Still No Movement on Roads
The House and Senate will be in session this week as they seek common ground on a road-funding package after they shirked their responsibility last session and put road funding on the ballot, which failed in epic fashion. So far this session, with new leadership in each chamber, things seem to be going no better.
The House and Senate voted on bills without engaging in bicameral discussions or producing any fresh ideas. The 12-bill House package narrowly passed on a series of votes. It would move $1.1 billion per year to a transportation fund by 2019 and is largely based on diverting existing revenue from other budget areas and basically “wishing” for increased revenue through collections of taxes and fees.
The Senate Package seeks to raise $1.5 billion per year by 2018. It passed on a series of contentious votes, several of which depended on a tie-breaker by Lt. Gov. Brian Calley. (Many say he willingly put his political career on the line to secure a road-funding solution.)
The Senate scheme is based on moving about $700 million per year in general funds to roads through future cuts in other budget areas.
EITC Facing Elimination; Summertime Slowdown
Both packages raise fuel taxes. The House package would mean the death knell for the Earned Income Tax Credit, currently utilized by over 780,000 Michigan citizens, and divert that $115 million per year to the transportation fund. The Senate did not pass the EITC cut last week, but they will eventually. Lansing lawmakers are only coming into session for a couple of days each month during the summer.
Although we don’t anticipate movement on RFRA or other assorted awful bills, we are always watchful.
The ACLU has been working with lawmakers during the summer to review the existing marriage statutes for amendments as a result of the SCOTUS marriage equality decision, proactive bills to increase a woman’s access to reproductive health care, and amending the harmful access to adoption legislation that embedded discrimination based on religion into Michigan law.
By Shelli Weisberg
Shelli Weisberg is the Legislative Director for the ACLU of Michigan
