By AP

HAZEL PARK, MI – A two-mile stretch of Interstate 75 just north of Detroit remains closed as authorities investigate a fuel tanker explosion and overpass collapse.

Police say I-75 in both directions is indefinitely closed between Interstate 696 and 8 Mile Road. Drivers are being encouraged to use Woodward Avenue as an alternate route.

Michigan State Police Lt. Shannon Sims says three drivers suffered minor injuries in the explosion and fire Wednesday night.

By AP

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – Federal officials are preparing for a series of public meetings to discuss President Barack Obama's Great Lakes restoration initiative.

Obama requested $475 million in his 2010 budget for the plan. Among its goals are cleaning up contaminated river bottoms, restoring wildlife habitat, preventing runoff and erosion, and preventing more exotic species invasions.

The public sessions begin Tuesday in Milwaukee. Seven others are planned in cities around the region.

By AP

LANSING, MI – Advocates for the state museum and library have told a state Senate committee that they don't like the governor's plan to split up the state's cultural treasures.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm issued an executive order Monday closing the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries and splitting its functions among seven other departments and some outside groups, including possibly Michigan State University.

By Rick Pluta, Michigan Public Radio Network

LANSING, MI – Michigan's unemployment rate jumped by more than a full percentage point in June to 15.2%

AUDIO:
The state Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth says manufacturing job losses were the chief cause of Michigan's worsening jobless rate. But the ranks of jobseekers also grew as people sought seasonal employment.

By Laura Weber, Michigan Public Radio Network

EAST LANSING, MI – State House Speaker Andy Dillon is expected to propose a statewide insurance pool Wednesday. The plan would eliminate independent insurance providers for state workers, such as MESSA, the provider for Michigan teachers.

State Superintendent Michael Flanagan supports a statewide insurance plan. He says it would save Michigan a lot of money.

By AP

EAST LANSING, MI – About 25 college students rallied at Michigan State University on Wednesday in support of a state-funded scholarship that helps them pay tuition bills.

The Michigan Senate has voted to eliminate funding for the Michigan Promise scholarship in the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm wants to save at least a portion of the program that now provides up to $4,000 per student.

By AP

LANSING, MI – Advocates for the state museum and library have told a state Senate committee that they don't like the governor's plan to split up the state's cultural treasures.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm issued an executive order Monday closing the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries and splitting its functions among seven other departments and some outside groups, including possibly Michigan State University.

By Rick Pluta, Michigan Public Radio Network

LANSING, MI – Part of Michigan's response to the foreclosure crisis is a new law that gives homeowners the chance to freeze for 90 days any action to repossess houses or condominiums. The idea is to give borrowers who've hit a rough patch a chance to renegotiate the terms of their loans, and, hopefully, keep them in their homes.

Audio:

By AP

LANSING, MI – Advocates for the state museum and library have told a state Senate committee that they don't like the governor's plan to split up the state's cultural treasures.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm issued an executive order Monday closing the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries and splitting its functions among seven other departments and some outside groups, including possibly Michigan State University.

By AP

DETROIT – A medical researcher is testing newly developed eye drops as a protection for U.S. soldiers against the blinding effects of some chemical weapons.

Dr. Gabriel Sosne is an associate professor at Wayne State University's medical school. He's working with Bethesda, Md.-based RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals Inc. and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense to evaluate the drops as protection from the blinding effects of mustard gas and similar chemicals.