| THURSDAY, JANUARY 2, 2024 |
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In today's newsletter, changes coming from Postal Service in 2025, NASA’s January skywatching tips and bird flu found in Jackson County. |
So long, 2024. Hello, 2025! |
If you have been participating in the Winter Arc goal-setting trend, there's a good chance that you are well on your way to achieving your 2025 aspirations. For those of us who waited until January to jump on our resolutions, there's no time like the present to pick up a different hobby, make new friends or even find a wellness routine. 2025 is already off to a great start for one Michigander. 11-year-old baker Ella Hayek says her upcoming appearance on the Food Network's "Kids Baking Championship: Amazing Animals" is "a dream". The Ann Arbor resident flew to Los Angeles last summer for the competition's filming. Season 13 of the show premiers at 8 p.m. Monday, Jan. 6, on the Food Network. Cities across Michigan will also be undertaking new projects this year. Here are major developments to watch in Kalamazoo, Muskegon County and Grand Rapids. |
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A "for rent" sign in Ann Arbor on Nov. 2, 2023. (Ryan Stanton | MLive.com) |
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| New law bans landlords from rejecting renters over income source, like Section 8 |
A new Michigan law bans many landlords from rejecting tenants based on source of income, like housing vouchers, veterans’ benefits or Social Security. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed three Senate bills of a five-bill package Monday, Dec. 30, that prohibits landlords from discriminating based on source of income. The law only applies to landlords with five or more units. More in legislation: Gov.Whitmer also signed bills Monday to update the process for gathering evidence in human trafficking cases, expanding the age to have a courtroom support dog from 16 to 18 years old and providing tax breaks for data centers. Getting a raise: Michigan’s minimum wage increased on January 1 to $10.33 to $10.56 an hour for adults and $8.78 to $8.98 an hour for minors. Tipped workers, who earn 38% of the state’s minimum wage as base pay, were bumped up from the current $3.93 an hour to $4.01. |
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Price changes, longer delivery times among changes coming from Postal Service in 2025 |
You've got mail: Changes are coming to the U.S. Postal Service in 2025 and with them comes a possibly more expensive trip when you visit and depending on where you live, longer delivery times. Priority Mail service and Priority Mail Express service prices will increase by 3.2 percent, while USPS Ground Advantage jumps by 3.9 percent. For those using Parcel Select Service, expect an increase of 9.2 percent. Delivery service may slow down in some areas as the agency alters some processes at regional USPS hubs. On the road: Throughout the state, the Michigan Department of Transportation invested more than $2 billion in state and federal funds to improve and maintain its share of the roads in 2024, which include those with an M-, I-, or U.S. designation. Here's a look at 15 major road construction projects across Michigan from last year. In health: State officials reported confirmed cases of bird flu in a backyard flock in Jackson County, and two more commercial poultry facilities in Ottawa County, according to a Monday, Dec. 30, announcement by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Ottawa County has now had four confirmed outbreaks this month. The Jackson case is the county’s first since early 2022. |
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NASA’s January skywatching tips: Bright meteor shower peaks, a big Planet Parade |
Grab your telescope: Stargazers, get ready. 2025 is starting off with the Quadrantids meteor shower peaking, the moon passing in front of Mars, Saturn and Venus get cozy, and a planet parade. NASA’s skywatching blog has all the details, but we’re sharing the highlights here. PFAS found: A December report from Michigan’s PFAS action response team identified Kalamazoo’s Regional Fire Training Center on Nazareth Road as an “area of interest.” The response team will sample 20 residential and nine commercial wells within a half-mile radius of the facility due to the potential for groundwater contamination. Heating up: Scientists say human-caused climate change added an average of 41 days of dangerous heat worldwide in 2024. The analysis from World Weather Attribution and Climate Central comes after a year likely to be the world’s hottest on record. |
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Thanks for starting your year with the Morning Briefing. You're in the right place! As always, you can catch the latest Michigan news at MLive.com. If you value the work of our journalists, consider becoming a subscriber. Happy New Year! — Cara Hackett |
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