Economy

Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson have reached a settlement with the electric carmaker Tesla that will make it easier for Michigan customers to buy their vehicles.

WKAR’s Scott Pohl discusses the deal with Matt DeLorenzo, senior managing editor at Kelley Blue Book. He says Tesla had essentially been banned from doing direct sales in Michigan before this agreement.

Last week, General Motors announced plans to close three production plants and phase out models like the Impala and the electric Volt.

The Lansing area’s two GM plants were spared, but what might the future hold for local production?

Micheline Maynard is a veteran journalist and author who has written extensively about the Detroit carmakers.

Nearly half of the food in the United States gets thrown away. Science writer Sheril Kirshenbaum and WKAR All Things Considered host Karel Vega discuss food waste: its impact on the environment and economy, and ways to reduce it.

The state treasurer says caution should be the watchword as the Legislature develops plans to deal with a glitch in the federal tax overhaul. If they don’t that glitch could cost Michigan taxpayers more in state income taxes.

As we hear from Michigan Public Radio’s Rick Pluta, there are differences among Republicans on what should happen next.

A downturn in the economy would quickly drain the state’s “rainy day” savings. Michigan Public Radio’s Rick Pluta tells us that’s the determination of an independent analysis.

The East Lansing ballot proposals had a mixed result yesterday. A proposal to cut property taxes was approved, but a measure to create an income tax in the city failed. Because of that, the property tax cut will not go into effect unless an income tax gets voter approval in the future.