December 18 2012 at 04:21 PM

ALEC, Koch brothers behind Michigan’s “right-to-work” bill

ALEC, Koch brothers behind Michigan’s “right-to-work” bill

The Center for Public Integrity reports that key parts of Michigan’s “right to work” law were taken “word-for-word” from a 32 year old piece of model legislation put forth by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). At its conference in November, members of ALEC’s task force relating to economic development voted to re-endorse 55 “model” bills, including “right-to-work.” The model legislation has been making the rounds over the last 30 years, most recently in Indiana when ALEC members sponsored the bill in indiana earlier in 2012.

Read more from the Center for Public Integrity: ALEC’s decades of ‘right-to-work’ effort pay off in Michigan

MSNBC also reports that the Koch brothers, ALEC, and others helped to push the state’s “right-to-work” law. One player, according to the report, is the Mackinac Public Policy Center, a Michigan based group that has been pushing “right-to-work” for over two decades.

MSNBC: Right-wingers Koch, ALEC, pushed Michigan “right-to-work” laws

A major donor in Michigan also played a key role in that state’s adoption of “right-to-work”—MLive has more on the involvement of Dick DeVos, a former MI gubernatorial candidate.

MLive: New York Times breaks down “right-to-work” role of Dick DeVos

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