Mackinac Center for Public Policy

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The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a state-level conservative policy think tank in Michigan. Founded in 1987, it is the largest state-level think tank in the nation. It was established by the state's leading conservative activists to promote free market, pro-business policies. The Center voices its policy positions though publications and has moved beyond Michigan by helping the leaders of similar conservative institutions to improve their operations in many other states and countries around the world. It is a member of the State Policy Network, a network of "free market" state think tanks in all 50 states. The organization has drawn fire for its advocacy of right wing positions. Leading academics have criticized the Center, saying that "Mackinac Center research is often of low quality and because of this it should be treated with considerable skepticism by the public, policy makers and political leaders. Much of the work of the Mackinac Center may have caused more confusion than clarity in the public discussion of the issues that it has addressed by systematically ignoring evidence that does not agree with its proposed solutions."

Ties to the American Legislative Council

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy has been active in many of "task forces" of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC):

• Senior Fellow in Environmental and Regulatory Policy Russ Harding is a member of the Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force.
• Paul Kersey, who was director of labor policy at the Mackinac Center from September 2007 to May 2012, is a member of the Commerce, Insurance and Economic Development Task Force. Kersey represented the Mackinac Center at ALEC's 2012 Spring Task Force Summit. He presented three pieces of model legislation to the task force: the “Financial Accountability for Public Employee Unions Act,” the “Election Accountability for Municipal Employees Act,” and the “Decertification Elections Act.”
• Jack McHugh represented the Mackinac Center for Public Policy on the Health and Human Services Task Force at ALEC's annual meeting and States and Nations Policy Summit, both in 2010, and at the Spring 2011 Task Force Summit.
• Director of Education Policy Michael Van Beek has represented the center on the Education Task Force.
• Assistant Director of Fiscal Policy James Hohman represents Mackinac on the Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force.

The Mackinac Center also has ties to ALEC through its membership with the State Policy Network, which supports ALEC.

Please see SPN Ties to ALEC for more.

About ALEC

ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporations hand state legislators their wishlists to benefit their bottom line. Corporations fund almost all of ALEC's operations. They pay for a seat on ALEC task forces where corporate lobbyists and special interest reps vote with elected officials to approve “model” bills. Learn more at the Center for Media and Democracy's ALECexposed.org, and check out breaking news on our PRWatch.org site.

Freedom Of Information Act Requests

In March 2011, as protests over Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's proposal to effectively end public sector collective bargaining continued to grow in Wisconsin, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy issued Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for three Michigan Universities, the University of Michigan, Wayne State University and Michigan State University. The request targeted any emails containing: “collective bargaining,” “Wisconsin,” “Madison,” “Scott Walker” or “Maddow.” The requests target labor studies faculty at each school. USA Today wrote that Mackinac's "demands for professors' e-mails about Wisconsin's public employee labor strife is causing an uproar among some who suggest the Freedom of Information Act requests aim to intimidate pro-labor dissenters and stifle academic freedom."

The FOIA request was very similar to one submitted by the Republican Party of Wisconsin to University of Wisconsin-Madison historian William J. Cronon during the same week, after the professor had published a blog post questioning the role of the American Legislative Exchange Council in Governor Walker's anti-union legislation. Paul Krugman of the New York Times wrote " there’s a clear chilling effect when scholars know that they may face witch hunts whenever they say things the G.O.P. doesn’t like."

Like the Wisconsin GOP's request for Cronon's emails, Mackinac's request posed some concerns for university professors because the request could be an attempt to quell political opposition. In a New York Times article, Director of Academic Freedom for the American Association of University Professors, Greg Scholtz, said, “We think all this will have a chilling effect on academic freedom. We’ve never seen FOIA requests used like this before.”

Involvement in 2011 Financial Manager Legislation

In 2005, the Center published a paper arguing an emergency financial manager with extremely broad powers should take control of the finances of Detroit, long plagued by budgetary problems. The Center advocated four major policy changes. The policies advocated by the Center included that the manager should "replace and take on the powers of the governing body", have the power to alter the charter of a municipality or district, and be immune from litigation. Binding arbitration for union contracts after failed re-negotiation would also be abolished, allowing the manager the power to opt out of the use of union labor at the end of a union's contract . All four of these changes were proposed in controversial legislation introduced by newly elected governor Rick Snyder in 2011.

