Founded in 1963, the Michigan Catholic Conference serves as the official voice of the Catholic Church in Michigan on matters of public policy. In addition, the Michigan Catholic Conference develops, coordinates, and manages programs that provide retirement benefits, health, dental, disability, and life insurance coverage for lay employees and clergy, as well as property and casualty coverage for the Church throughout Michigan.
There are 1,823,448 Catholics in the seven (arch)dioceses — Detroit, Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Marquette, and Saginaw — in the State of Michigan. This represents 18 percent of the total population for the State.