Last September, the Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber, as part of the Small Business for a Better Michigan coalition, filed an amicus brief with the Michigan Court of Appeals (COA) urging them to...

Proposal 3 On Tuesday, November 8, Michigan voters will be asked to weigh in on numerous federal, state, and local races. As in many election years, citizens will also be asked to vote on a series...

Proposal 2 On Tuesday, November 8, Michigan voters will be asked to weigh in on numerous federal, state, and local races. As in many election years, citizens will also be asked to vote on a series...

Proposal 1 On Tuesday, November 8, Michigan voters will be asked to weigh in on numerous federal, state, and local races. As in many election years, citizens will also be asked to vote on a series...

The Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber, as part of the Small Business for a Better Michigan coalition, has officially filed an amicus brief with the Michigan Court of Appeals (COA) urging them to reverse the Michigan Court of Claims’ (COC) July 19, 2022 decision that found the enactment of Michigan’s existing paid sick leave and minimum wage laws unconstitutional.

Hey Siri, What is a Recession? No one seems to agree on what the definition of recession is right now, let alone if we’re presently in one. These are words I never thought I’d have to write and yet...

Changes to Michigan’s Minimum Wage and Paid Medical Leave Laws Last month, Michigan’s Court of Claims ruled the Michigan Legislature’s 2018 “adopt and amend” strategy employed to find a workable...

Childcare Reform Efforts While Michigan’s business community has grappled with a historic labor shortage, chambers like ours have been working overtime to identify and promote policy changes that...

Beware the “Base Effect”  The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently released their much anticipated Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for the month of April. I’ve covered several past...

Expansion of the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit The Governor and Michigan legislature are making budget decisions this month that will have decades-long implications for individuals and...

Inflation Continues To Rise This week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released inflation data for March and the increase was worse than expected. Consumer prices have increased by 8.5% percent...

Pain at the Pump Gas prices, which have been steadily increasing throughout the past year, rose to new heights in recent weeks due to volatility in the energy market caused by the war in Ukraine....

Russia’s Response to International Sanctions Over the last month, Ukraine has mounted an inspiring and effective defense against Russia’s unprovoked military offensive. According to conservative...

To counter Russia’s unacceptable transgressions, the United States has joined its allies in implementing a slew of sanctions designed to isolate Russia from the global financial system and wreak havoc on their economy. While effective towards those ends, the sanctions have done sadly little to stop or slow down Russian advancement in Ukraine. Given the interconnected nature of our global marketplace, we’ve also already begun to see the adverse side-effects of economic warfare here in the U.S.

New Travel Restrictions to Impact Ag Industry Just one week after the Supreme Court of the United States moved to block the proposed federal vaccine mandate on companies with 100 or more employees,...

On Thursday, Jan 13, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States moved to stay the Biden Administration’s proposed COVID-19 vaccine mandate on companies with 100 or more employees. Conversely, it allowed a similar vaccination mandate on the healthcare industry to proceed. This week, we’ll explore the differing decisions and the implications they will have moving forward.

The United States managed to enjoy strong economic growth in Q4 of 2021. Despite challenges like rising inflation, supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, Federal Reserve tightening, and COVID variants, experts seem to believe this economic momentum will continue into 2022. This week, I’d like to briefly cover these five challenges and share some predictions for how they’ll likely play out in the year ahead.

Our chamber has been closely monitoring the Biden Administration’s vaccine mandate on private companies in an effort to help keep our members informed of their potential responsibilities should the rule withstand it’s legal challenges. Given the notable legal developments since our last column, we thought it prudent to provide another update on where the mandate currently stands.