Climate Change Denial and Opposition to Renewable Energy

Mackinac has also called research on anthropogenic global warming a "pseudoscience," citing well-known climate change deniers Patrick J. Michaels and Robert C. Balling as evidence that the science behind global warming is falsified. Mackinac has also advocated that Michigan lower its renewable portfolio standards (RPS) requirements to zero, citing Solyndra as an example of the unreliability of renewable energy. The Michigan RPS is 10 percent by 2015. On wind power, Mackinac's senior environmental policy analyst Russ Harding has stated, "It is a given that households will pay for wind power through higher energy bills," and "Michigan legislators should repeal the renewable energy standard."

Creation of the Overton Window

The Overton Window is a tool used to visualize policy positions along the political spectrum. It was invented by Joseph P. Overton, a Mackinac Center scholar and Vice President, in the mid-1990's and has "gained national currency" since 2003. In the Center's own description, it is designed to provide a spectrum which visualizes policies acceptable to the public with the various ends of the spectrum representing 'unthinkable' policies and the middle representing a policy that would be widely well received by the public. Any policy which would be deemed acceptable or desirable by the public is "in the window". The concept also holds that legislators can only act within the window out of their duty to constituents. According to the Center, the window is also finite and can be moved. The Center advocates action by think tanks and other non-political figures which would "shift the window", bringing policies that would once be thought of as radical or unthinkable into the realm of possibility, allowing legislators to enact them. Consequently, policies once looked upon acceptable or desirable would move out of favor with the public.

Education Activism

The Center has focused a great deal of its scholarly efforts on advancing school choice programs in Michigan, drawing great criticism for attacking teachers unions and public schools in the process. A 2002 study authored by three professors in the educational field, two from Columbia and another from Arizona State University, reviewed the Center's previous 11 years of work on education policy and found that "evidence presented in Mackinac Center studies is often weak and at times misleading." Continuing, they added that "it is hoped that this report has been helpful in revealing the shortcomings and the possible dangers inherent on basing public policy on the research of the Mackinac Center," and that the Center "is devoted to privatizing state institutions and to deregulating public education."

The report analyzed the quality of Mackinac Center studies by employing the numerical scale used to determine whether or scholarly material written and researched by professors in the education field could be published in various scholarly journals in the education field. It adjusted these criteria to allow for the differences between original research, interpretive research, opinion essays and administrative and legislative guides, all of which were genres published in education journals. The report found that only 1 report out of 22 appropriately addressed its topic matter.

History

The Mackinac Center was founded in 1987 with backing from the Cornerstone Foundation. According to a 2012 report by the Michigan Education Association, "The insurance industry (primarily Citizen’s) provided initial funding, amounting to $306,382 during this period. Various officials of Dow Corning and Dow Chemical paid $335,986."

"Its creation was driven by the insurance industry’s call for product liability reform, its interest in the Accident Fund, and by Dow Corning’s concern over silicone breast implant liability. . . .

"According to documents filed by the Center with the federal government, its activities are tax exempt because it is:

"'Conducting policy research on matters affecting Michigan residents and proposing approaches to public policy issues consistent with the traditional American values of free-markets, limited government, and respect for private property. . .'

"In order to retain this tax exempt status, the Center states that it has not:

"'… attempted to influence national, state, or local legislation, including any attempt to influence public opinion on a legislative matter or referendum.'"

The Mackinac Center is a member of the State Policy Network (SPN), a network of state-based think tanks patterned after the Heritage Foundation. Mackinac Center President Emeritus Lawrence Reed serves on the SPN Board of Directors.

Ties to the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy hosts writers from the ALEC-connected Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, which screens potential reporters on their “free market” views as part of the job application process. The Franklin Center funds reporters in over 40 states. Despite their non-partisan description, many of the websites funded by the Franklin Center have received criticism for their conservative bias. On its website, the Franklin Center claims it "provides 10 percent of all daily reporting from state capitals nationwide."

