What Michigan Communities Expect from a U.S. President

For the most part, the presidential candidates are not talking much about their policies and platforms, let alone how they would specifically impact communities in southeast Michigan through funding and priorities.

Sandra Svoboda

That the guests agree on. Anthony Minghine, chief operating officer of the Michigan Municipal League, and Ed Klobucher, city manager of Hazel Park, join WDET’s Sandra Svoboda on Detroit Today to discuss how who is in the White House affect communities in Michigan and what they’d like to hear from the presidential candidates.

Joan Isabella

Federal funding making its way to Michigan’s cities and suburbs has declined, they both agree, so Klobucher is watching the presidential race and listening for indications of what could happen to programs like the Community Development Block Grants, which Hazel Park uses to pay or code enforcement officers.

“It’s very important to us in Hazel Park who ends up in the White House because we don’t want to lose any more of those dollars,” he says.

Minghine, meanwhile, says the League’s advocacy includes working toward a federal law that would add sales tax to Internet purchases, which would then translate to revenue for states and individual municipalities.

“It’s gives a competitive advantage to businesses that have not invested in our state (with brick-and-mortar stores). … Nobody likes to pay taxes, but I think what you need is a fair system,” Minghine says.

Klobucher says if the federal government raised the age of eligibility for Medicare, his city would spend an additional $50,000 annually for retiree health care.

To listen to the full conversation, click on the audio link above.