We’re pleased to feature this blog co-written by Fiscal Policy Analyst Nicholas Hess and Economic Security Policy Analyst Patrick Schaefer.
Nicholas Hess
Patrick Schaefer
Affordability is one of the most pressing concerns facing Michiganders today. The rising costs of essentials, coupled with stagnating wages, have created an economy that is out of reach, unfair and unsecure. Inflation-adjusted median wages in Michigan have only grown 3.9% since 1978, compared to 33% for the richest 1%. The good news is that we have solutions we know work well; the bad news is that counterproductive approaches are taking up the spotlight. What Michigan needs are policies that promote wage growth and create a fair and sufficient tax code.
Affordability means different things to different people, but at its core, it’s how secure people feel about their finances. What makes people feel that life is affordable for them is creating an economy that is inclusive, fair, and that provides financial security. While lowering costs is necessary, boosting incomes for families with middle and low incomes is a far more effective and practical solution.
One way we can help workers with low incomes become more financially secure is by making the minimum wage a living wage. This means a full-time worker can afford food, shelter, medicine, and transportation, and have a little bit to save at the end of the month. Next year, the minimum wage is set to increase to $15 an hour, but 26.3% of Michiganders are working and still struggling to make ends meet. A $15 minimum wage is not enough to support most working Michiganders. Wages must be boosted.
We can also help support working Michiganders more broadly by supporting union growth across the state. In 1979, nearly 40% of Michiganders were represented by a union; this number has plummeted to 14.2%. As the number of organized workers in the state fell, inequality increased along both race and income levels. Increasing union representation helps increase wages sector-wide. Analysis shows that if Michigan’s union representation rate increased to 30%, it could increase full-time wages by $6,400 per year — a welcome pay increase for Michigan families.
In addition to these pro-labor policies, Michigan needs pro-tax policies that lower poverty, reduce inequality and help pay for public programs. In 2019, government transfers, including programs like Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and cash benefit programs, comprised over 45% of disposable income for the bottom 60% of households in Michigan. In fact, if it were not for these transfers, inequality and poverty would be worse today than it already is. Despite the value of these programs, anti-tax advocates are claiming that taxes are a source of unaffordability rather than a solution.
But taxes here in Michigan are not a main contributor to the affordability crisis. In fact, Michiganders pay less in taxes than residents of 38 other states, including all of the Great Lakes states.
In fact, we currently pay less in taxes than we did in the past. If we taxed ourselves the same as we did in 2000, we would collect $14 billion in additional revenue. History shows low-tax policies make life more unaffordable because they require spending cuts to households with middle and low incomes to offset the loss in tax revenue. In addition to rising costs due to the Iran war and trade policy, federal tax cuts have increased the cost of living for nearly every group in Michigan, except the top 1%. The bottom 20% alone saw their cost of living increase by 4.5%, and they already pay a higher tax rate than the top 1%.
The cost of raising children has become a major financial hurdle for Michigan families, and tax credits can help families clear this hurdle. Cash programs like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC) account for over a third of all federal spending toward children, and when expanded in 2021, the CTC reduced Michigan child poverty by 73.3%. In 2024, over 1.5 million Michigan families claimed the CTC, putting $3.4 billion back into the state economy. In addition to the CTC, Michigan expanded the state’s EITC in 2023, with households being able to claim up to 30% of the federal credit. In 2025, 14% of households — 651,000 families — claimed the state EITC with an average credit of $890, which put $582 million back into Michigan communities.
The solution to the affordability crisis is not just more tax revenue, but a tax system that makes all Michiganders, especially the wealthiest, pay their fair share. Instead of simply filling budget holes, lawmakers should see this as an opportunity to craft our tax code to support Michigan families.
Michigan policymakers have a lot of power, and an overdue responsibility, to raise the incomes of its residents by passing policies that are pro-labor and pro-tax, instead of lining the pockets of the richest households and major corporations. Anti-tax policies and anti-labor measures are two sides of the same coin — both compound the ramifications of the other, leading to higher costs and higher inequity overall. This is an opportunity to reverse course towards a direction where public investments work for all.
If you would like to read more about this, The Michigan League for Public Policy has released two new reports on how Michigan can tackle the affordability crisis:
Maisha Massey is a Detroit native, educator, researcher and advocate committed to creating more equitable experiences for young people and the communities that support them. She currently teaches 11th-grade English Language Arts in Detroit Public Schools Community District and serves as a TeachMichigan Michigan Education Policy Fellow. Maisha holds a master’s degree in Educational Leadership and is currently pursuing her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Wayne State University, where her research centers the experiences of Black girls in schools. Her work is grounded in the belief that meaningful policy should be informed by the voices and lived experiences of the students, educators and communities most impacted by it.
Betsy Zobl-Tar 
Jay Cutler joined the League in March 2026 as the Kids Count Senior Data Analyst, where he collects, analyzes, and prepares data for Kids Count in Michigan.
Danielle Taylor-Basemore joined the League as the Development Data and Stewardship Coordinator in June 2025. She brings with her five years of nonprofit experience with a special focus on community engagement, data visualization and strategic programming. Prior to joining the League, Danielle served as the Business District, Safety, and Digital Manager at Jefferson East, Inc.
