The law just got a little friendler.

At least for those living in Michigan. A complete set of the Michigan Compiled Laws followed by each annual supplemental volume of Public and Local Acts was necessary until recently for anyone wishing to find out the latest laws in Michigan. Now it's easier. Just go to www.legislature.mi.gov and fill in the blanks. Keyword searches yield much more comprehensive results than the print index. Look up "Security Deposit" in the print index to the 1979 Michigan Compiled Laws and you will find only one entry. You may end up having to look elsewhere in the index to find the exact law you are looking for. Type "Security Deposit" as keywords in this website, and you will be presented with 200 documents to choose from, each with a list of descriptors.

But that's just the beginning. This site contains bills in committee, legislative schedules, sponsored bills by legislator, House and Senate journals, and initiatives. Other features include House Rules, Senate Rules, Joint Rules, and the texts of a few recent issues of Michigan Manual. Printable versions of government publications such as Tenant and Landlord, Consumer Protection Resource Guide, and A Citizen's Guide to State Government are also available here. Links to the House and Senate and Official State of Michigan Website are particularly helpful. Less useful features include historical documents such as the texts of the Magna Carta (without the list of signatories), the Declaration of Independence (with the list of signatories), the U.S. Constitution (without the amendments, curiously enough), and all earlier versions of the Constitution of the State of Michigan, including the 1787 ordinance for the Government of the Northwest Territory.

Last but not least, the site allows the user to change its color scheme. (I prefer the soothing lavender, although sports fans might prefer the yellow-blue or green-white combinations.) Getting involved in representative government just got a little easier. We might as well take full advantage!