Michigan
State Government
Governor
Gretchen Whitmer (D)
State Senate
20
Democrats,
18
Republicans
State House
56
Democrats,
54
Republicans
Economic well-being - Michigan
Extreme poverty rate
0.1
Food insecurity
0.2
Minimum wage
12.5
Percent of working families under 200% of the poverty line
0.3
Poverty rate
13.4%
Unemployment rate
5.2
Number of Black or African American children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Number of Hispanic or Latino children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Percent of individuals who are uninsured
5.1
Poverty by demographic - Michigan
Child poverty rate
0.2
Number of Asian and Pacific Islander children below 200% poverty
18000
Number of Black or African American children below 200% poverty
193000
Number of Hispanic or Latino children below 200% poverty
89000
Senior poverty rate
10.6 %
Women in poverty
5,034,424
Detroit Free Press, February 26, 2015: (Editorial) School funding should help all poor kids, not just some
"Republican governors like Michigan's Rick Snyder and presidential candidates like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush keep talking about the need to address poverty a welcomed pivot in a party whose policies tend to pretend poor people either don't matter or got that way on purpose and don't deserve help."
MLive, February 19, 2015: Poverty rates up sharply for kids in West Michigan
"Ottawa County was tied for first in a state ranking of child well-being, and Kent County came in 26th place. However, both counties saw dramatic increases in the number of children living in poverty, according to the Kids Count in Michigan report by the Michigan League for Public Policy."
MLive, February 3, 2015: 6 facts about Michigan's low-income students and 6 interventions proven to work
"The achievement gap between middle-class and low-income students is readily evident when looking at Michigan's test scores, graduation rates and other academic outcomes. For instance, Michigan fourth-graders from low-income families were only half as likely to test proficient in math in 2013-14 compared to their middle-class and affluent peers."
MLive, January 7, 2015: About 100 jobs, alternative to nursing homes for low-income seniors on the way to Jackson in 2016
"A Chelsea-based retirement senior living and service group is bringing nursing-home level care to elderly residents in Jackson, Lenawee and Hillsdale counties. United Methodist Retirement Communities Inc. announced Wednesday, Jan. 7, plans to create the Cascade Program for All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE)."
MLive, January 6, 2015: Low-income students seeing huge cost hikes at some Michigan universities
"Michigan's poorest college students are bearing the brunt of cost increases at some state public universities, decreasing the chances Michigan's most vulnerable students will earn degrees. Over a recent four-year period, six of the state's 15 public universities increased the net cost of attendance for their poorest students those from families earning less than $30,000 a year more than for their wealthier classmates."
Lansing State Journal, November 19, 2014: Digital bus to serve Lansing's low-income population
"A souped-up bus will bring 3-D printing, robotics and digital design instruction to Lansing's low-income areas as early as next summer. By August 2015, the Techtransport bus is expected to bring the nonprofit Information Technology Empowerment Center's classes to local communities whose residents can't afford Internet service. ITEC showed off the donated bus at a gathering Tuesday at the Foster Community Center."