Scott Preston is a Senior Policy Analyst with the Michigan League for Public Policy, where he leads the organization’s immigration and criminal justice reform portfolios. In the three years prior to joining the League, Scott facilitated the Southeast Michigan Refugee Collaborative and managed a small business economic development program at Global Detroit. His work included launching Michigan’s first Refugee Film Festival and building on a trusted connector model that linked marginalized communities with crucial resources. Scott’s work at the League is informed by his background in journalism and research. He spent four years covering the Syrian refugee crisis in the Middle East for publications such as The Economist, and later worked with unaccompanied refugee minors through Samaritas. Scott holds a master’s degree in international migration and public policy from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Kate Powers joined the League as the Chief Development Officer in February 2025. Prior to joining the League, Kate held leadership positions at many Michigan nonprofit organizations, most recently serving as the COO and Chief Development Officer of Ele’s Place. Kate has spent the bulk of her career in fundraising, with a short stint in the state Legislature as a legislative aide to members in both chambers. Kate is a graduate of Michigan State University’s James Madison College with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Relations and has a certificate in fundraising management from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University. Additionally, Kate served on the East Lansing Public Schools Board of Education and is a past President of the Junior League of Lansing. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her husband and her son and saving outfit of the day and home decor ideas on Pinterest. 
Nicholas Hess joined the League as the Fiscal Policy Analyst in September of 2024. In this role, Nicholas focuses on tax policy, government revenue, and their impact on working families and racial equity, including the effects of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC). Nicholas values the role that judicious fiscal policy can play in the improvement of people’s lives and the economy, alleviating inequities along the way.
Audrey Matusz joined the League as the Visual Communications Specialist in September 2024. She supports the team with implementing social media strategies and brainstorming creative ways to talk about public policy. She brings with her nearly a decade of experience in producing digital products for evidence-based social justice initiatives. 
Jacob Kaplan 
Donald Stuckey 
Alexandra Stamm 
Amari Fuller
Mikell Frey is a communications professional with a passion for using the art of storytelling to positively impact lives. She strongly believes that positive social change can be inspired by the sharing of data-driven information coupled with the unique perspectives of people from all walks of life across Michigan, especially those who have faced extraordinary barriers. 
Yona Isaacs (she/hers) is an Early Childhood Data Analyst for the Kids Count project. After earning her Bachelor of Science in Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan, she began her career as a research coordinator in pediatric psychiatry using data to understand the impacts of brain activity and genetics on children’s behavior and mental health symptoms. This work prompted an interest in exploring social determinants of health and the role of policy in promoting equitable opportunities for all children, families, and communities. She returned to the University of Michigan to complete her Masters in Social Work focused on Social Policy and Evaluation, during which she interned with the ACLU of Michigan’s policy and legislative team and assisted local nonprofit organizations in creating data and evaluation metrics. She currently serves as a coordinator for the Michigan Center for Youth Justice on a project aiming to increase placement options and enhance cultural competency within the juvenile justice system for LGBTQIA+ youth. Yona is eager to put her data skills to work at the League in support of data-driven policies that advocate for equitable access to healthcare, education, economic security, and opportunity for 0-5 year old children. In her free time, she enjoys tackling DIY house projects and trying new outdoor activities with her dog.
Rachel Richards rejoined the League in December 2020 as the Fiscal Policy Director working on state budget and tax policies. Prior to returning to the League, she served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Michigan Department of Treasury, the tax policy analyst and Legislative Director for the Michigan League for Public Policy, and a policy analyst and the Appropriations Coordinator for the Democratic Caucus of the Michigan House of Representatives. She brings with her over a decade of experience in policies focused on economic opportunity, including workforce issues, tax, and state budget.
Simon Marshall-Shah joined the Michigan League for Public Policy as a State Policy Fellow in August 2019. His work focuses on state policy as it relates to the budget, immigration, health care and other League policy priorities. Before joining the League, he worked in Washington, D.C. at the Association for Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP), providing federal policy and advocacy support to nonprofit, Medicaid health plans (Safety Net Health Plans) related to the ACA Marketplaces as well as Quality & Operations.
Renell Weathers, Michigan League for Public Policy (MLPP) Community Engagement Consultant. As community engagement consultant, Renell works with organizations throughout the state in connecting the impact of budget and tax policies to their communities. She is motivated by the belief that all children and adults deserve the opportunity to achieve their dreams regardless of race, ethnicity, religion or economic class.
Emily Jorgensen joined the Michigan League for Public Policy in July 2019. She deeply cares about the well-being of individuals and families and has a great love for Michigan. She is grateful that her position at the League enables her to combine these passions and work to help promote policies that will lead to better opportunities and security for all Michiganders.
Megan Farnsworth joined the League’s staff in December 2022 as Executive Assistant. Megan is driven by work that is personally fulfilling, and feels honored to help support the work of an organization that pushes for more robust programming and opportunities for the residents of our state. She’s excited and motivated to gain overarching knowledge of the policies and agendas that the League supports.
