From: Whipple, Deb (GOV)
Sent: Tuesday, December 08, 2009 5:52 PM
Subject: What the Governor is talking about today
What the Governor’s Talking about Today
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
 
Governor Hears from Flint, Saginaw Officials about Revenue Sharing Cuts
 
Today, the governor attended a meeting in Flint with local government and public safety officials from the surrounding area to discuss the impact that revenue sharing cuts have had on their communities and the need to restore funding.
 
Flint Mayor Dayne Walling said that due to lack of funding, the city’s police force has gone from 325 officers to 189 officers and that the fire department has decreased from 232 to 90 firefighters.
 
Saginaw County Sheriff Bill Federspiel said that his department size has been reduced 50 percent over the years and could see another 50 percent reduction soon if no new revenue stream is established.
 
Key messages:
 
•  Revenue sharing cuts have contributed to now having 2,000 fewer police officers and 2,400 fewer professional fire fighters protecting our communities than we had in 2001.  We need to restore funding for revenue sharing to prevent further erosion in the numbers of police officers and fire fighters in Michigan.
 
•  When revenue sharing cuts force local governments to lay off personnel or not fill open positions, it harms our communities and is a drag on our state and national recovery efforts.
 
•  This is also an economic development issue.  We are working to diversify Michigan’s economy and create jobs.  To attract and retain businesses, communities must be able to provide police and fire protection, good roads, water and sewer systems and other essential services.
 
Governor Attends Ribbon Cutting for New Gerber Life Insurance Facility in Fremont

This morning the governor attended a ribbon cutting for Gerber Life Insurance Company’s new customer contact center in Fremont.  Gerber Life is an affiliate of the Gerber Products Company.
 
Gerber Life was founded in 1967, and this new $8 million, 35,000-square-foot center will help them better serve their customers who primarily are middle-income young families.
 
One year ago, Gerber Products announced plans to invest $75 million in its Fremont facilities, retaining 1,100 area jobs and creating an additional 200 over the next nine years.  This followed approval of a state incentive package that included designation of Gerber’s Fremont complex as an Agricultural Processing Renaissance Zone.  The new customer contact center represents $8 million of the $75 investment.
 
Gerber Life is projected to grow 20 to 30 percent over the next five years, creating potentially 100 new service and sales positions during that time.
 
Key messages:
 
•  Helping a company like Gerber prosper in Michigan dovetails with our ongoing efforts to diversify our state’s economy and create jobs.  Michigan has a growing agri-business sector, and Gerber is a globally-trusted brand and an integral player in this sector.
 
•  Our economic diversification plan targets specific economic sectors like advanced manufacturing, clean energy and life sciences, and helps our students and workers get the education and skills they need for jobs in these sectors.  And in the interim we are doing all we can to protect people during these tough economic times.
 
•  The insurance industry is growing in Michigan.  The state partnered with Gerber, Newaygo County and the city of Fremont to help make this new customer contact center happen and strengthen Gerber Life’s presence in West Michigan.
 
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