Spring 2026 Michigan Public Policy Survey Homepage

The Spring 2026 Michigan Public Policy Survey

• Topics:
  • Annual tracking items for fiscal, budget, operation policies; local community infrastructure conditions, priorities, and funding; election administration; Michigan data centers; right direction vs. wrong track for local community, state of Michigan, and U.S.; job approval evaluations for governor and legislature; the state of democracy
• Methodology:
  • This survey ran from March 30 - June 9, 2026, and received responses from 72% of jurisdictions.
• Survey questionnaire
• Data tables
• Publications
  • Michigan local government leaders' views on large-scale data center development (September 2026)
  • Michigan local governments highly confident in election integrity, wary of disinformation (August 2026)
  • Local officials report declining outlook for state, plummeting approval of the Legislature (July 2026)

Input on questionnaire design for the Spring 2026 MPPS was provided by the following people:

• Shanna Draheim, Michigan Municipal League
• Derek Melot, Michigan Association of Counties
• Tom Hickson, Michigan Townships Association
• Mike Selden, Michigan Townships Association
• Judy Allen, Michigan Townships Association
• Molly Kleinman, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy
• Kristin Burgard, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy
• Sarah Mills, Graham Sustainability Institute
• Erik Nordman, Michigan State University
• Dan Bergan, Michigan State University

The final questionnaire design reflects decisions made by the CLOSUP MPPS staff, which may not represent the views of partner organizations, advisors, or others who provided input.