Newsletters & Publications

Many municipalities in Michigan have recently received requests from their cable operators to start formal cable franchise renewal procedures under the Federal Cable Act, 47 USC § 521 et seq. Although federal law sets renewal procedures that provide for extensive local review of franchise agreements, Michigan law prohibits such local review.

Governor Snyder recently signed into law several new laws, 2011 PA 258 to 263, that aim to remove confusion some felt existed in the current inter-governmental agreement laws and streamline how municipalities can work together to share services. They are designed to give municipal officials improved options when deciding how to spend their limited resources and in collaborating to provide desired services.

A summary of Foster Swift's events in 2011

Verizon Wireless sued the Town of Irondequoit (New York) in federal court in Buffalo over alleged inaction and unreasonable delays in deciding a wireless facilities application. 

The Michigan legislature was active in 2011, passing or amending several laws that will impact public sector labor relations.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires that the aggregate cost of "applicable employer-sponsored health coverage" be reported on an employee's Form W-2 beginning with the 2012 tax year.

Cities and villages have the power to legislate—that is, to make laws. Cities and villages exercise their legislative power by adopting or amending ordinances.

Selling property by land contract is often a viable option where conventional financing is not available. However, there can be risks associated with a land contract that are completely unrelated to the financial considerations. 

The use of hydraulic fracturing in oil and gas exploration has recently generated significant public debate.

The last few years have witnessed significant increases in workforce audits and raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") at all levels. Therefore, while proper I-9 compliance has always been important, it has never been more essential.

No one enters into a contract expecting it to go sour, but sometimes they do. While it is not possible at the time of contracting to anticipate and avoid every potential risk, strategies exist to help minimize exposure and avoid costs down the road.

The current national focus on developing alternative sources of energy has resulted in a dramatic increase in efforts to obtain leases and/or easements for the development of wind farms.

Most oil and gas leases proposed by oil companies provide for long primary terms and options that can double the primary term of a lease. The primary term is the initial period during which a well may be drilled.

The Michigan Supreme Court held in an opinion that the door of an automobile is not "equipment permanently mounted on the vehicle" for purposes of MCL 500.3106(1)(b) and clarified the meaning of "alighting" for MCL 500.3106(1)(c).

Documenting employee discipline is as important from a litigation defense perspective, as is counseling the employee in the first place to try to correct or improve job performance.

In response to political controversy surrounding the proposed new rules, a bill has been introduced in Congress (H.R. 3094) that would set minimum time periods for NLRB representation hearings and a 35-day minimum interval before balloting that are inconsistent with the board’s rulemaking proposal.

Companies that maintain ESOPs are legally required to provide enough cash to the ESOP to meet the distribution and diversification requirements of the ESOP (referred to as "Repurchase Obligation").

The IRS recently issued guidance that addresses the tax-free treatment of employer-provided cell phones.

All qualified retirement plans that are categorized as "Cycle A" plans must be restated and submitted to the IRS for approval on or before January 31, 2012.

For plan years prior to January 1, 2009, qualified retirement plans were required to attach Schedule SSA to Form 5500 to report information relating to terminated employees who had deferred vested benefits payable from the plan.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) recently signed a memorandum of understanding, agreeing that they will share information and coordinate law enforcement to end the practice of misclassifying employees as independent contractors.

In most instances absent an agreement with its secured creditors, the debtor will petition the court for permission to use cash collateral at the same time it files for bankruptcy.

On September 14, 2011, USDA APHIS announced that it would amend the boundaries of the bovine tuberculosis risk classification zones for Michigan.

On September 2, 2011, the Department of Labor (DOL) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to revise child labor regulations in agriculture.

On October 14, 2011, leaders of the Senate and House Agriculture Committees sent a letter to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (better known as the "Supercommittee") recommending a $23 billion cut to mandatory spending within the committees’ jurisdiction. 

There have been recent developments on SB 34 – and it’s good news for municipalities. But watch out for SB 618.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that Medicare is not limited to the portion of a settlement or verdict designated as for medical losses when seeking reimbursement under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act.

The Michigan Court of Appeals once again affirmed that an action may not be maintained under the common work area doctrine when the alleged danger does not expose a significant number of workers to a high degree of risk.

A recent decision by the Michigan Court of Appeals provides caution for contractors, subcontractors, laborers or suppliers seeking to file claims of lien on site condominium developments.

The Michigan Court of Appeals has provided guidance for use in calculating the amount to be paid for family-provided attendant care services in a No Fault case.

On October 20, 2011, the IRS issued a new Fact Sheet that provided additional information for exempt organizations on how their participation in the MSSP through an ACO would be treated by the IRS.

On November 10, 2011, the USDA announced that the Calhoun Conservation District was one of the 10 recipients of the USDA’s People’s Garden Grant Program.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson - "Based on my consideration of the scientific record, analysis provided by EPA scientists, and advice from the Clean Air Science Advisory Council, I am prepared to propose the retention--with no revision--of the current PM10 standard and form when it is sent to OMB for interagency review."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service prepared a study showing that farmers using combinations of erosion-control and nutrient-management practices on cultivated cropland are reducing the movement of sediment, nitrogen, and phosphorus from farm fields to the Great Lakes.

