Tom Ivacko

Showing 31 - 60 of 159 results

Publication

Local leaders' pessimism about Michigan's direction continues, eases slightly from last year

Jul 6, 2022

More than 60% of Michigan's local government leaders say the state has gotten off on the wrong track—down slightly from last year yet still among the most pessimistic responses since tracking began in 2011. According to those local leaders...

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

News

CLOSUP survey looks at online government meeting quality, service disparities

May 26, 2022

More than half of Michigan's local officials say that moving government meetings online during the pandemic decreased the overall quality of such gatherings, according to a University of Michigan survey. The finding comes from the spring 2021 wave...

More than half of Michigan local governments report personnel harassed, abused for doing their jobs

In the Media

Ivacko and Bednar comment on issues surrounding Ford's Tennessee investment

Mar 20, 2022 The Detroit News

“There’s a lot to learn from what’s happened in Michigan. We’ve experienced … state takeovers of minority communities,” said Tom Ivacko, executive director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy, on Tennessee’s takeover of a predominantly...

Ivacko and Bednar comment on issues surrounding Ford's Tennessee investment

In the Media

Ivacko weighs in on 2022 Secretary of State election

Feb 7, 2022 HOUR Detroit

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is preparing for the 2022 election. So far, her Republican opponents don't seem viable based on their extreme views. “If the GOP nominates QAnon conspiracy theorists, Benson will have an easier path...

Ivacko on federal infrastructure dollars in Michigan

News

Ivacko debates 2022 hot topics

Jan 5, 2022

Selected as a panelist for Hour Detroit's 2022 political predictions, Tom Ivacko, Executive Director of CLOSUP, weighed in on some of the most burning questions about Michigan's 2022 elections. The first question: How would Roe v. Wade, and...

News

2021: A year of public policy

Dec 16, 2021

The Ford School of Public Policy is a top-ranked public policy school dedicated to preparing diverse leaders to take on society’s most pressing challenges and make transformational discoveries through cutting-edge research. Experts from the Ford...

New law on data transparency will improve governance - Leiser

News

Michigan local government officials report improved fiscal health after a year of COVID-19, but not to pre-pandemic levels

Dec 16, 2021

Michigan’s local governments report improvement on many fiscal health measures after a year of struggles with the COVID-19 pandemic, but for much of the state the situation has stayed the same or continues to decline, according to a new Michigan...

State & Hill

Partnerships in focus: Learning and research collaborations that create better public policy

Dec 13, 2021

By Rebecca Cohen (MPP ‘09) Two-directional learning helps small businesses and students thrive Lily Hamburger (MBA ’16) supports economic mobility for entrepreneurs as the senior director of the pandemic-born Detroit Means Business, a coalition...

Partnerships in focus: Learning and research collaborations that create better public policy

News

CLOSUP and Ivacko applauded for partnering with city of Flint

Dec 8, 2021

News outlets are applauding Tom Ivacko and the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy's announcement about a project with the city of Flint that will examine whether a new fiscal reporting mechanism can help create transparency in local fiscal...

News

University of Michigan and the City of Flint partner on new fiscal reporting pilot program for transparency, better governance

Dec 1, 2021

The water crisis in Flint and the bankruptcy in Detroit were separate events that had a common theme -- they had been caused in part by fiscal challenges decades in the making. Avoiding similar tragedies in the future could be tied to greater...

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

News

Michigan local officials’ assessments of American democracy at the state and federal levels decline sharply

Nov 29, 2021

A survey of Michigan’s local government leaders shows a sharp degradation in trust in the functioning of democracy at the state and federal levels, echoing trends seen across the country. The Spring 2021 Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS),...

Michigan local officials’ assessments of American democracy at the state and federal levels decline sharply

News

U-M expert on redistricting: The road back and ahead

Nov 16, 2021

The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC) is nearing the end of its work to draft new maps in an effort to end partisan gerrymandering. The mission was straightforward—use an independent commission instead of the state...

The Next Big Thing: Redistricting In Michigan And The Role Of Communities Of Interest

In the Media

Ivacko on federal infrastructure dollars in Michigan

Nov 15, 2021 The Detroit News

“The federal (infrastructure) funding is probably a once-in-a-lifetime lifeline, and it certainly is going to move the needle. But Michiganders need to understand that we have a long-term challenge. This federal money will last for a while, it will...

News

Off the field, University of Michigan and Michigan State University work together on the big issues

Oct 28, 2021

When Michigan’s Independent Citizens’ Redistricting Commission (MICRC) held a public hearing recently in Grand Rapids, two students were assisting attendees with submitting citizen comments and suggestions for the Commission’s consideration. Working...

Michigan State-Michigan collaboration to measure Partisan Advantage in redistricting

Publication

Michigan local government leaders report lingering impacts from COVID-19 pandemic, improvements overall from the start of the crisis

Oct 27, 2021

Local leaders from across the state have reported lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report, and worsening outlooks for how much longer some of those impacts will last. While the numbers of local communities reporting on...