Franklin Center Funding

Franklin Center Director of Communications Michael Moroney told the Center for Public Integrity (CPI) in 2013 that the source of the Franklin Center's funding "is 100 percent anonymous." But 95 percent of its 2011 funding came from DonorsTrust, a spin-off of the Philanthropy Roundtable that functions as a large "donor-advised fund," cloaking the identity of donors to right-wing causes across the country (CPI did a review of Franklin's Internal Revenue Service records). Mother Jones called DonorsTrust "the dark-money ATM of the conservative movement" in a February 2013 article. Franklin received DonorTrust's second-largest donation in 2011.

The Franklin Center also receives funding from the Wisconsin-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, a conservative grant-making organization.

The Franklin Center was launched by the Chicago-based Sam Adams Alliance (SAM), a 501(c)(3) devoted to pushing free-market ideals. SAM gets funding from the State Policy Network, which is partially funded by The Claude R. Lambe Foundation. Charles Koch, one of the billionaire brothers who co-own Koch Industries, sits on the board of this foundation. SAM also receives funding from the Rodney Fund.

Personnel

Board of Directors

• Joseph Fitzsimmons
• Dulce Fuller (also chair of the Southeast Michigan Committee of the Heritage Foundation)
• Richard Haworth
• Kent Herrick, Vice Chairman
• J.C. Huizenga (Founder, National Heritage Academies)
• Phil Jenkins (Founder and CEO, Sweepster Inc.)
• R. Douglas Kinnan (Senior Vice President and CFO, Amerisure Insurance)
• Joseph Lehman, President (also on the board of directors of the Sam Adams Alliance, the advisory board of the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity, and former VP for communications at the Cato Institute; formerly of Dow Chemical)
• Edward Levy (President, Edward C. Levy Co.)
• Rodney Lockwood (Chairman/CEO, Lockwood Companies; board member, First Independence National Bank of Detroit; former Chairman of the Board, Michigan Housing Council)
• Joseph Maguire, Treasurer (President, Wolverine Development Corporation; board member, Michigan Chamber of Commerce)
• Richard McLellan, Secretary (McLellan Law Offices)
• D. Joseph Olson, Chairman Emeritus (Chairman from founding until end of 2012; Senior VP and Counsel - Government Relations, Amerisure Companies; former Michigan Commissioner of Insurance 1995-1997)
• Clifford Taylor, Chairman (former Michigan Supreme Court, 1997-2008)

Past board members include:

• Paul Gadola (Judge, Reagan Campaign Chair, Federalist Society)
• Mara M. Letica, Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Letica Corp
• Gail Torreano, Chief of Staff to Sen. Kevin Engler
• Lawrence W. Reed, Mackinac Center President Emeritus
• Margaret Riecker, Republican National Committee, Dow Foundation
• John Riecker, Hillsdale College and Comerica Bank, d. 2008
• Linda Rodney, managing partner at LK Rodney Enterprises, LLC.
• James Rodney, Chairman of the Board, Detroit Forming
• William Rosenberg , Bush Presidential Campaign, Reagan, Milliken and Engler administrations
• Robert Teeter, RNC Chairman, Pollster for Nixon, Ford, Bush campaign
• Philip Van Dam, US Attorney under Ford
• Gregory Kaza, Former Republican State Representative
• Dick DeVos, Amway, Republican Candidate for Governor
• Charles Van Eaton, Hillsdale College
• Peter Cook, Great Lakes Mazda, major Republican campaign donor
• Dick Antonini, Foremost Insurance

