Detroit District 7 Councilman Gabe Leland resigned after pleading guilty to misconduct in office.

Leland was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2018 on bribery conspiracy and two counts of bribery.

Detroit’s council can, by a two-thirds vote, appoint a replacement to finish out Leland’s term that ends this year.

An appointee, not already certified for 2021 race, would have to run as a write-in candidate in the upcoming election for a chance to win a full four-year term starting in January 2022.

There are currently six candidates certified to run for District 7 Council seat in the August 3rd primary.

The Michigan House introduced 13 new bills proposing fundamental changes for lobbying and disclosure laws.

Changes proposed include requiring members of the Legislature and other public officials to file financial disclosure reports and prohibiting them from voting on bills if there is a conflict of interest.

Other proposals include a prohibition on lobbying by members of the Legislature, a two-year revolving door ban for members of the Legislature and other executive branch officials, and making lobbyists ineligible for civil appointments.

The proposed changes also include increasing fines for violations of the lobbyist gift ban and establishing ethics committees in the House and Senate with the power to accept complaints, investigate complaints, and make recommendations for disciplinary action.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced special elections to fill vacancies in Senate District 8 and 28.

The vacancy in Senate District 8 was caused by the election of Sen. Pete Lucido as the Macomb County Prosecutor.

In addition, the Senate District 28 vacancy was caused by Sen. Peter MacGregor’s election as the Kent County Treasurer.

Therefore, the special primary election will be held on August 3 and the general election will be held on November 2.

The Bureau of Elections posted the Lobby Registration Act 2021 Reporting Thresholds.

This changes every year in January to reflect the change in the consumer price index for Detroit.

The threshold for a lobbyist compensating a lobbyist agent or other employee increased from $2,525 to $2,575 for any 12-month period.

The financial transaction threshold between a registered lobbyist or lobbyist agent and a public official increased from $1,275 to $1,300.

Travel and lodging reimbursements increased from $825 to $850.

Food and beverage expenditures for a public official increased from $63 to $64 in any month.

Meanwhile, the $400 threshold for food and beverages purchased between January 1 and the end of the reporting period remains the same as last year.

Employee reimbursements increased from $25 to $26, and the general gift threshold also increased from $63 to $64.

Late filing fees increased from $25 a day up to a maximum of $750, to $26 and a $780 maximum.

The registration threshold of $650 for a lobbyist agent or a lobbyist’s expenditure on one public official during a 12-month period and exempt expenditures at $13, remain the same as last year.

Thursday’s legislative session was canceled and the Capitol in Lansing was closed due to an armed protest and death threats against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

At the end of the Senate session on May 13, lawmakers simply adjourned until May 19 rather than call the next previously scheduled meeting.

The adjournment came in fear of a repeat of the events on April 30.

Armed protesters entered the Senate Chamber’s visitors gallery, standing above the members during the session.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued an opinion on May 11 saying the State Capitol Commission could ban firearms.

The commission voted to study a ban this week, and on May 12, Sen. Dayna Polehanki proposed Senate Resolution 118 to ban firearms in the Capitol.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced today a special primary election will be held August 4.

The purpose will be to fill the vacant seat in House District 4 of former State Rep. Isaac Robinson, who died March 29.

The special election for the seat will be held with the general election on November 3.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued Executive Order 2020-27 on March 29 suspending rules under Michigan election law for elections on May 5.

Additionally, the Governor instructed local clerks, county clerks, and election administrators to immediately begin preparations to conduct the election primarily by mail.

The Department of State may assist with the mailing of absent voter ballot applications and preparation of postage-prepaid absent voter ballot return envelopes for the return of voted ballots.

Gov. Whitmer is encouraging all voters to vote by absentee ballot.

However, each jurisdiction must maintain at least one location on election day where any voter can appear in-person to receive and submit a ballot.

The Legislature adopted procedural changes this week in response to the coronavirus pandemic, following Gov. Whitmer’s declaration of a state emergency.

The House and Senate will continue to meet for the next few weeks as needed.

This will be at the discretion of the House Speaker and the Senate Majority Leader, with additional precautions in place.

All scheduled Senate committees for this week have also been canceled.

Both chambers have a legislative break that is scheduled to start March 27 and end April 14.

The Capitol Commission also suspended all tours and events in the Capitol extending through Friday, May 1, 2020.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Progress Michigan is seeking to amend the state constitution to

• • Ban lobbyists and their clients from giving gifts, including meals, drinks, and trips, to public officials
  • Require lobbyists and public officials to make a public record of their phone calls, meetings, and other communications with each other
  • Require a two-year cooling off period before public officials could become lobbyists
  • Ban contingency pay for lobbyists

Progress Michigan is part of the Coalition to Close Lansing Loopholes, which filed proposed language with the state for the November 2020 ballot.

A constitutional amendment requires the group to collect signatures of registered voters equal to at least 10% of the number of votes cast for all candidates in the last gubernatorial election, or at least 425,055 valid signatures by July 6.

The group is seeking a constitutional amendment, rather than a legislative initiative, which requires fewer signatures, to prevent the Legislature from amending the proposal.

The Bureau of Elections posted the Lobby Registration Act 2020 Reporting Thresholds.

Thresholds change every year in January to reflect the change in the consumer price index for Detroit.

The registration threshold for a lobbyist agent or a lobbyist’s expenditure on one public official during a 12-month period has increased from $625 to $650.

The threshold for a lobbyist compensating a lobbyist agent or other employee increased from $2,500 to $2,525 for any 12-month period.

The financial transaction threshold between a registered lobbyist or lobbyist agent and a public official increased from $1,250 to $1,275.

Food and beverage expenditures for a public official increased from $62 in any month and $375 in any year to $63 and $400 respectively.

The general gift threshold also increased from $62 to $63.

Travel and lodging reimbursements, employee reimbursements, exempt expenditures, late filing fees remain the same as last year.

Democrat Cynthia Neeley and Republican Adam Ford won the House District 34 special primaries held on January 7.

Less than 7% of Flint’s 62,242 registered voters participated in the special election.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called the election after Cynthia Neeley’s husband, Sheldon was elected Flint’s mayor.

A general election is set for March 10.

The candidate chosen March 10 will finish the remainder of Sheldon Neeley’s term, set to expire on December 31, 2020.

The 100th Legislature adjourned sine die at noon on December 19 after more than 100 legislative days in session.

During the session, lawmakers voted to pass a bill to revise the rules on the governor transferring funds appropriated by the legislature to a different purpose than the one originally specified.

The legislature also voted to pass a bill to exempt equipment owned by a data center business from local special assessment levies, and some school property tax levies.

Per the state constitution, any business, bill, or joint resolution pending at the final adjournment of a regular session held in an odd-numbered year will carry over with the same status to the next regular session.

The 2020 session is scheduled to begin on January 8, 2020.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson created a new state Election Security Commission along with recommendations to improve the integrity of Michigan’s elections.

Included on the board of the Election Security Commission are the clerks of Kalamazoo, Wayne, and Ingham counties.

The commission will begin meeting next month.

The recommendations are expected to be released by the end of the year.

Gov. Rick Snyder announced special election dates for the vacant 68^th House District seat.

The primary election will be held on August 7 with the general election on November 6, lining up with the special election for U.S. Congress and the statewide elections.

The seat was vacated by Andy Schor, who resigned to become the mayor of Lansing.

Pictured: Outgoing Representative Andy Schor