11/04/2025

IRONWOOD – Today is election day throughout Michigan.  In Gogebic County, voters in the City of Ironwood will choose from a field of 9 candidates for 5 city council seats.  Those running include Mayor Kim Corcoran, Timothy Dean, Steve Frank, Lauren Korpi, Ryon List, Jim Mildren, Ashley Oliver-Igl, Ken Raush, and Garron Stenstrom.  In Marenisco Twp voters are being asked whether to renew the soon to expire tax limitation of 8 mills, levied for 6 years for the general operating purposes?  In the Ewen Trout Creek School District votes are being asked whether to continue to levy the statutory rate not exceeding 18 mills required for the district to receive its per pupil foundation allowance?  Polls are open now until 8pm central time. 

11/04/2025

GOGEBIC COUNTY - Gogebic Ontonagon County Head Start, serving low-income families with three- and four-year-olds, has temporarily closed due to the government shutdown. Director Renee Pertile says the shutdown prevents grant processing, delaying November 1st funding needed for staff and operations. The program, which offers meals, school readiness, family support, and health services, impacts dozens of Western U.P. families. Pertile’s team is connecting families with other resources, and a church is fundraising. Reopening may be delayed even after the shutdown due to continued grant processing issues. Families will be updated and won’t need to re-enroll.

11/04/2025

MICHIGAN - Michigan’s child poverty rate has climbed to 10-percent, according to a new report – and it suggests that without the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, it would rise to 13-percent. The Annie E. Casey Foundation report – called "Measuring Access to Opportunity in the United States" – says programs like federal food assistance and tax credits have been vital lifelines for families, helping to prevent even deeper hardship across the state. Anne Kuhnen is Kids Count policy director for the Michigan League for Public Policy.

                    0:13  "It certainly shows that with a lot of these policy choices that we have, that can have a real impact on child poverty. Child poverty declines when families have access to the resources that they need."

The report uses what’s known as the Supplemental Poverty Measure, or S-P-M. Advocates say it's a more realistic look at what families actually face. It factors in child care, housing and medical costs, and adjusts for living expenses that vary across the country.