POPULATION: 10,003,422 (2008)

LABOR FORCE: 4.936,000 (2008)

RIGHT TO WORK: No

INDUSTRIES: Life sciences, advanced automotive technologies, homeland security/defense, alternative energy technologies, auto-related R&D, advanced materials, telematics, tourism, agriculture, information technologies, micro- and nanotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, instrumentation and diagnostics, research and ancillary services

COLLEGE GRADUATES: (Age 25 and over) 24.5% (2007)

BASIC BUSINESS TAXES:
Michigan Business Tax (effective Jan. 1, 2008): 4.95 percent of business income in Michigan, .08 percent of modified gross receipts in Michigan (minus purchases from other firms), and a 21.99 percent surcharge on the tax liability before credits; tax is apportioned to Michigan on a 100 percent sales factor; there is a 35 percent credit for taxes paid on owned industrial personal property; tax credits provided for capital investment, R&D expenditures, and compensation; certain small businesses may use an alternative 1.8 percent profits tax; filing threshold of $350,000 in Michigan gross receipts

Sales and Use Tax: 6 percent; no local sales tax allowed; exemptions allowed for purchase of manufacturing equipment, energy used directly in manufacturing and pollution-control equipment

Property Tax: Assessed at 50 percent market value; assessment increases limited to 5 percent or inflation, whichever is less; owned industrial personal property gets automatic 24-mill exemption and commercial property gets a 12-mill exemption; a variety of property tax abatements are available

BUSINESS INCENTIVES:
MIchigan Business Tax Credits
(for capital investment, R&D expenditures and compensation, defense contracts, anchor district)
21st Century Jobs Fund
21st Century Investment Fund (available to venture capital, mezzanine, and private equity funds with a Michigan focus)
Michigan Economic Growth Authority (state tax credits for job creation and retention, including high-tech and alternative energy)
Michigan Supplier Diversification Fund
Film and media production, infrastructure credits
Entrepreneurial credit
Tax-Free Renaissance Zones
Tax-Free Tool & Die Recovery Zones
NextEnergy Zone (tax-free for alternative energy)
Smart Zones (high-tech clusters of businesses and resources)
Private Activity Bond Program (taxable and tax-exempt)
Job training grants
Brownfield redevelopment state tax credits and TIF
Capital Access Program
Community development block grants (for economic development)
Industrial and high-tech property tax abatement
SelectSites Program (prime properties ready for development)
Web access to Commercial Property Info Exchange (CPIX)
Foreign-trade zones
Certified business parks
Technology and productivity consulting
Ombudsman services
Worker recruitment assistance
Permit coordination
Site proposal assistance