Michigan’s house is on fire.
What’s worse – no one is talking about it.
Michigan cannot turn things around without first understanding where we stand today. Addressing our challenges and embracing opportunities requires candor and a fact-based conversation.
Michigan's Rankings Are Far Lower Than Michiganians Think They Are
A statewide poll asked respondents to rank the state of Michigan across key economic metrics, and voters across the political spectrum incorrectly view Michigan as “average” despite near-last rankings on the economy and education. Worse yet, these findings suggest voters are not only unaware of Michigan’s poor performance, but they may accept “average” as acceptable.
The polling stems from the Detroit Regional Chamber’s regular statewide polling in partnership with the Glengariff Group, Inc. See the full poll results.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Detroit Regional Chamber Michigan Voter Poll, February 2026.
A Wake-up Call for Business Leaders, Lawmakers, and Voters
The 2026 Mackinac Policy Conference opened with a clear warning from Detroit Regional Chamber President and Chief Executive Officer Sandy K. Baruah and Conference Chair Bob Riney of Henry Ford Health: Michigan cannot afford to ignore its long-term decline in several key measures of economic strength and competitiveness.
Both implored how Michigan must move away from short-term policy reversals and toward a more stable, predictable strategy that supports growth, attracts investment, and creates confidence for the future. Their closing message was that Michigan’s challenges are serious, but not irreversible, because “this is a state worth fighting for” and “a state worth winning.”
What's the Fix: Education
Many things contributed to Michigan’s distressing drop in educational achievement over the past 30 years.
There are no silver bullets to recovery, but Michigan must invest more in schools, simplify educational bureaucracy, stop punishing teachers with burdensome testing requirements, and be more open to innovative steps that help students learn outside the traditional classroom.
What's the Fix: Economic Development
Statistics show Michigan is dramatically losing ground to other states in many fields, notably population and income levels.
Solutions include making it easier to do business in Michigan, making the state more attractive to young people, and finding ways to establish economic progress not dependent on an annual political budget process.
What's the Fix: Continuing the Conversation
The Detroit Regional Chamber works with statewide partners to develop solutions to reverse Michigan’s precipitous decline by leveraging the state’s strengths and assets.