Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Students

Mia Brodeur

Policy Analyst

Mia is a Research Assistant for Close UP on the U.P. She is an undergrad at LSA (class of 2024) studying German, Linguistics, and Translation. Mia is from the Upper Peninsula and is interested in the attitudes and policies of U.P…

Students

Katelyn Jasmin

Policy analyst

Katelyn is a research assistant who is analyzing local governments in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. She is an undergraduate student at the College of Literature, Science and the Arts (class of 2026), and is pursuing a Bachelor's degree in English…

Students

Luca Kato

Policy analyst

Luca Kato is interning as a Fiscal Health Open Source Software Developer working on a tool for converting financial data into tagged XBRL format. He is set to graduate with a Bachelors in Computer Science in 2024. Luca is interested in financial…

Staff

Mariam Negaran

Administrative Coordinator/Project Coordinator, Weiser Diplomacy Center, Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

[email protected]

(734) 764-6581

Mariam Negaran is the Administrative Coordinator/Project Coordinator for the Weiser Diplomacy Center and Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy Program. She also supports the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Dean for Research and…

Staff

Margaret Walthall

Research and Data Specialist

[email protected]

Margaret joined CLOSUP as our research and data specialist in September 2023, after having worked at the Center as a student policy analyst during her master's program in the Ford School. During her studies, Margaret worked on CLOSUP's Fiscal Health…

Research and Engagement

Research is at the core of CLOSUP's mission. We believe research about and with state and local governments can inform policy on key issues and helps strengthen our democracy’s foundation at its grassroots. We leverage the deep knowledge across...

CLOSUP Updates

New Fiscal Health Project Report: The Fiscal Health of Michigan Local Governments 2021 - 2022

Apr 8, 2024

Following local government’s unprecedented responsibilities as first responders to the COVID-19 pandemic and their subsequent infusions of aid from the federal government, a new report from CLOSUP's Fiscal Health Project checks in on the fiscal...

Michigan local governments face ARPA spending challenges with inflation and supply chain issues

News

Ford school faculty available to weigh in on 2024 elections

Jan 28, 2024

The University of Michigan has published an experts guide to the 2024 elections. Ford School faculty are available to offer insights on relevant issues impacting the elections, including the following: Economics Betsey Stevenson, professor of...

Ford school faculty available to weigh in on 2024 elections

News

Michigan local government leaders’ assessments of democratic functioning improve from 2021 low, but first signs of trouble at local level emerge

Dec 11, 2023

Michigan local leaders’ assessments of democracy at the national level have improved marginally for two years in a row after a sharp decline in 2021, largely due to fewer local officials rating American democracy as poorly functioning. Similarly,...

Michigan local government leaders’ assessments of democratic functioning improve from 2021 low, but first signs of trouble at local level emerge

News

Challenges continue for state-local relations, according to Michigan local government leaders

Nov 10, 2023

Over half of Michigan local officials currently rate their jurisdiction’s overall relationship with the State government as just fair or even poor, while 34% of local officials say it is either good or excellent. It is an important relationship...

Challenges continue for state-local relations, according to Michigan local government leaders

In the Media

Meijer's impeachment vote makes it "significantly more challenging" for Republican Senate nomination - Ivacko

Nov 6, 2023 Newsweek

Tom Ivacko, Newsweek: "Criticism of Trump is one thing, but a vote to impeach is another, and won't easily be forgotten or forgiven by MAGA voters. So while many politicians can pivot or change their appeal to various factions, MAGA voters would be...

Meijer's impeachment vote makes it "significantly more challenging" for Republican Senate nomination - Ivacko

News

Michigan’s smaller local governments need help accessing state and federal grants

Oct 11, 2023

As unprecedented state and federal funding opportunities have emerged over the past 18 months with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, Michigan local government leaders have expressed their concern...

Michigan’s smaller local governments need help accessing state and federal grants

In the Media

Leiser on the far-right shift in the Ottawa County government

Oct 5, 2023 MLive

“It’s almost as if instead of leading with, ‘OK, what’s our job in this jurisdiction in this county? What services do we provide?’ – and then sort of taking the cues from citizens and policy from there – it’s like a flipped script,” said Stephanie...

Leiser shares expertise on government financial reporting in webinar

Publication

Housing shortages across Michigan alarming local leaders - Michigan survey

Sep 14, 2023

Michigan local officials are reporting alarm at the lack of housing options across the state. Those concerns include single-family homes and multi-family units, and cut across affordable, entry-level and mid-level housing availability. The results...

Housing shortages across Michigan alarming local leaders - Michigan survey

In the Media

Ivacko on trust in local government

Sep 6, 2023 Democrat & Chronicle

Tom Ivacko, Democrat & Chronicle: Political scandals have long contributed to declining trust in all levels of government, stretching back to the days of Watergate, said Tom Ivacko, who heads the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy at the...

