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VIEWPOINT


April 2015

Proposal 1: Fix the Roads, Nix the Potholes!

  

Now that the snow is gone, the potholes are back... and bigger than ever!   
 

That's why Proposal 1 on the May Election ballot is so important. It provides a dedicated source of funding to fix our roads now and in the future. Proposal 1 would guarantee an additional $1.2 billion to make MI's roads and bridges safer. 

 

Proposal 1 has three strong guarantees:

  • Every penny you pay at the pump in state gas taxes is constitutionally guaranteed to fund transportation.
  • Road builders would have to provide warranties on the roads they build, so taxpayers aren't forced to pay for improper repairs.
  • Every penny in the School Aid Fund is constitutionally guaranteed for K-12 schools and community colleges.
BLM's position: Other states around us invest far more in their roads than we do and it shows
Businesses thinking of locating here take the condition of our roads into account as they consider how to move their products and ideas to market. We need to make sure our roads are safe, strong for our families and capable of supporting our businesses and the economy we want. The May Ballot Proposal is about making our roads safe and requiring those that fix our roads to guarantee their workBLM supports Proposal 1. 

OUR WORK 


"New Michigan" Jobs Grew Twice as Fast as the State as a Whole

 

Last month, nearly 500 business executives, policymakers, and community leaders attended the 3rd annual Business Leaders for Michigan (BLM) Leadership Summit: Building a New Michigan to hear how Michigan  is progressing in leveraging its strengths in the engineering, logistics, higher education, natural resources, mobility, and life sciences sectors to grow a New Michigan economy. The 2015 New Michigan Report found:

  • At $63,219 in average earnings, jobs in industries that make up the six opportunities pay considerably more - 32 percent - than the average job in Michigan.
  • GDP in the industries representing the six opportunities was 20 percent of total GDP for the state in 2013.
  • Finally, more than one in five jobs in Michigan is in an industry that is represented in the six opportunities. 

Click here for information from the event and the 2015 New Michigan report.

 

Recent articles:

Detroit Free Press: Michigan moving up but still far from Top 10 economy

Moody on the Market: Michigan's Top Tier Status Still Elusive

DBusiness: Michigan Leads Midwest in Private Sector Job Creation, Forecast for 230K

BLM EVENTS


Mark your Calendar! 
CEO Summit logo

Thursday, November 12, 2015
Westin Book Cadillac Detroit
8:00 am - 2:00 pm
Cost to attend $125. More details to follow.

 ADVANCING THE MICHIGAN TURNAROUND PLAN & THE NEW MICHIGAN STRATEGY



The Michigan Turnaround Plan reflects the significant progress that has been made in making Michigan more competitive.  It identifies areas where we can compete, invest and grow in order to make our state stronger for generations to come.

 

Grow: Center for Innovation


Our view: Michigan should be known as a hub of innovation with venture capital available at the levels of Top Ten states.

Ann Arbor's Renaissance Venture adds investors, 

closes second fund RVCF Logo

Crain's Detroit Business | March 1, 2015

 

The Ann Arbor-based Renaissance Venture Capital Fund has received almost $14 million in commitments from three new corporate and institutional investors and has closed its second fund at $79 million.The new investors are Benton Harbor-based Whirlpool Corp., the East Lansing-based MSU Foundation and Livonia-based Roush Industries Inc., according to fund manager and CEO Chris Rizik. Read more. . .

Grow: New Michigan - Natural Resource Economy 


Our view:  Michigan must cultivate its strongest assets to ensure lasting prosperity and position itself as a welcoming place for all. From our core cities to our abundant human, technological, and natural resources, we can make the most of what we do best to grow a brighter future for our state.

Tourism ROI continues at record pace

Visitors contributed $22.8 billion to state's economy last year

GRBJ.com | March 27, 2015 

 

Visitor spending reached record levels in 2014, with visitors spending $22.8 billion in MI, much of that due to the Pure Michigan campaign.  The state's tourism campaign generated $6.87 for each dollar spent on Pure Michigan advertising in 2014, according to reports by Tourism Economics and Longwoods International released at the Pure Michigan Governor's Conference on Tourism held in Grand Rapids.  Read more. . .

