MPPS | Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

News

Michigan local leaders assess drinking water issues in latest Michigan Public Policy Survey

Nov 29, 2016

Over a quarter of local officials from Michigan jurisdictions that provide shared water infrastructure believe funding levels are not sufficient to maintain those systems, according to the latest Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), "Local...

Leiser and Mills contribute to resources for new Michigan Lead and Copper Rule

News

CLOSUP survey: Local leaders concerned about property tax appeals, "dark stores" assessing

Oct 26, 2016

Findings from the most recent Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), published by the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP), reveal broad concern by local leaders and administrators over property tax appeals. The survey...

Coverage of CLOSUP medical marijuana policy poll grows like weed

News

Michigan Radio's "Stateside" highlights CLOSUP's latest, and troubling, fiscal health findings

Aug 24, 2016

Michigan Radio’s Cynthia Canty interviews Tom Ivacko (MPP ’93), CLOSUP program administrator, for the segment “Declining fiscal health “an early warning sign” for local governments, report says.” The program focuses on CLOSUP's latest Michigan...

News

Latest CLOSUP survey shows declining confidence in Michigan’s leadership, direction

Jul 20, 2016

The latest Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), published by the Ford School's Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP), finds that local leaders are less optimistic about the state’s direction.Statewide, only 44 percent of local leaders...

News

Latest Michigan Public Policy Survey report focuses on emergency medical services

Jul 6, 2016

Photo by Kiyo / Flickr.com / CC BY-NC 2.0One of the core functions of Michigan’s local governments is ensuring public safety. As such, the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) focused its latest Michigan Public Policy...

News

New undergrad politics, policy course offers opportunities to work with survey research data

Jun 28, 2016

Caption: Michigan State Capitol BuildingCredit: Photo by Matt Katzenberger, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0The Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) is offering a new undergraduate course for students looking for opportunities to work with survey...

News

Latest Michigan Public Policy Survey addresses local firefighting challenges, approaches

Jun 15, 2016

East Tawas, MI Fire DepartmentPhoto by George Thomas / Flickr.com/ CC by NC-ND 2.0CLOSUP’s latest policy report, released today, examines Michigan local government leaders’ opinions on fire protection services in their communities, including...

News

Police funding reportedly lags behind in Michigan’s big jurisdictions, CLOSUP survey

Apr 29, 2016

ANN ARBOR—Nearly half, or 47 percent, of local leaders from the largest jurisdictions in Michigan say they lack sufficient funding to fight crime in their areas, according to the latest Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), "Most local officials are...

News

"Responding to budget surplus vs. deficit," reviews citizen, leader preferences

Dec 10, 2015

As the Michigan economy improves, some local leaders are facing the welcome task of deciding how to allocate funds from budget surpluses. A University of Michigan Ford School survey, "Responding to budget surplus vs. deficit: the preferences of...

News

Local leaders worry about retiree health care benefits, says latest CLOSUP MPPS report

Oct 29, 2015

ANN ARBOR—Health care benefits for retirees of Michigan's local governmental units are presenting significant fiscal challenges, and more than half of local officials surveyed indicate they are concerned they won't be able to fulfill their...

Local leaders worry about retiree health care benefits, says latest CLOSUP MPPS report

News

In latest CLOSUP survey, local leaders say fiscal stress is low, but see red flags

Sep 22, 2015

ANN ARBOR—About two-thirds of local governments in Michigan rate the levels of fiscal stress as relatively low in their jurisdictions today, while just 7 percent rate the stress as high. While the latter percentage is low, the figure represents...

News

CLOSUP wins Third Century Initiative grant to bring data to the classroom in a big way

Sep 8, 2015

CLOSUP, the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy, is ready to bring real-world data to the classroom in a big way. Through a recently awarded Quick Wins/Discovery grant, part of the University of Michigan's Third Century Initiative,...

News

Local leaders' confidence in state's direction erodes, CLOSUP MPPS reveals

Aug 26, 2015

ANN ARBOR—For the first time since 2012, fewer than half of Michigan's local leaders believe the state is headed in the right direction—chief culprits include road funding fumbles, state tax policies and general dysfunction in Lansing, according to...

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

News

'Complete Streets' policies more popular in Michigan's urban areas

Jun 18, 2015

Complete Streets, policies that encourage local governments to take all users—pedestrians, cyclists, public transit users and drivers—into account when designing and constructing roads, have a good deal of support among Michigan local officials, but...