Tom Ivacko: Michigan - Political Redistricting

News

PPIA students reflect on their summer of study and social life

Aug 2, 2023

What are the dynamics of inequity in labor markets? How do we determine appropriate categories for people in a multicultural society? How is the U.S. approach to ethnicity and nationality different from what they are doing in Europe? These were...

PPIA students reflect on their summer of study and social life

News

Michigan local government leaders’ views on their employee unions: few changes in relationships or impacts as Right-to-Work comes and goes

Jul 26, 2023

Pluralities of local government leaders across Michigan say the state’s recently repealed "Right-to-Work" law had no impact on issues such as community business growth, the ability of their local government to lure or keep public sector employees,...

News

CLOSUP and Poverty Solutions to examine Michigan’s approach to criminal justice reform

Jul 20, 2023

In the wake of racial justice movements across the country, the State of Michigan and some of its communities have been implementing new public safety and criminal justice policies. The perspective of Michigan's local government, public safety, and...

CLOSUP and Poverty Solutions to examine Michigan’s approach to criminal justice reform

News

Leiser and Shaefer comment on Detroit bankruptcy anniversary

Jul 18, 2023

As the city of Detroit marked the 10th anniversary of its declaration of bankruptcy, publications took stock of the progress the city has made. Bloomberg quoted the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy’s (CLOSUP) Stephanie Leiser, who leads the...

Leiser and Shaefer comment on Detroit bankruptcy anniversary

News

Engaged Learning Student Projects Catalog: Preparing Ford School students for leadership

Jun 29, 2023

During the Winter Term 2023, Ford School students were involved in projects with federal, state, county, city, and township governments, school districts, non-profit organizations, and commissions. They worked with the school’s numerous research...

Engaged Learning Student Projects Catalog: Preparing Ford School students for leadership

News

Michigan local governments face ARPA spending challenges with inflation and supply chain issues

Jun 29, 2023

Michigan local governments are facing challenges in spending the $4.4 billion which was allocated to them in the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), according to a new survey. The funds were intended to support local governments to stabilize...

News

Most Michigan local officials believe their government workforce reflects their community, though less so in urban areas

Jun 26, 2023

Statewide, two-thirds of local government leaders say their government’s workforce is generally reflective of the community’s racial and/or ethnic composition and three-quarters say it is reflective of the community’s gender makeup. These...

News

Ford School welcomes PPIA 2023 cohort

Jun 19, 2023

The 2023 Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute (JSI) has welcomed 23 students from 11 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. This year’s cohort will spend seven weeks taking classes, participating in...

News

Most Michigan local officials continue to say state is on the wrong track, though outlook slightly improved

May 17, 2023

Despite a two-year trend of improvement, nearly 60% of Michigan's local government leaders say the state is on the wrong track in 2023, according to a recent University of Michigan survey. Specifically, 59% see the wrong track, less than the 62%...

State & Hill

Quantum leap

May 3, 2023

City of Flint and CLOSUP work toward transparency in municipal financial reporting By Daniel Rivkin When City of Flint CFO Rob Widigan looks at his required annual financial reporting to the state of Michigan, he sighs. His department needs to...

A 20-year review of Flint finances shows consequences of lack of investment

News

Michigan environmental leaders analyze CLOSUP recycling report

Apr 9, 2023

The Center for Local, State and Urban Policy released a new report that polled local officials on issues related to recycling as part of the Michigan Local Recycling Policy Project. The Capital News Service gathered reactions from across the...

Michigan local leaders report widespread support for community recycling programs

In the Media

Horner analyzes use of social media by local governments

Apr 9, 2023 Daily Telegram

Debra Horner, The Daily Telegram: "Back in 2012, only about 18 percent of local officials told us their governments used social media (including 48 percent of jurisdictions with more than 30,000 residents). In 2021, that was up to 29 percent...

Horner analyzes use of social media by local governments

In the Media

Leiser makes case for Financial Data Transparency Act

Mar 28, 2023 Accounting Today

Stephanie Leiser, Accounting Today: "There's an enormous amount of municipal government financial data locked up in PDF documents. Unlocking that data has the potential to radically improve transparency and dramatically enhance our ability to...

In the Media

Ivacko reveals factors behind threats to local officials

Mar 24, 2023 Wisconsin Public Radio

Tom Ivacko, Wisconsin Public Radio: "There's been a very concerted, ongoing effort with very strong media behind it to convince people that there are enemies in the public sector, undercutting their own democracy and working against the interests of...

Ivacko on federal infrastructure dollars in Michigan

In the Media

CLOSUP partnership with XBRL US, City of Flint highlighted

Mar 23, 2023 The Bond Buyer

CLOSUP, The Bond Buyer: "Flint is also at the forefront of the development of XBRL for financial reporting. Flint participated in a pilot project with the University of Michigan's Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy at the school's Ford School...