Michigan Manual saved by public-private partnership

The 2009-10 print edition of the Michigan Manual was on the verge of not being produced due to severe budget constraints in Lansing, but a chance conversation between Speaker Pro Tem Pam Byrnes and Detroit Legal News Company CEO Brad Thompson sparked a chain of events that resulted the preservation of the venerable book.

Learning that the print version of the book was unlikely to be produced this year, Thompson requested that Rep. Byrnes help facilitate a meeting with the Legislative Service Bureau to discuss if there were any options available. After several meetings, it was agreed that LSB would compile and layout the book if the Detroit Legal News and its commercial printing subsidiary, Inland Press, would print and bind the 608-page book.

As its contribution to saving part of Michigan history, the Detroit Legal News and Inland Press are absorbing the entire cost of producing 1,600 books for distribution to libraries, schools and other public locations across the State of Michigan.

“It’s of vital importance that information of this sort is preserved in a permanent basis for archival purposes,” said Thompson. “Additionally, having the Manual available as a reference tool in libraries across Michigan is essential to allow the people to be active and informed citizens.”

The Michigan Manual has been produced continuously since Michigan achieved statehood in 1837. While originally just a manual for legislators, the Manual has become a reference for all to use to find information about all branches of government.

The Detroit Legal News was established in 1895 and now publishes 10 newspapers and one magazine in Michigan, including Grand Rapids Legal News. Its commercial printing subsidiary, Inland Press, is Detroit’s largest full service printing company.

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