Government

A few loose ends were addressed during Wednesday’s St. Joseph County Executive Committee meeting. Commissioners recommended acceptance of a Community Corrections Grant Agreement for 2021. It is almost $114,000 and awarded through the Michigan Department of Corrections. Also, commissioners approved setting a public hearing for the county’s 2021 proposed budget. The hearing will be conducted during their meeting Tuesday. Finally, …

The issue of appointments to various boards and committees evolved into a lengthy discussion by county commissioners during their executive committee meeting Wednesday. The process of recommending appointments and re-appointments to different boards and committees was explored following an issue raised by commissioner Ken Malone, who asked why candidates are interviewed for some panels but not others. The recommendations before …

Michigan drivers who want unlimited personal injury protection benefits will pay $86 a vehicle starting next summer, down from $100 currently. The fee was mandatory for decades but became optional beginning in July under a change in state law. The Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association, a state-created nonprofit entity that reimburses auto insurers for medical claims surpassing $580,000, announced the 14% …

Michigan election officials on Monday certified Democrat Joe Biden’s 154,000-vote victory in the state, another setback for President Donald Trump in his futile effort to undermine the results of the Nov. 3 election through baseless legal challenges and unsupported claims of fraud. The Board of State Canvassers, which has two Republicans and two Democrats, confirmed the results on a 3-0 …

A man who was a teenager when he admitted killing three young women in 1972 has been granted parole by the Michigan Parole Board nearly a half-century after the slayings. The parole board notified the victims’ relatives that Brent Koster, 64, was granted parole on Nov. 10. The Kalamazoo area man will be released from prison on Jan. 21 after …

President Donald Trump did not ask Michigan Republican lawmakers to “break the law” or “interfere” with the election during a meeting at the White House, a legislative leader said Sunday, a day before canvassers plan to meet about whether to certify Joe Biden’s 154,000-vote victory in the battleground state. House Speaker Lee Chatfield was among seven GOP legislators who met with …

Michigan’s election agency on Friday recommended that the Nov. 3 results be certified next week by state canvassers, a decision that would bless Joe Biden’s victory over President Donald Trump but likely not cool partisan strife over the vote. The recommendation was posted online with the formal Monday meeting notice of the Board of State Canvassers. The guidance came at …

President Donald Trump sought to leverage the power of the Oval Office on Friday in an extraordinary attempt to block President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, but his pleas to Michigan lawmakers to overturn the will of their constituents appeared to have left them unswayed. Trump summoned a delegation of the battleground state’s Republican leadership, including the Senate majority leader and House …

A judge on Friday declined to halt a three-week ban on indoor dining in Michigan that is one of the most recent coronavirus restrictions imposed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration. The state health department, meanwhile, reported a new daily high of confirmed COVID-19 cases, 9,779, and 53 additional deaths as the virus continued to spike. In his ruling, U.S. District …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday repeated her plea to Michigan residents to limit gatherings at Thanksgiving and keep loved ones safe. Whitmer’s appeal came as the state health department reported 7,592 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 134 deaths, including 61 that were added after a records review. “We’re preserving future holiday gatherings together by taking this seriously now, …