LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – As recently reported by Michigan News Source, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) found a new way to steer $50 million in previously appropriated state funds to the controversial western Upper Peninsula Copperwood Mine in Gogebic County. But a former Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) board member says the maneuver sidestepped the Legislature.

The MSF is a separate state entity that oversees many of Michigan’s economic development incentive programs, while MEDC staff administer the programs and bring funding recommendations to the MSF board for approval.

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On Tuesday, the MSF board approved a $44.97 million grant to Copperwood Resources, along with a separate $5.03 million grant to the Gogebic County Road Commission, bringing the total Copperwood-related package to $50 million.

In 2022, lawmakers appropriated $250 million to the Strategic Site Readiness Program, including $50 million designated for site-readiness projects with an identified end user. Copperwood was not that end user. MEDC says the $50 million it is now using had previously been intended for another project that did not move forward and, because the Legislature had already transferred the money to MSF, no new legislative approval is required to use it for Copperwood.

Although lawmakers never approved the transfer needed to fund Copperwood under the MSF’s 2024 award, MEDC says the previously appropriated 2022 money can now be used for the mine with MSF board approval alone. Former MSF board member Cindy Warner is challenging that reasoning.

Can Money Approved for One Project Fund Another?

According to a press release from the Economic Development Responsibility Alliance of Michigan (EDRA), Warner is pushing back on MSF’s decision. EDRA is a statewide, nonpartisan grassroots lobbying nonprofit that advocates for greater scrutiny of taxpayer-funded economic development, as well as protection of Michigan’s land, water and local control.

In a letter to MEDC CEO Quentin Messer, Warner wrote, “At no time was ANY approval that I provided, for any project, transferrable, to ANY other project, ever.”

Warner also contends Copperwood failed to meet specific conditions imposed when MSF previously considered funding the project. In the letter, she says, “Regardless of the source of funds that you attempted to transfer, the MSF applied very specific conditions in 2024 upon which this specific company would have to comply with in order to be considered for such a grant. Those conditions did not get met, therefore regardless of the source of funds, this company was not, and is not a candidate for the approval of this grant, as was voted on during today’s meeting.”

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The dispute is significant because Copperwood’s $50 million subsidy has previously run into resistance in Lansing. Although MSF approved the $50 million grant in 2024, the required legislative appropriations committee approvals never materialized.

Another effort to secure $50 million in state funding for Copperwood failed in 2025, when funding included in a House budget proposal was ultimately left out of the final state budget. Along the way, the environmental advocacy group Protect the Porkies, along with community members and local tribes, has fought the project, raising concerns about the mine’s potential impact on the surrounding environment and nearby Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.

Opponents Question Tuesday’s Process

EDRA, which opposes the mine, says more than 40 people attended Tuesday’s meeting in Lansing, while another 127 registered to comment virtually. After roughly two hours of public comment, however, virtual testimony, including from residents of the western Upper Peninsula who live nearly 10 hours from Lansing but closest to the proposed mine, was pushed until after the board voted on Copperwood. According to EDRA, this “effectively rendered local residents voiceless.”

Also according to EDRA, State Senator Sue Shink, who opposed the grant, said during virtual comments that MEDC had told her she couldn’t comment in person. EDRA added that six legislators supporting Copperwood, meanwhile, were among the first speakers allowed to address the board in person. The grant for Copperwood Resources passed 7-2, with board members Susan Tellier and Alissa Roth voting against it.

MEDC’s Problems Pile Up

The Copperwood dispute also comes as the MEDC faces broader questions about its oversight of taxpayer dollars. Warner copied the Attorney General’s Office on the letter. Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel has recently called for lawmakers to get rid of the agency.

Nessel’s criticism of MEDC has grown after former MEDC executive committee member Fay Beydoun was charged in May with 16 felonies involving the alleged misuse of a $20 million state grant. Nessel has said the investigation is ongoing and has not ruled out MEDC CEO Quentin Messer as a potential target. More scrutiny followed last week when the American Arab Chamber of Commerce fired executive director Bilal Hammoud amid questions over roughly $1 million in MEDC funding. The matter has been referred to Nessel’s office, Dearborn police and the FBI.

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers have introduced legislation to abolish the MEDC altogether, citing concerns over transparency, oversight and the effectiveness of state economic development subsidies. EDRA of MI founder and executive director Marjorie Steele agrees, saying, “It’s time to defund the MEDC.”

Despite broader criticism of MEDC and opposition to the project from many Upper Peninsula residents, Copperwood has bipartisan support in Lansing. Supporters argue the mine could bring jobs, investment and economic opportunity to the western Upper Peninsula. But beyond the debate over whether Copperwood deserves state support is another question: whether MSF can legally provide it using money appropriated years earlier for a different project.