Policy Staff

• Dan Armstrong, Marketing and Communications Team Leader
• Lindsey Dodge, Editor
• Burton Folsom, Senior Fellow in Economic Education
• Tom Gantert, Senior Capitol Correspondent
• James Hohman, Assistant Director of Fiscal Policy
• Michael LaFaive, Director of the Morey Fiscal Policy Initiative
• Joseph Lehman, President
• David Littmann, Senior Economist
• Manny Lopez, Managing Editor, Michigan Capitol Confidential
• Jack McHugh, Senior Legislative Analyst
• Ted O’Neil, Media Relations Manager
• Lawrence Reed, President Emeritus
• Michael Reitz, Executive Vice President
• Anne Schieber, Senior Investigative Analyst
• Lorie Shane, Managing Director of Advancement
• Thomas Shull, Senior Director of Research Quality
• Jarrett Skorup, Research Associate for Online Engagement
• Audrey Spalding, Education Policy Analyst
• Jack Spencer, Capitol Affairs Specialist
• Michael Van Beek, Director of Education Policy
• F. Vincent Vernuccio, Director of Labor Policy
• Derk Wilcox, Senior Attorney
• Patrick Wright, Senior Legal Analyst

Other

Craig Rucker of CFACT is a Mackinac Adjunct Scholar.

Funding

Mackinac Center Revenues 1998-2010, Source: IRS 990s, from MEA Report

The Mackinac Center refuses to disclose who pays for its operations. When asked by Detroit’s Metro Times in 1996, the Center’s then-President Lawrence Reed said, "Our funding sources are primarily foundations … with the rest coming from corporations and individuals," but that "… revealing our contributors would be a tremendous diversion…"

In 2011, the Center's revenues totaled $5,778,257, up dramatically from the 2010 revenue of $3,511,159., the majority of that revenue coming from tax-deductible contributions and grants. Its funding has grown substantially over the years, from just over $1.7 million in 1998 to a high of $5.8 million in 2011.

From 2001 to 2010, the following conservative and corporate foundations funded the Center, according to research by the Michigan Education Association (MEA):


Mackinac Center Non-Profit Funders, 2002-2009:

Foundation	Amount Donated	Foundation's funding source
Dow Foundation, Herbert H. and Grace A.	$3,215,000	Dow Chemical founder widow
Herrick Foundation	$2,150,000	Tecumseh Engines founder's son
Earhart Foundation	$1,273,300	White Star Oil heirs
Dunn's Foundation for the Advancement of Right Thinking	$799,000	Investment company founder
Rodney Fund	$744,500	Detroit Forming founder/Mackinac Board member
[[Lynde and Harrey Bradley Foundation|Bradley Foundation, Lynde and Harry	$562,500	Electronic and radio component heirs
Peters Foundation, Ruth and Lovett	$525,000	Procter & Gamble heirs
Hume Foundation, Jaquelin	$510,000	Basic Vegetable company heir
DaimlerChrysler Corporation Fund	$375,000	Automotive corporation
Merillat Foundation, Orville D. & Ruth A	$245,000	Cabinet manufacturer founder's widow
Roe Foundation	$180,000	Builder Marts of American founder
Gerstacker Foundation, Rollin M.	$160,000	Dow Chemical Chairman (retired)
Prince Foundation, Edgar and Elsa	$150,000	Prince Automotive founder's widow
DeVos Foundation, Richard and Helen	$130,000	Amway founder
DeVos Foundation, Douglas & Maria	$120,000	Current Alticor (Amway) Co-CEO
DeVos Foundation, Dick & Betsy	$105,000	Rep candidate for Gov./former State Rep. Chair
Walton Family Foundation	$100,000	Walmart heirs
DeVos Foundation, Daniel and Pamella	$85,000	Amway founder son, CEO DP Fox Ventures
Strosacker Foundation, Charles J	$68,750	Dow Chemical Board member
Chase Foundation of Virginia	$62,150	JP Morgan banking heirs
Koch Charitable Foundation, Charles G.	$60,000	Oil corporation heirs
Castle Rock Foundation	$50,000	Coors founder's son
Hickory Foundation	$50,000	Investment company founder's former wife
Scaife Foundation, Sarah	$50,000	Mellon industrial, oil and banking heirs
JM Foundation	$45,000	Borden Milk Company heirs
Humphreys Foundation, J. P	$40,000	TAMKO roofing, composite decking founder's wife
Perrigo Company Charitable Foundation	$36,000	Over-the-counter drug manufacturer
Donner Foundation, William H.	$30,000	Heirs of Union Steel Co. founder
General Motors Foundation	$30,000	Automotive corporation
Broad Foundation, Eli & Edythe	$27,500	Homebuilding and retirement
Hansen Foundation, Robert and Marie	$25,000	Cogen Technologies founder (energy cogeneration)
Dart Foundation	$20,000	Founder of Dart Container Corp
Van Andel Foundation, Jay and Betty	$20,000	Amway founder widow
ExxonMobil Foundation	$10,000	Oil corporation
Gelman Educational Foundation	$10,000	Gelman Instrument Company
Schiavone Family Foundation	$10,000	Construction company investigated for organized crime connections
Heritage Mark Foundation	$7,000	Christian causes, emphasis on evangelism
Hanover Insurance Group Foundation	$5,500	Insurance corporation
Pope Foundation, John William	$5,500	Variety Wholesalers retail chain founder
Beach Foundation	$5,000
Brandon Foundation, David A.	$3,500	Former Domino's Pizza CEO
Kelly Services, Inc. Foundation, MI	$3,500	Staffing corporation
Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation	$2,000	Community Foundation
Aequus Institute	$1,000	Free Market/Christian Science Advocacy
Bretzlaff Foundation, Hilda E.	$1,000
Fisher Foundation, Max M. and Marjorie S	$1,000	Gas stations and real estate
Staley Educational Foundation	$1,000