DATA SUPPORTING THE TURNAROUND PLAN


Michigan Unemployment: 5.9%

 

The state unemployment rate dropped .4 percentage points to 5.9% last month - the lowest it has been since 2001.  With nearly 400,000 new jobs since 2010, Michigan leads all Midwestern states in job creation.  If there's a downside to all of this, it's that the labor force participation rate remains historically low and manufacturing wages continue to decline.   Read more. . .

 

MI: #14 for "Tech Exits"
 

MI tech start-ups fared well exiting from venture capital support either to IPO's or being acquired by larger companies according to CB Insights.  MI had the 14th highest number of "tech exits" in 2014. The higher rate of "tech exits" suggests MI's venture-backed companies are becoming more successful at developing commercially viable products and services.  Read more. . . 

MI: #12 Best Entrepreneurial Growth

 

MIQuest's latest Michigan Entrepreneurial Scorecard ranks MI as having the 12th highest rate of entrepreneurial growth as new businesses open, small-business lending improves and export-related jobs grow. The state is in the middle of the pack for entrepreneurial climate and vitality. MI ranks in the top 10 nationally for growth in new business owners (No. 2); private lending to small business (No. 2); increase in high-performance firms (No. 5); export-related jobs (No. 6); and export intensity growth (No. 7).  Read more. . . 

U.S. Migration From North To South Picks Up Speed

 

The migration maps below from the Pew Trusts show demographic trends from northern to southern cities that started in the late 20th century has picked up steam again in the post-recession years.  During the recession the migration slowed due to fewer job openings throughout the nation and less disposable personal income.  Read more. . .   
 

 

SPOTLIGHT ON OUR MEMBERS


Meijer, Amway, Steelcase to work with startups in new Start Garden venture 


Meijer Logo
Steelcase logo

MLive.com | March 26, 2015

 

Social entrepreneur Rick DeVos' newest venture will bring together West Michigan corporate giants - Steelcase, Amway, Meijer, Spectrum Health, Priority Health and Faurecia - with startups to develop new products. Start Garden, his 3-year-old early-stage venture capital fund, is launching the Seamless Coalition and Accelerator to create the next generation of connected devices.  Seamless is the ArtPrize founder's foray into "Internet of Things" or IoT - the buzzy term given to the growing industry of internet-connected devices that is expected to expand into a multi-trillion dollar industry within five years.  Read more. . . 

Whirlpool Corp. Helps Drive Robotics Education in Michigan

The Herald Palladium | March 4, 2015

Whirlpool Logo  

Michigan has been known as the home of Motown and the Motor City, but soon it might be known as the Robo-state. That's "robo" for robots, like those that will be competing in FIRST Robotics competitions all over Michigan, including in St. Joseph March 20-21. Michigan has more FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics teams than any other state, and has grown from 137 teams five years ago to 347 teams today.  Read more. . .  

IN THE NEWS. . .


Howes: Old Michigan ways pose big obstacle to "new" one

Detroit News | March 27, 2015


 
Break out the champagne: Michigan's unemployment rate is the lowest it's been since 2001, powered by an auto comeback that helped to create 400,000 jobs. Business tax reform? Done. Balanced budgets here in Lansing? Done. A financial restructuring of Detroit? Done, and in record time, accompanied by a flood of private-sector investment in Midtown and downtown. Read more. . .

Michigan needs to stick to coherent economic growth plan

Detroit Free Press | March 28, 2015

 

Last year Michiganders came together from east and west, city and suburbs, raising vast amounts of private and public and philanthropic cash, to fast-track the fiscal rescue of Detroit via Chapter 9 bankruptcy. Now we need to forge another "grand bargain" of sorts -- across political party lines with broad public-private-philanthropic support -- to create a coherent economic growth agenda for the state.  Read more. . .

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Business Leaders for Michigan 
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Phone: 313.259.5400
E-Mail:  [email protected]

About Us

 

Business Leaders for Michigan, the state's business roundtable, is dedicated to making Michigan a "Top Ten" state for jobs, personal income and a healthy economy. The organization is composed exclusively of the chairpersons, chief executive officers, or most senior executives of Michigan's largest companies and universities.  Our members drive 32% of the state's economy, provide nearly 375,000 direct in Michigan, generate over $1 Trillion in annual revenue and serve nearly one half of all Michigan public university students. Find out more at:www.businessleadersformichigan.com