Publication

Michigan local economies still struggling with the pandemic effects

Sep 29, 2021

Michigan's local economies are still struggling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic but at a much lower rate than at the start of the crisis in spring 2020, according to a University of Michigan statewide survey of local government...

Michigan local economies still struggling with the pandemic effects

News

Ivacko: Challenges abound as leaders assemble for Mackinac Policy Conference

Sep 20, 2021

Many of Michigan's business, political and academic movers and shakers are gathering this week for the annual Mackinac Policy Conference after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of last year's event. While the number of people...

Ivacko: Challenges abound as leaders assemble for Mackinac Policy Conference

News

Most Michigan local leaders express confidence in safety, efficacy of COVID vaccines, MPPS shows

Aug 11, 2021

Most Michigan local government officials have been confident in the safety and efficacy of available COVID-19 vaccines, yet leaders' views on vaccine safety are highly correlated with partisanship, according to the spring 2021 wave of the Michigan...

Most Michigan local leaders express confidence in safety, efficacy of COVID vaccines, MPPS shows

MPPS in the news

UM survey: 67% of government leaders say Michigan headed in wrong direction

Jul 7, 2021 The Center Square

More than two-thirds of local government officials say Michigan has “gotten off on the wrong track,” says the University of Michigan’s 2021 Michigan Public...

News

Two-thirds of local leaders see Michigan moving in wrong direction, according to annual U-M survey

Jul 6, 2021

The combined crises of the past year have darkened the attitudes of local government leaders, according to the first results of the University of Michigan’s 2021 Michigan Public Policy Survey. Numerous challenges have dominated public policy and...

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

State & Hill

Breaking down public trust

Jun 10, 2021

By Rebecca Cohen (MPP '09)Americans’ trust in government institutions to “do the right thing” has steadily eroded since the late 1960s,1 correlated for many analysts with events such as the Vietnam War, Watergate, the ’70s oil embargo, and President...

News

CLOSUP to help expand Michigan redistricting resources in partnership with MSU’s IPPSR

May 24, 2021

Michigan State University’s Institute for Public Policy and Social Research (IPPSR) and the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) are collaborating to educate and assist Michigan’s Independent Citizens Redistricting...

In the Media

Leiser and Ivacko opinion: The new COVID relief bill can be a rebirth for Michigan communities

Mar 10, 2021 Bridge Michigan

In a Bridge Michigan op-ed, Leiser and Ivacko call for COVID relief to foster greater cooperation, trust in government built at the local level. "Across the country, nearly three quarters of U.S. adults say they have a "great deal" or a "fair...

COVID-19 Fiscal Strategy and Resource Guides for Local Governments produced by CLOSUP and partners

Publication

U-M survey finds early lack of awareness among local leaders with state’s new approach to redraw legislative districts

Feb 23, 2021

Michigan’s local government leaders reported mixed familiarity with the state’s new approach to redistricting, according to a 2020 survey whose results were released today by the the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) at the...

U-M survey finds early lack of awareness among local leaders with state’s new approach to redraw legislative districts

In the Media

Late census data makes redistricting process complex, says Ivacko

Feb 18, 2021 Bridge Michigan

Commenting on the announcement that census data will be delivered up to six months late, Ivacko told Bridge Michigan, “The commission’s plate is already extra full because this is their first time. They’re building the plane as they're flying it,...

In the Media

Absent intervention, Ivacko expects Michigan redistricting commission will hear mostly from well-funded lobbyists

Feb 8, 2021 Detroit News

"Absent some kind of other intervention, it's most likely that commissioners will hear from folks who are well-funded with lobbyists," Ivacko said. Read the full Detroit News article on U-M's work to clarify the meaning of 'communities of interest'...

In the Media

Ivacko: Spreading the word about Communities of Interest a challenge for redistricting commission

Feb 3, 2021 Lansing State Journal

Communities of interest "now have a very high priority to be kept whole, to not be cracked or split across different districts," Ivacko told the Lansing State Journal. "That's also going to significantly increase the challenge, I think, for the...

In the Media

Late Census data will make redistricting process even more fraught, says Ivacko

Jan 31, 2021 Lansing State Journal

"It's going to be a very challenging process this year, and certainly the late Census data will be a part of that," Ivacko told the Lansing State Journal. "Getting the 2020 Census data is going to be absolutely key for them to begin drawing versions...

Publication

Policy memo: Leiser and Ivacko on "State and local governments as partners in our national recovery"

Jan 25, 2021

As the Biden administration embarks on its first hundred days, experts from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy have produced a series of policy briefs on key issues. Download the PDF of this brief or read the web-formatted version...

In the Media

Ivacko on voter education and voter ID laws

Jan 7, 2021 Bridge Detroit

"There are a lot of complicated laws governing elections and they can be confusing both to voters and to poll workers," according to Tom Ivacko. “Some of the recent changes have added to the complexity and the need for voters to really do their...