Policy Points: Thomas Ivacko discusses Michigan Public Policy Survey on the state's emergency manager law

September 24, 2012

In the latest installment of "Policy Points," Thomas Ivacko says less than half (38 percent) of Michigan's local leaders support the state's emergency manager law, while about a third (30 percent) oppose it and the rest are neutral or unsure, according to a University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy survey.

Other findings in the Michigan Public Policy Survey by the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy indicate that a majority (53 percent) of those who feel fairly well informed about the law think it would be effective at helping to protect or restore the fiscal health of Michigan's local governments.

The emergency manager law (Public Act 4), one of the most controversial reforms of the Gov. Rick Snyder administration and the state Legislature, took effect in March 2011. It expands powers available to emergency managers and has been suspended, pending a referendum on the November ballot.