According to the MEA report, "These contributions total $8,871,200; the remaining revenue for this period (about $20 million) was provided by entities that are not required to file statements with the federal government: individuals and corporations.... Refusing to release corporate financing sources prevents outsiders from drawing connections between the business of these corporations and the research conclusions and opinions the Center reaches."

In Strategic Grantmaking, Foundations and the School Privatization Movement, Richard Cohen of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy estimates that one-half to two-thirds of all corporate grant-making is “made through the CEO’s office or the marketing department, for which there is no public disclosure requirement.”

The Media Matters Action Network has identified the organization's all-time biggest funder as the Rodney Foundation, an organization founded by Mackinac Center board member James Rodney.

Staff Compensation

Those working for the Mackinac Center are well compensated. The chart below lists the 2005 and 2006 total compensation for officers and highest paid five employees, including benefits contribution and expense accounts:

Name	Position	2005	2006
Lawrence Reed	President	$168, 452	$148,206
Joseph Lehman	Executive VP	$116,959	$129,554
Kendra Shrode	Assistant to VP		$65,251
Thomas W. Washburne	Director		$125,385
Thomas A. Schull	Senior Editor, (former Detroit News Editorial Board)	$100,959	$100,385
Patrick J. Wright	Senior Analyst		$100,385
Diane S. Katz	Director Science and Environment Policy (former Detroit News Editorial Board)	$101,316	$99,943
Russ Harding	Senior Environmental Analyst (former Engler DEW Director)	$94,851	$99,984
John E. Coonradt	VP Advancement (fundraising)	$104,380	$12,534'
Christopher Bachelder	Director Advancement	$87,059
Stephen Frick	Manager of Information Systems	$72,059

Projects, Publications and Related Websites

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy runs the following affiliated sites and publications:

• Mackinac Center Legal Foundation - Law Firm
• Michigan Capitol Confidential - News service reporting on public officials
• Students for a Free Economy -
• Michigan Votes.org - database of legislative bills, votes
• Show Michigan the Money -
• Mackinac Media - Interviews and News Reports

Core Financials

2011:

• Total Revenue: $5,778,257.00
• Total Expenses: $3,925,505.00
• Net Assets: $9,523,575.00

2010:

• Total Revenue: $3,511,159.00
• Total Expenses: $3,401,252.00
• Net Assets: $7,581,106.00

2009:

• Total Revenue: $3,310,018.00
• Total Expenses: $3,377,168.00
• Net Assets: $7,345,742.00

