LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   There appears to be a deal between Democrats and Republicans in Lansing on plans to make early childhood programs more available and more affordable to more families.

The deal includes using federal COVID-19 funds to make childcare more affordable and regulatory changes to encourage more providers to enter or remain in the field.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer stood alongside a bipartisan group of lawmakers at the state Capitol to make the announcement.

She said this would help meet a pressing need that predates the health crisis.

FLINT, MI (MPRN)--   The attorney for former Governor Rick Snyder is upset with how slowly the state is sharing evidence in his criminal case.

Snyder is charged with two counts of willful neglect of duty in connection to his handling of the Flint water crisis.

But the discovery process has been slowed as evidence presented to a grand jury is reviewed before being shared with defense attorneys. At a pre-trial hearing Tuesday Snyder attorney Brian Lennon described the process as "outrageous." 

ANN ARBOR, MI (AP)--   Former University of Michigan football players and others who say they were sexually abused by a now-deceased team doctor are expected to call for action by the University of Michigan’s board, as the legacy of the school’s gridiron coach is being questioned over what he knew.

LANSING, MI--   A funding proposal by Governor Gretchen Whitmer would modernize Michigan Army National Guard facilities around the state.

The plan would address inequities in facilities for Michigan’s female service members. A combination of federal and state funds could help six armories in the U.P.

Under the budget proposal the Marquette facility would get $2.5 million, the Calumet armory $3 million, Ishpeming’s facility $3.5 million, the Gladstone armory $2.5 million, the Kingsford facility $2.8 million, and the armory in Sault Ste. Marie $3 million.

ST. IGNACE, MI--   A downstate man has been arrested and charged for firing a gun in a road rage incident on the Mackinac Bridge.

Matt Lammers was completely alone the first time we met.

The cigarette butts and old ammunition cans clearly marked his apartment door. Camouflage netting blocked the Arizona sun, but it also sent a message: this guy was still in Iraq. I knocked on the door at 9 a.m. and woke him from the only hour of sleep he'd had all night.

He apologized. I apologized. And after a couple hours killing time around Tucson, I came back. Lammers rolled out his door for a smoke in a manual wheelchair, shirtless. Which saved questions –- scars and ink tell his story.