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Michigan Business Network: Kettering - Top

SBAM: Your Weekly Advocacy Brief

November 14, 2025

Michigan Business Network

Welcome to the newest edition of Week in Review! Join Jacob Manning and Francesca Rocco-Ellis each week for an audio version of this newsletter. Watch this week’s episode below!

AUDIO VERSION OF THE NEWSLETTER

High Court Considers Restoring State Consumer Protection Powers

The Michigan Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that could determine whether the state can investigate drug manufacturer Eli Lilly & Company over insulin pricing — and more broadly, whether Michigan’s consumer protection law can once again be used to hold corporations accountable for alleged deceptive practices.

Attorney General Dana Nessel is asking the Court to overturn two earlier rulings — the 1999 Smith v. Globe Life decision and the 2007 Liss v. Lewiston-Richards ruling — which have sharply limited the Michigan Consumer Protection Act (MCPA). Those decisions held that if a business or industry is generally regulated by a state or federal agency, it is effectively exempt from the MCPA, even when accused of unfair or deceptive conduct.

Nessel argues the rulings misinterpreted a narrow exemption in the law and have, in practice, blocked the state from investigating wrongdoing in everyday consumer transactions — including prescription drug pricing.

House R’s Look To Slowly Choke Away MEDC

Legislation designed to choke the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) out of existence by ending the state Strategic Fund’s power to engage in the types of interlocal agreements that make the quasi-governmental agency possible was trumpeted Wednesday by key House Republicans.

House Oversight Committee Chair Jay DeBoyer (R-Clay) and Rep. Steve Carra (R-Three Rivers), the chair of the House Corporate Subsidies and State Investments Subcommittee, are spearheading the yet-to-be-introduced bills in reaction to what they say is the MEDC’s failure to create a significant number of jobs considering the billions in dollars in “bribes” it used to entice business to Michigan.

The duo leaned heavily on a 2024 Mackinac Center report that found that among the 123,060 jobs promised by the MEDC from 41 economic development announcements the MEDC helped facilitate with incentives and grants from 2000 to 2020, only 10,889 jobs ever came to be.

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Poll Shows Benson Dominating Dem Primary Field; GOP Field Shifts if Dixon Enters

SBAM’s Brian Calley and Kelli Saunders discussed these recent poll results on this week’s Small Business Briefing. Click here to watch.

A new survey of likely Michigan voters shows Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson in a commanding position to win the Democratic nomination for governor in 2026, while the Republican field remains unsettled, particularly if former GOP nominee Tudor Dixon re-enters the race.

The poll, conducted Oct. 23–25 by Atlanta-based researchers at Rosetta Stone and released Thursday, found Benson with 58% support among Democratic primary voters. Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II polled at 15%, and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson registered 6%. Benson’s financial advantage and wide lead suggest she is on a clear path to the nomination, the pollster said.

On the Republican side, U.S. Rep. John James (R-Shelby Township) led the field with 44%, followed by former Attorney General Mike Cox at 13% and Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Lawton) at 6%. However, the dynamics change significantly if Dixon runs. In that scenario, Dixon leads with 33%, compared to 25% for James and 10% for Cox, indicating the GOP primary could shift dramatically depending on her decision.

Dixon has previously said she is not going to be a gubernatorial candidate in 2026.

The poll of 637 likely 2026 general election voters has a margin of error of ±3.9 percentage points. Subsamples of Democrats and Republicans carry higher margins of error. The pollster said the survey was not funded by any campaign or committee.

The below article is written by SBAM’s Advocacy Team

Policy Deep Dive: HB 5127: Easing Red Tape for Childcare Providers

Cutting regulatory “red tape” has been an ongoing conversation in the House Rules committee this year, and the conversation continued last week, where SBAM’s Advocacy & Policy Manager, Jacob Manning, testified in support of House Bill 5127, alongside the bill’s sponsor, Representative Bill G. Schuette. This bill would clarify that Michigan’s Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MILEAP) can only regulate a licensed childcare space itself – not unrelated tenants of a multi-use building or unrelated area of a childcare center.

Currently, Michigan’s statute contains no guarantees in this space, meaning that childcare providers – whether they be family or community-based providers or centers – can face inspection risks for parts of their facility where children are not present, or even parts of their building that are completely outside of their control.

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