Methods of Operation & Messaging

According to the Michigan Education Association, "The Mackinac Center receives attention not because of its objective scholarship but because it showers the media and governmental officials at all levels with publications designed to promote a conservative agenda. It is undoubtedly a very effective conduit for the policy wishes of its sponsors. It has shown great resourcefulness in creating new ways to spread its message. Between its presence in the Michigan Legislature, its many publications, news releases, its web site and conferences it might seem to be spreading its message in every way possible, but it continues to find new outlets":

• It recently sponsored a contest to reward a student essay that best “exposes a scientific fallacy in a book, movie, song or other pop culture medium.”
• A new program “Students for a Free Economy” will visit Michigan colleges and universities “taking policy ideas to students … who may be unfamiliar with the ways that markets affect their lives and the issues they care about.”
• It’s Freedom in Fiction Prize competition offers $10,000 to the new book author who creates:

• "…characters that demonstrate an appreciation for liberty, free markets and/or explicitly or symbolically oppose government oppression or restraints on their freedom…"

But the book must not:

• "…advance themes or characters who promote government-sponsored solutions; vilify entrepreneurship; degrade personal initiative, self-reliance and responsibility, or regurgitate discredited myths and misconceptions about liberty and free enterprise… "

Contact Details

140 West Main Street
P.O. Box 568
Midland, Michigan 48640
(989) 631-0900 Voice
(800) 22-IDEAS Voice
(989) 631-0964 Fax
Website: http://www.mackinac.org

Resources and Articles

Related SourceWatch Articles

• State Policy Network:
  • SPN Funding
  • SPN Agenda
  • SPN Founders, History, and Staff
  • SPN Members
  • SPN Ties to ALEC
  • Thomas A. Roe
  • Tracie Sharp
  • Byron S. Lamm
  • Roe Foundation
• American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)
  • ALEC Non-Profits
• DonorsTrust
• Donors Capital Fund
• Koch Family Foundations
• Koch Industries
• Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity
• Heritage Foundation
• Think tanks
• Whitney Ball
• Adam Meyerson
• Bridgett Wagner

Related PRWatch Articles

• Rebekah Wilce, A Reporters’ Guide to the "State Policy Network": the Right-Wing Think Tanks Spinning Disinformation and Pushing the ALEC Agenda in the States, PRWatch.org, April 4, 2013.
• Sara Jerving, ALEC and Heartland Aim to Crush Renewable Energy Standards in the States, PRWatch.org, November 27, 2012.
• Connor Gibson, Meet the Network Hiding the Koch Money: "Donors Trust" and "Donors Capital Fund", PRWatch.org, October 29, 2012.
• Brendan Fischer, Koch-Funded Mackinac Center Brings Wisconsin Act 10 Provisions to ALEC, PRWatch.org, May 2, 2012.
• Sara Jerving, Franklin Center: Right-Wing Funds State News Source, PRWatch.org, October 31, 2011.

External Resources

• Center for Media and Democracy and Arizona Working Families, A Reporter’s Guide to the Goldwater Institute: What Citizens, Policymakers, and Reporters Should Know, organizational report, March 14, 2013.
• Paul Abowd, Center for Public Integrity, Donors use charity to push free-market policies in states, Consider the Source, February 14, 2013.
• John R. Mashey, Fake science, fakexperts, funny finances, free of tax 2, DeSmog Blog report, updated October 23, 2012, p. 74.
• Andy Kroll, The Right-Wing Network Behind the War on Unions, Mother Jones, April 25, 2011.
• Guidestar, State Policy Network, IRS filings and other organizational information about SPN.
• Center for Policy Alternatives, ALEC and the Extreme Right-Wing Agenda, organizational brochure about ALEC and SPN.
• John J. Miller, Fifty Flowers Bloom: Conservative think tanks — mini–Heritage Foundations — at the state level, National Review, November 19, 2007.
• Bridge Project, State Policy Network, online resource listing grants to SPN and SPN's connections to other groups.
• People for the American Way, State Policy Network, RightWingWatch.org, organizational resource.
• Greenpeace, Koch Industries Climate Denial Front Group: State Policy Network (SPN), organizational resource.