From: Whipple, Deb (GOV)
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2009 10:45 AM
Subject: What the Governor's talking about this week
What the Governor’s Talking about This Week
Friday, November 20, 2009
Governor Unveils Plans to Merge Two State Departments
 
The governor on Tuesday announced plans to merge the departments of Management and Budget (DMB) and Information Technology (DIT) to form a single department that further integrates information technology into the administrative services currently provided by DMB and DIT.
 
Kenneth Theis, current director of DIT, will oversee the consolidation of the two departments and ultimately be named director of the new department.  The current DMB director, Lisa Webb Sharpe, has accepted the position of senior vice president for finance and administration at Lansing Community College, an appointment that begins in January.
 
In her 2009 State of the State address, the governor asked Lt. Governor John D. Cherry Jr. to lead a comprehensive effort to create a state government that provides better service at less cost to taxpayers.  The governor requested a plan to reduce the total number of state departments to eight, bringing long-term structural change and savings to the executive branch of government.
 
The merger of DMB and DIT is a further result of the lieutenant governor’s work, which has identified eight core functions of state government.  Since May, the lieutenant governor and his workgroup have sought input from legislators, state employees and the public on what services a restructured and streamlined government should provide.
 
Key messages:
 
•  The Granholm administration is continuing to reform, restructure and streamline state government.
 
•  This merger reflects the enormous role of technology in streamlining government and serving Michigan citizens.  By merging DMB and DIT, the Granholm administration is building on its work of pursuing all possible efficiencies.
 
•  When the governor took office, she inherited a state government that had grown to the constitutional maximum of 20 state departments.  With the merger of DMB and DIT, the number of state departments will total 15, a 25 percent reduction since 2003.  In addition, the governor has eliminated nearly 200 state boards and commissions.
 
Governor Announces Nearly 13,500 New and Retained Jobs for Michigan
 
On Tuesday the governor announced that the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) is helping 10 companies grow in Michigan and backing two brownfield redevelopment projects.  Combined, the 12 projects are expected to create 2,245 new jobs (877 direct and 1,368 indirect), retain 11,254 jobs and generate over $791 million in new investment in the state. 
 
The projects include the expansion of a high-tech electronic and aerospace company in Walker, a new facility in Battle Creek for a manufacturer that plans to produce materials for the advanced-battery sector — a project that is the direct result of the governor’s September 2009 investment mission to Japan — and brownfield redevelopments that will transform abandoned and contaminated sites into new centers of economic growth and activity.
 
Key messages:
 
•  These projects align with the economic sectors targeted by the Granholm administration for growth, including advanced manufacturing, clean energy and life sciences.
 
•  The scope of these company expansions and redevelopment projects demonstrates that Michigan has the competitive business climate, infrastructure and talented workforce that companies are looking for as they compete in the global marketplace.
 
•  The Granholm administration’s aggressive strategy to grow and diversify the state’s economy continues to produce results for Michigan workers.
 
•  A key element in winning these projects for Michigan is the state working with its regional economic development partners.
 
Michigan Must Be a Winner in Race to the Top, Governor Says
 
In her radio address this week, the governor said Michigan must be one of the winning states in the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top competition for it could mean up to $500 million to improve Michigan schools.
 
Race to the Top is a competition in which all 50 states are racing to reform their education systems so our children can compete in a global economy.  Only a small number of states will be winners, and they’ll be rewarded well.  Each will receive as much as half a billion dollars in federal Recovery Act funds to improve their schools.
 
Key messages:
 
•  Michigan must be one of the winning states.  To win, we need to put forth our best and boldest ideas for helping all Michigan students succeed in our K-12 schools, in our colleges and universities, and ultimately in our workplaces.  And we’ll need to turn around our lowest performing schools, boost the number of high-quality charter schools and increase the ranks of effective teachers and principals.
 
•  Michigan got a head start on the Race to the Top five years ago.  That’s when we committed ourselves to doubling the number of college graduates in the state.  The Granholm administration made important changes that are now helping more students of all ages to earn college degrees, such as high school graduation requirements that are among the toughest in the nation.
 
•  We can win this race, but we don’t have a lot of time.  Critical education reforms must be in place before Christmas.  The state legislature already is working on education reform bills that will require quick action.
 
•  To create good-paying jobs in Michigan, we need the best-educated workforce on the planet.  That requires having schools second to none.  Race to the Top is the best way to get there, and we are determined to win the race.
 
Governor Visiting Oakland Community College Today to Support Promise Scholarships
 
The governor is visiting Oakland Community College’s Royal Oak campus this afternoon to stand with students and educators from OCC and Oakland University who are calling for restoring the Michigan Promise scholarships.  On Monday, the governor will visit Eastern Michigan University.
 
More than 15,000 students at Oakland Community College receive financial aid, and 1,436 students were eligible for Promise scholarships.
 
At Oakland University, more than 12,000 students receive some form of financial assistance.  Nearly 3,000 new and returning OU students were eligible to receive Promise scholarships this year, and last year more than 2,200 students received Promise scholarships. 
 
Earlier this week the governor visited Michigan State University, Saginaw Valley State University, Central Michigan University, Grand Valley State University and Western Michigan University.
 
Many Michigan college students are talking about the Promise scholarship on a Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/keepourpromises.
 
Key messages:
 
•  The Senate Republican leadership eliminated the Michigan Promise from this year’s budget.  Education is a priority for the Granholm administration, but apparently not for Senate Republicans.
 
•  The fight to restore the Michigan Promise scholarship is winnable. However, it requires the voices of students, parents, educators and other interested parties to be heard loud and clear.
 
•  Members of the Senate are hired by and accountable to the people, and they need to hear from people about restoring the Promise scholarships.
 
•  Funding for the Promise can be provided by slowing down a scheduled increase in the state Earned Income Tax Credit.  Instead of raising the EITC from 10 percent to 20 percent, if we raise it only to 12.5 percent, we can fund the Promise scholarship.
 
•  We need the Senate Republican leadership to take action.  Through an earlier vote, the Senate has already shown it is willing to use money for the EITC increase for another purpose.  We can pay for the Promise by slowing the rate of increase in the EITC.  This is one way we can keep the Promise.
 
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