Lauren Talley

A divided Flint city council finally passed a budget for the 2022 fiscal year early Tuesday morning after more than 10 hours of debate.

The 5-4 vote means the city of Flint will avoid a government shutdown. 

The council had already missed a city charter-mandated deadline to pass a budget last week.

The resolution came after the council voted unanimously to accept nearly $95 million in COVID relief money from the federal government.

A new summer pricing program for Consumers Energy customers is now in effect. It's an attempt to shift demand for electricity at peak times.

From 2 to 7 p.m. on weekdays, electricity will cost 50% more – or about $0.15 per kilowatt hour – for residential customers. That’s up from $0.10 per kilowatt hour Consumers charges during non-peak hours. That's the same rate charged during rest of the year. Consumers says that could mean a roughly $2 increase on most monthly bills.

Michigan’s 16 electoral votes will be formally awarded Monday to President-elect Joe Biden in a ceremony at the state Capitol. Other U.S. states and territories also convene their Electoral Colleges on Monday.

Update: 9:00 a.m., December 14 The state House and Senate office buildings in Lansing are closed because of "safety and security concerns."

A spokeswoman for Senate Majority leader Mike Shirkey said law enforcement recommended they close offices based on "credible threats of violence."

Many Michiganders are still without power Monday.

As of noon Monday, DTE Energy is reporting just under 125,000 thousand customers without electricity spread throughout its service area. That’s down from a high of about 285,000 on Sunday.

DTE says the rains and strong winds caused extensive tree damage and the company is working to repair more than 1,800 downed lines. 

One of Michigan's largest hospital systems is raising its minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Beaumont Health operates eight hospitals in Michigan. It joins Henry Ford and Trinity health systems, who raised their minimum wages last month. The wage bump comes as cases of COVID-19 accelerate across the state.

Resident advisors at the University of Michigan are ending their strike after nearly two weeks.

Members voted late Monday night to accept an offer from U of M's housing department.

We’re happy to announce ResStaff has accepted an offer from UM Housing, and our strike will be ending effective 7am on Tuesday, September 22nd. We’d like to thank everyone that supported us during our strike, especially GEO, AFT, our regents, our LT, & everyone on campus (1/2)

Kalamazoo Public Safety Chief Karianne Thomas is resigning.

Her resignation comes after criticism of how the department has handled Black Lives Matter protests, including how officers responded to a Proud Boys rally on August 15 where members of the far-right hate group violently clashed with counter protesters.

The University of Michigan has put voluntary summer workouts for four sports on hold.

In a statement, the U of M athletic department says it made the decision because of positive COVID-19 test results and contact tracing protocols.

Oakland County has won an appeal in a lawsuit brought by inmates in the county jail. The lawsuit was related to conditions at the Oakland County jail during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the lawsuit, inmates said they weren’t provided soap and disinfectant to clean surfaces and shared items, and that it was impossible to follow social distancing guidelines.

Most Michiganders will have to wait a little longer before they can return to exercising inside a gym.

A three-judge panel from the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling late Wednesday night siding with Governor Gretchen Whitmer's decision to keep gyms closed in 66 counties across lower Michigan.

An effort to recall Governor Gretchen Whitmer can proceed, but it'll be an uphill climb to get enough signatures to get the recall effort on the ballot.

The bipartisan Board of State Canvassers unanimously approved the petition language Monday.

Albion resident Chad Baase is behind the petition.

The city of Ann Arbor plans to become carbon neutral over the next 10 years. Ann Arbor City Council voted unanimously early Tuesday morning to adopt guidelines for community-wide carbon neutrality by 2030.

The A2 Zero Carbon Neutrality plan would significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and offset the remaining emissions so that the community's overall carbon output is zero.

Hiring and spending freezes are now in effect for Wayne County government. That’s under a new order signed by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans.

Wayne County officials forecast a revenue loss of at least $152 million because of the economic shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Drivers whose licenses would otherwise expire during Michigan's COVID-19 emergency declaration get a reprieve under a new executive order signed Monday by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. 

A fourth Michigan healthcare worker has died of complications from COVID-19. It's the first coronavirus-related death of a healthcare worker outside of Detroit.

Patrick Cain died on Saturday. He worked as a nurse in the intensive care unit at Flint's McLaren Hospital.

Kelly Indish is president of Local 875 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. It's the union that represents McLaren nurses.

In an email to Michigan Radio, she wrote that, “Our hearts are heavy right now at McLaren Flint.”

As cases of coronavirus rise in Michigan, the state's courts now must limit the number of people inside courtrooms to 10 to practice social distancing.

That's according to an order issued by the state Supreme Court Wednesday.

The highest-ranking elected official at the University of Michigan says he too was abused by the late sports physician Robert Anderson.

That's according to an exclusive interview with the Detroit News.

Ron Weiser is the chairman of the University of Michigan's Board of Regents.

A relatively dry February in Michigan still produced record-setting monthly water levels in four out of the five Great Lakes.

That's bad news for residents living along the state's coastlines, where shoreline erosion continues.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers tracks lake levels on a weekly basis.

State officials report a fourth person has died from lung injuries due to vaping.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human services says it was notified Wednesday about the death of an adult female.

Another former UAW official has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in the ongoing corruption investigation of the union.

A judge sentenced Michael Grimes to 28 months in prison. That’s longer than what prosecutors requested.

Michigan State University has a new football coach. The school announced Wednesday that Mel Tucker will replace Mark Dantonio next season.

Dantonio retired from MSU last week after 13 seasons with the school. Tucker was previously the head coach at the University of Colorado.

Update 9:03 a.m. Friday, January 31: Michigan State Police says all 911 dispatch centers across the state are up and running.

A "fiber optic technical issue" affected a number of emergency phone lines early this morning.

MSP says Peninsula Fiber Network, LLC is investigating the cause of the outage.

Detroit Metro Airport is taking extra precaution by screening some passengers for the deadly coronavirus.

That's after the number of confirmed cases in China rose to nearly 6,000 as of Wednesday morning. The death toll is now at 132.

DTW is among 20 airports around the country that recently began testing.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig is investigating a sergeant who allegedly didn't respond to an incident last week where a fellow officer was fatally shot.

Craig says video shows the sergeant sat in a squad car when a call came in that two officers were shot during a home invasion investigation.

“I'm struggling with that decision,” Craig told reporters. “Now again he was in the area, but he was not managing the scene.”

Craig spoke to reporters after a vigil last night for officer Rasheen McClain that was held at Detroit's 12th precinct.

Kalamazoo police say a 14-year-old city resident posted the original online threat of violence that closed Kalamazoo’s Loy Norrix High School on Monday.