Michigan State University Extension is seeking applications for the 2012 "Breakfast on the Farm" program.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the grant recipients for fiscal year 2011 for the Farmers Market Promotion Program.

Green Meadow Farms, Inc. and Scenic View Dairy, LLC in Michigan both received funding for anaerobic digesters from the USDA’s Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels Program.

Effective December 1, 2011, the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure (FRBP) that govern filing a proof of claim will change dramatically.

On October 11, 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service produced a draft Environmental Impact Statement considering alternatives in response to Monsanto/KWS SAAT AG request for a determination of non-regulated status of its event H7-1 sugar beets.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan granted summary judgment against a no-fault insurer's defense that it needed the taxpayer identification number of the attendant care provider in order to have "reasonable proof" under MCL 500.5142(2).

Michigan's Health Insurance Claims Assessment Act was approved by Governor Snyder on September 20, 2011 and given immediate effect.

Michigan's legislature, like 15 other state legislatures, has proposed legislation to create its own insurance exchange.

The Michigan House Judiciary Committee approved a package of bills that would allow cities, townships, and villages to enforce the 2010 Super Drunk Law.

This case illustrates Michigan's leniency in regard to enforcement of releases.

Earlier this year, both Texas and Iowa amended their Equine Activity Liability Acts to broaden their scope beyond “equine activity” to “farm animal activity.”

The interesting new Michigan case of Price v. High Pointe Oil Company, could make you wonder whether the law is heading for change.

The IRS has announced the cost-of-living adjustments applicable to pension plan limitations for 2012.

Bond issuers should be aware that activities in the U.S. Congress may limit the value of tax-exempt interest to bondholders, with significant ramifications for municipal issuers.

Many municipalities rely heavily on personal property taxes for operating purposes. This bill would exempt all personal property from tax collection under the General Property Tax Act.

What do you do when an employee says he needs leave to care for his "significant other’s kids?"

The Department of Labor recently issued a final regulation that extends the applicability dates for the Service Provider Fee Disclosure and the Participant-Level Fee Disclosure Regulations.

The National Labor Relations Board published a controversial final rule requiring that all employers covered by the National Labor Relations Act post a notice detailing employees’ rights under the Act.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that equitable relief may be available to employees under ERISA Sec. 502(a)(3) to reform the terms of a pension plan in the event of a fiduciary breach.

Effective for the first plan year that begins on or after August 1, 2012 (January 1, 2013 for a calendar year plan), a non-grandfathered group health plan is required to provide certain preventive health services for women.

An I-9 audit can be triggered for a number of reasons, including random samples and reporting by disgruntled employees. Every employer should have a formal internal I-9 Compliance Policy detailing the employer’s exact policies and procedures.

The U.S. Department of Labor recently issued an interim policy regarding how an employer can electronically disclose to plan participants information that must be provided pursuant to the DOL’s Final Participant Level Fee Disclosure Regulation.

On September 24, 2011, Governor Snyder signed into law the Publicly Funded Health Insurance Contribution Act.

On September 24, 2011, Governor Snyder signed into law the Publicly Funded Health Insurance Contribution Act.

From commodity prices to the weather, uncertainty is a fact of life in agriculture. There is one essential factor for long term success, however, that a family farm can control – careful estate and succession planning.

Imagine the shock of returning to your farm from out of town only to learn that your prize bull became ill and died soon after you left.

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development announced that the Michigan Wheat Program was approved by wheat producers.

To be protected by the Michigan Right to Farm Act, farm operations must conform to GAAMPs.

The Michigan USDA Farm Service Agency recently posted a reminder about the Agriculture Foreign Investment Disclosure Act.

Is Social Media a viable substitute for a municipality having an official website?

Hospitals are required to create a community health needs assessment in order to be recognized, or continue being recognized, as a 501(c)(3) entity.

The federal government, through the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (“HITECH”) is pushing physicians and other health care professionals towards EHR by offering financial incentives and eventually imposing financial penalties.

When it has been appropriately implemented, the Michigan Exchange will play a vital role in opening health care access and insurance coverage for hundreds of thousands of Michigan citizens and their families.

In Henry Ford Health System v. Department of Health and Human Services, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a regulation promulgated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services which excluded from hospitals' Medicare reimbursements the time residents spent conducting pure research.

The Michigan Court of Appeals recently came through for employers, confirming that accessing inappropriate websites is misconduct that makes a former employee ineligible for unemployment insurance benefits.

Michigan Supreme Court held that a No Fault insured must show by "objective and verifiable medical evidence" that an experimental medical procedure is efficacious before the procedure can be found to be "reasonably necessary."

The Michigan Court of Appeals held that the Michigan Department of Education lacks authority to promulgate the State Aid Rules, which impose new conditions on public libraries' eligibility to receive critical state funding.

Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, and Twitter have become commonplace – not only on employees’ personal computers, but also on employers’ computers.

On July 20, 2011, Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation that changes the arbitration process and should result in more realistic agreements.

The Michigan Legislature has legislatively overruled Kyser and reinstated the "very serious consequences" rule.