| Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Students

Courtney Argall

Policy Analyst

Courtney is a research assistant working on CLOSUP's "Close Up on the U.P." program. She is a fourth-year student in the School of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA), majoring in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience. Courtney is interested...

News

Small Michigan communities feel early voting strain

Oct 11, 2026

Most Michigan city and township officials report positive or neutral impacts from recent state election administration reforms, but many cite the costs and staffing demands associated with nine days of early in-person voting as a concern, according t...

Small Michigan communities feel early voting strain

In the Media

Horner: Local governance a widespread problem among jurisdictions across the state

Oct 2, 2026 Bridge Michigan

Over 3/4 of jurisdictions said that they have difficulty finding enough residents willing to run for local office. that candidacies when they do find people are often uncontested. And beyond that, they can't find residents that are willing to serve o...

Horner: Local governance a widespread problem among jurisdictions across the state

CLOSUP Updates

New MPPS Policy Brief: Most Michigan local officials report positive or neutral impacts from recent election reforms, but many express concerns around costs of early voting

Oct 7, 2026

A new MPPS policy brief presents Michigan city and township officials' views on the impacts of recent election administration reforms enacted through state constitutional amendments passed in 2018 and 2022, such as automatic voter registration, regis...

MPPS

MPPS Policy Brief: Most Michigan local officials report positive or neutral impacts from recent election reforms, but many express concerns around costs of early voting

October 7, 2026

Debra Horner, Max Wei, Stephanie Leiser

This policy brief presents Michigan city and township officials’ views on the impacts of recent election administration reforms enacted through state constitutional amendments passed in 2018 and 2022, such as automatic voter registration, registratio...

Case Studies

Property tax constraints and fiscal health in rural communities: A case study of Fennville, Michigan

September 24, 2026

Ann Wilkinson

This case study examines the fiscal health of the City of Fennville, a small, rural community in western Michigan. In particular, it assesses how the City's financial well-being and future sustainability are largely influenced by its administrative c...

Publication

Majority of Michigan’s local government leaders support regulation of data centers, per U-M survey

Sep 24, 2026

Solid majorities of Michigan's local officials say their residents would strongly oppose data center development in or near their communities, and believe governmental regulation of such centers should be a very high priority. Those are among the key...

Majority of Michigan’s local government leaders support regulation of data centers, per U-M survey

CLOSUP Updates

New MPPS Report: Michigan local government leaders’ views on large-scale data center development

Sep 22, 2026

A new MPPS report presents the opinions of Michigan's local government leaders on issues related to large-scale data center development in Michigan, including perceived impacts, local support for the development of data centers in or near the communi...

MPPS

Michigan local government leaders’ views on large-scale data center development

September 22, 2026

This report presents the opinions of Michigan's local government leaders on issues related to large-scale data center development in Michigan, including perceived impacts, local support for the development of data centers in or near the community, vi...

Aid & Development

Writing winning grant proposals

Oct 9, 2026, 1:00-3:50 pm EDT

Oct 23, 2026, 1:00-3:50 pm EDT

Weill Hall 3240 (10/9); Weill Hall 1230 (10/23)

This year's Aid & Development series will focus on drafting compelling grant proposals. Students will explore key strategies that help grant proposals stand out and will practice applying them to a real-world case.

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