“Red tape” was slashed on the House floor Thursday as lawmakers approved a package of four bills aimed at loosening occupational licensing and regulatory requirements. The measures passed with broad bipartisan support.

The package included changes to occupational licensing requirements for cosmetology and barbering, eased regulations for childcare centers operating in multi-occupancy buildings and restructured district court operations in Antrim County.

House leadership streamed the bills as a part of a broader “red tape” reduction effort, arguing that regulatory requirements can drive up costs without improving safety.

(DETROIT) – In her final remarks to the Detroit Auto Show as governor, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called on legislators to send her a final budget deal by June 30 and permanently expand the Michigan Reconnect degree program to 21-year-olds. She also ordered the state to explore “geologic hydrogens” as a new clean energy source.

“The Legislature has got to get their job done on time this year, and that means they got to get the state budget done and over to my desk by June 30 this year,” Whitmer said Thursday morning. “With so much uncertainty in the world, we owe it to local governments, schools and business leaders to enact a transparent, timely budget.”

Legislators created a July 1 deadline for sending budget bills to Whitmer for the upcoming fiscal year in 2019.

Deputy Secretary of State Aghogho Edevbie dropped his bid for Secretary of State Friday morning, saying that Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II’s entrance into the race this week led him to believe there’s “no longer … a viable path” for him to win the nomination.

“I fully expect Garlin Gilchrist to be our nominee, and for the sake of party unity and our democracy, I put my support behind him,” Edevbie said of his fellow Detroit resident. “I gave this campaign everything I had, and because of you I was confident that we would emerge from April’s convention the nominee. However, the Lieutenant Governor’s entry into the race has changed that calculus.”

In his Facebook message announcing his departure from the race, Edevbie said he raised $350,000 and earned around 70 endorsements. He warned viewers that the Democratic Party “must stand for something and must deliver for people in a way that meaningfully impacts their everyday lives. Too often we’ve fallen short and people have lost confidence in us. Be better listeners. Stand with rural America. Stand with working-class people. And give people of color a real and legitimate seat at the table.”

Edevbie also said he rejects the “cynical assumption that the people of Michigan are too racist to elect someone with a unique name to high office. Because we’re not. The people of our state are fundamentally good, and our party can appeal to their better angel.”

Residents of Michigan’s Tri-Cities will soon have a State Senator for the first time in over a year. The 35th district, which is comprised of segments from Bay, Midland, and Saginaw counties, lost its State Senator when now Congresswoman, Kristen McDonald Rivet, succeeded in her effort to replace Dan Kildee in Congress. McDonald Rivet vacated her seat in Lansing to serve in D.C. after the 2024 election, leaving the district without a Senator.