'Complete Streets' policies more popular in Michigan's urban areas

News

Local leaders give high marks to road commissions

May 29, 2015

By Greta Guest, Michigan NewsMost local government leaders have good things to say about their road commissions that maintain county primary and township local roads upon which so many Michigan residents rely.The Michigan Public Policy Survey at the...

Local leaders give high marks to road commissions

News

CLOSUP’s Ivacko talks MPPS and ethics with Michigan Radio’s Stateside

Mar 23, 2015

The latest Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS) reveals how local leaders feel about the need for ethics reform in the Great Lakes State. Tom Ivacko (MPA '93), program manager of the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP),...

In the Media

Only 1 in 5 Michigan government leaders rate roads in good condition, 12% grinding them up into gravel roads

Feb 24, 2015 eclectablog.com

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In the Media

U-M survey shows local officials hungry for more state road money

Feb 24, 2015 WKAR Radio, Current State, East Lansing, MI

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In the Media

Michigan leaders ask for a bigger road budget

Feb 24, 2015 ABC 25 WKOW TV, Madison, WI

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In the Media

Survey Asks How Government Leaders Rate Roads

Feb 24, 2015 WCCY Radio 97.7 FM, and 102 FM, The Keweenaw Report, Houghton, MI

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News

CLOSUP survey findings on state of Michigan roads cited in AP, Free Press stories

Feb 24, 2015

A recent CLOSUP report presenting the opinions of Michigan local government leaders on the state of roads was cited by the Associated Press, Detroit Free Press, and other media outlets. Most of the media coverage focused on the fact that while 79...

News

Major funding increase needed to fix roads, local leaders say

Feb 23, 2015

By Greta GuestComplaining about bad roads in Michigan is about as ubiquitous as grousing about the weather.How bad are the roads? The Ford School's Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy surveyed top elected and appointed officials in the state's...

News

CLOSUP survey results on local government pay, benefits highlighted by AP

Jan 28, 2015

CLOSUP’s recent report presenting the findings of its latest Michigan Public Policy Survey received coverage by the Associated Press (AP), among other national and local media outlets.The report, “Michigan local government leaders’ views on employee...

Ivacko evaluates independence of Detroit's IG in lieu of Mayor Duggan investigation

News

More Michigan local governments report boosting pay, CLOSUP survey says

Jan 27, 2015

Five years after the depths of the recession, more local governments in Michigan say they've boosted employee pay while subtracting in other places such as benefits, according to a recently released report by the Center for Local, State, and Urban...

News

Proximity to Great Lakes a key factor in local officials' views

Sep 4, 2014

By Greta Guest ANN ARBOR—Nearly all of Michigan's local leaders see the Great Lakes as a valuable economic resource for the state, but some don't see it that way for their own jurisdictions, according to a survey by the University of Michigan's...

State & Hill

An engaged citizen

Apr 22, 2013

Barry Rabe on the future of CLOSUP A six-inch bobblehead of Ron Swanson, director of a fictitious Midwestern parks department in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, dominates the meeting table in Barry Rabe's office. The bobblehead is something of...

News

Michigan Public Policy Survey reflects divide amongst local leaders over the state's emergency manager law

Sep 27, 2012

The latest poll from the Michigan Public Policy Survey reflects divided opinions over the state's emergency manager law, the Detroit Free Press and Detroit News have reported. The MPPS findings, released Monday, found 38 percent of local leaders...

CLOSUP Lecture Series, Conversations Across Differences

The functioning of democracy across the urban-rural spectrum

Nov 16, 2020, 11:00-11:55 am EST

Free and open to the public – this is a virtual webinar on Zoom - please register! Student researchers will share their research on the similarities and differences across the urban/rural continuum with respect to: the state of civic discourse; public participation in decision-making; citizen engagement; internet connectivity and access to information; and privatization of local government services.

The functioning of democracy across the urban-rural spectrum

CLOSUP Lecture Series

Clear and present data: Findings from the MPPS on local government performance management and the 2011-12 EVIP

Mar 21, 2012, 3:00-4:00 pm EDT

Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy 5th Floor Seminar Room

From the Michigan Municipal League (MML) Capital Conference – Local Government Performance Management and the EVIP program findings.

CLOSUP Lecture Series

Use of data in local government decision-making across the state: Preliminary findings from the Fall 2011 MPPS

Dec 11, 2011, 3:00-4:00 pm EST

Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy 5th Floor Seminar Room

From the Michigan Local Government Benchmarking Consortium Conference – Fall 2011 Local Government Performance Management findings.