News & Stories

Open Letter to Northern Michigan Policymakers

Image description: Logos of Community Development Coalition members that signed onto this open letter, representing business, nonprofit, and governmental sectors across the region.

Dear Northern Michigan Policymakers:

Northern Michigan business, nonprofit, and local government leaders have been closely following recent federal executive orders, funding recessions, tariffs, and proposed congressional spending cuts and share deep concerns that these actions will hurt our region’s efforts to create jobs, build housing, support local farmers and veterans, sustain a vibrant arts and culture community, and protect the Great Lakes.

Regardless of where one stands politically, certain facts are undeniable: recent executive orders, the cancellation of congressionally approved federal grants and the administration’s tariffs are already having a negative impact on our region. Additional spending cuts and tax policies contained in major legislation pending before Congress are projected to further harm our region’s economy, environment and communities. Consider the following:

Medicaid Cuts: The Congressional Budget Office projects more than 10.3 million Americans will lose health insurance coverage, and 7.6 million will go uninsured, based on budget legislation pending in Congress. Rural areas like ours will be especially hard hit and the loss in coverage will impact our most vulnerable residents including seniors, children, pregnant women, and individuals with disabilities. In Northern Michigan alone, Medicaid covers nearly 70,000 people and nearly half of births at Munson Healthcare facilities. Rural healthcare systems like ours could face job losses and reduction in patient services.
SNAP Cuts: Across the five-county Northern Michigan region, 14% of our neighbors experience food insecurity and 40% of households struggle to make ends meet. In April alone, more than 14,000 people received food assistance. SNAP cuts would be far reaching: children, older adults, veterans, people with disabilities, and families with low incomes would face deeper food insecurity and small grocers, rural economies, and local food systems would suffer.
USDA Rural Development Cuts: A proposed $721 million reduction to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development programs would deeply affect funding for health clinics, daycare centers, rural broadband, business grants, and both single-family and rental housing assistance.
Great Lakes Safety, Management, and Infrastructure Cuts: The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), which has funded thousands of land, air, and water conservation efforts and economic development projects, is facing severe cuts. An overall 55% cut to the EPA budget would also gut water infrastructure programs that ensure clean drinking water and prevent sewage overflows and flooding. Other key agencies like NOAA, the Interior Department (including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and U.S. Geological Survey, and the United States Department of Agriculture are also slated for major reductions—jeopardizing the health of the Great Lakes and the economies like ours that rely on them; fisheries, agriculture, and tourism to name a few.
Tariff Impacts: Tariffs are already harming Northern Michigan businesses. A recent Northern Michigan Chamber Alliance survey found that 52% of over 200 respondents expect a significant negative impact; 44% foresee a major drop in revenue in the next year; and only 1.4% anticipate a positive impact on employment, which would hinder business growth. Rising costs of materials, packaging, and imports are cited as the primary concerns.
Nonprofit Sector Threatened: Nearly 5,000 people in our region are employed by nonprofits. A Community Foundation survey found that 55% of local nonprofits rely on federal grants, and 85% say proposed federal spending cuts would disrupt their services. New tax proposals also threaten foundation endowments and their freedom to invest in local communities and local solutions related to housing, veterans services, youth mental health, arts, and education and could allow the IRS to revoke nonprofit status, impacting access to critical services for local individuals and families.
Federal Program Rescissions: The federal Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) decision to rescind congressionally approved spending is already being felt. Layoffs of federal workers living in the region, halted AmeriCorps service programs, National Endowment for the Arts grant reductions, and the suspension of a three-year rural broadband and workforce development initiative are all impacting Northern Michigan nonprofits and communities.
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP): The president’s budget proposes to zero-out funding for the LIHEAP program which provides heating and cooling assistance for low-income households. In Michigan, over 400,000 families depended on this program to help cover their heating bills.

There’s an old saying: when Michigan’s economy catches a cold, Northern Michigan gets pneumonia. Lawmakers at all levels—federal, state, and local—must recognize that current policy and funding choices from Washington disproportionately harm rural regions across the country, including communities across our region. The impact of these decisions is not abstract—they are affecting real people and communities, and their consequences will be felt for years to come. We encourage the people and families who call Northern Michigan home to reach out to their elected representatives at all levels of government, ask questions and express your concerns.

Sincerely,

Gina Aranki – Child and Family Services of Northwestern Michigan

Lander Bachert – Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center

Jennifer Berkey – Michigan State University (MSU) Extension

Yarrow Brown – Housing North

Harry Burkholder – Traverse City Downtown Development Authority

Dan Buron – Goodwill Northern Michigan

Warren Call – Traverse Connect

Nick Ceglarek - Northwest Education Services

Julie Clark – Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation Trails (TART Trails)

Brandie Ekren – Traverse City Light & Power

Cindy Evans – Grand Traverse Industries

Jessica Forster – Spiritual Activists Leading Together (SALT) Coalition

Ashley Halliday-Schmandt – Northwest Michigan Coalition to End Homelessness

Sara Harding – Cherry Republic

Amanda and Brad Kik – Crosshatch Center for Art & Ecology

David Mengebier – Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation

Nick Nissley – Northwestern Michigan College

Sarna Salzman – SEEDS Ecology & Education Centers

Tina Schuett - Rare Bird Brewpub/Pour for More

Jill Sill – Norte Youth Cycling

Sakura Takano – Rotary Charities of Traverse City

Elizabeth Vogel – The City of Traverse City