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Southwest Michigan Today: Wednesday October 10, 2018

A county commissioner’s change of address could bring some recent issues back before the board. State lawmakers could take another look at regulating PFASes. The state Supreme Court considers whether a class action lawsuit can move forward on wrongfully flagged fraudulent unemployment claims. 

(Kalamazoo Gazette) Kalamazoo County Commissioners may have to revisit some recent votes because a commissioner has moved out of the district he was elected to represent. Kevin Worldeman hasn’t decided if he will resign after moving out of District 2. State law requires county commissioners to reside within their district. Wordleman closed on his new house September 24th, but did not inform the county’s corporate counsel until last week. Worldeman says that was a mistake on his part. The Kalamazoo Gazette reports that the county commission may have to reconsider some votes taken since Wordelman moved. State law requires a vacancy on the board to be filled within 30 days.

The medical school affiliated with Western Michigan University is getting some help finishing its main building in downtown Kalamazoo. The WMU Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine says a grant from the Irving S. Gilmore Foundation will help complete its seventh floor. The size of the grant was not announced. The school says the project will add space for its pathology department. That includes labs and other facilities. The project should be completed next summer.

(MPRN) Lawmakers at the state Capitol are expected to take a deeper look at regulating the class of chemicals known as PFAS. PFASes have been found in drinking water and groundwater throughout the state. Republican leaders in Lansing say they plan to hear testimony this fall on the effects of PFASes and they’ll decide whether to set rigorous standards for cleanup of the chemicals. A proposal from Democrats would limit allowable PFAS contamination in drinking water to five parts per trillion. The EPA recommendation is 70 parts per trillion. Many toxicologists say the EPA advisory level is too high.

(Michigan Radio) The Michigan Supreme Court hears arguments Wednesday in a case involving an unemployment insurance debacle five years ago. The state admits a new computer program flagged thousands of claims as fraudulent when they were legitimate. The state garnished wages, withheld tax refunds, and filed criminal charges against people who'd done nothing wrong. The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency says it has refunded 98% of the claims. But its attorneys argue a class action lawsuit should be dismissed because it was filed too late.

Western Michigan opened the hockey season with a 6-2 loss to Bowling Green Tuesday night. The Broncos will play a weekend series against Ferris State. Friday night’s game is in Big Rapids. Western will host the Bulldogs Saturday night at 7:00 at Lawson Ice Arena.

In men’s soccer, Western Michigan scored 38 second into their game with Oakland Tuesday and went on to a 3-0 win. The Broncos improved to 7-5-1 overall on the season. Western will play at Southern Illinois Saturday night.