of, certain related groups that have considerable financial statement income. The Congressional Research Service also indicates that the corporate alternative minimum tax would raise an additional $313 billion in corporate revenue over the 10-year budget window, about half of which would be collected from manufacturing businesses.
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- Citizens for Better Social Equality Initiative Heads to Detroit Election Commission
A ballot initiative aimed at replacing the City of Detroit’s current marijuana ordinance is heading to the Detroit Election Commission to determine whether or not there are enough valid signatures to place the issue on the upcoming November 2022 ballot.
Why it Matters: The group is facing an uphill battle, as the Detroit City Council vehemently opposes the initiative and the city’s Law Department has stated that the group does not have enough valid signatures. This is the latest development in a turbulent time for the city as they have yet to establish and begin selling recreational cannabis. Fraser Trebilcock cannabis attorneys will continue to monitor the situation for updates.
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- Michigan GDP Increases Slightly While Nation’s GDP Decreases
According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Michigan was one of a number of select states to have a positive increase to their overall GDP, compared to the nation’s GDP decrease of 1.6%.
Why it Matters: While federal officials have been in a deadlock over whether to declare that the country is in a recession, jobs available have declined by 1.5 million, and overall, the national unemployment rate has decreased to 3.5%. The upcoming November elections can be pivotal as voters will almost certainly be focused on electing candidates they perceive as best equipped to bolster economic growth.
Related Practice Groups and Professionals
Labor & Employment | Aaron Davis