Michigan’s population is growing but not nearly at the rate of other states, and that is a main focus of the Mackinac Policy Conference this week on the island.
The state has made a concerted effort to attract business and people to the Mitten State but recent census reports have shown the state isn’t keeping pace with surrounding states. As the state’s economy and business climate rely on people being here, it is a major talking point at this week’s conference.
A lot of these conversations are being held on what Michigan can do to make itself more attractive for businesses, education and talented workforce.
Wednesday, 9&10 News sat down with the top leaders of the state, Attorney General, Dana Nessel, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Governor Gretchen Whitmer, asking them what the biggest issues they are seeing directly in their roles and how they can work in their role to help Michigan grow.
“People can thrive economically and have access to quality education and drive on safe roads but civility is a problem and actual problem solving in government is something that we’re just starting to see come to fruition,” said Benson. “But still, we’re in this very noisy political climate.”
“The work has to transcend any one individual administration. We won’t have fixed everything in Michigan in the next three and a half years,” said Whitmer. “So that’s why we need to take this out of the partisan conversation and into the expertise and build a coalition.”
We spoke with Governor Whitmer on several more topics surrounding economic development and growth in Michigan.
