LANSING — A road financing plan. A ban on ‘ghost guns’. Improved financial transparency for charter schools.
Those were among dozens of measures prepared for possible passage during Michigan’s lame-duck session that failed to pass before lawmakers went home for a year. Any House and Senate bills that do not pass both chambers in identical form by year’s end are dead, although similar bills could be introduced when the new legislative session begins in January.
Some proposals, such as road funding, died because lawmakers from both parties and Governor Gretchen Whitmer never agreed on a package that could pass both chambers. Many other bills, such as the ghost gun ban, died when the House abruptly adjourned Thursday due to a lack of quorum, leaving much of lawmakers’ planned work unfinished.
The Michigan State Capitol is located in Lansing on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
Here’s an overview of what hasn’t been done:
A sexual assault lawsuit is changing
A package of bills, Senate Bills 1187 through 1192, would, among other things, have extended the statute of limitations for sexual assault survivors to file a lawsuit. The main bill, SB 1187, passed the Senate with bipartisan support on a 24-9 vote on December 13, but died along with the others in the House of Representatives.
It would extend the statute of limitations for civil actions in sexual assault cases to seven years from the date the individual discovers the assault occurred, ten years after the victim is assaulted, or until the victim reaches age 42, whichever date is the last. . Michigan law currently sets the statute of limitations at three years after discovery or until the victim turns 28. If criminal charges are filed, civil proceedings can be initiated at any time under the bill.
One related bill was passed by both chambers and sent to the governor for signature. House Bill 4485 eliminates the statute of limitations for criminal sexual conduct charges, but does not affect the statute of limitations for civil lawsuits.
Government transparency
Bills to extend Michigan’s FOIA law to the Governor and Legislature, SBs 669 and 670, which had passed the Senate with bipartisan support and were expected to clear the House, died with the early suspension of the House.
Senate bills intended to increase transparency and accountability of public charter schools also died in the House of Representatives.
Senate Bills 943, 944, 946 and 947 would have required charter school management companies to disclose the same financial information that other public schools must disclose and require annual audited financial statements. The bills also require that the rental or purchase of school property be consistent with market rates.
A Free Press series published in 2014 showed how little transparency exists in the $1 billion in taxpayer money spent by Michigan charter schools at the time.
One transparency bill regarding charter schools passed both chambers and was sent to the governor. HB 5269 requires charter schools to post on websites average salaries for new and experienced teachers, as well as support staff.
Police behavior
Senate Bills 1091 through 1094, all of which passed the Senate but died in the House of Representatives, would have required police to adopt and update use-of-force policies and make them publicly available. They would also have required extensive background checks and various training for police officers, including de-escalation techniques and implicit bias training. The bills would also have limited the use of search warrants by police
Minimum wage for tipped employees
Under proposals submitted to the Legislature by voters in 2018, Michigan’s minimum wage will rise to $12.48 per hour on Feb. 21, and the minimum wage for tipped workers will gradually increase until it is completely phased out in 2030. The current tipped minimum wage is $3.93. per hour 38% of the regular minimum wage. From February 21, it will rise to 48% of the standard minimum wage.
Many in Michigan’s hospitality industry, supported by many tipped workers, have pushed for changes to preserve the lower minimum wage for tipped workers, arguing that hospitality workers will ultimately lose money because they will receive fewer tips. But bills to make such changes failed to pass either chamber.
Polluters pay
A package of bills passed the Senate, but not the House of Representatives, that would require more thorough cleanups for polluters, improve transparency about contaminated sites and make it easier for those affected by pollution to seek compensation.
Sen. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, said the deaths in House and Senate Bills 605, 606, 607, 609 and 611 are “a big deal” because Michigan residents care about clean air, clean water and clean communities. have been working on the bills for decades.
\’Ghost guns\’
Legislation passed in the Senate, but not the House of Representatives, would have banned the manufacture, assembly, sale, purchase, import and possession of firearms or firearm parts that do not have a valid serial number.
Supporters of the ban on “ghost guns” say the weapons are virtually impossible to trace and can be acquired without having to go through the normal background checks to purchase a regular firearm. In addition to banning firearms, frames and receivers that do not have serial numbers, Senate Bills 1149 and 1150 would also ban weapons that are 3D printed.
Affordability of water
A package of House bills would have imposed a $2 monthly fee on water bills to create a $70 million fund to make water more affordable for low-income families.
But the bills, HBs 5088 and 5089 and 5090 through 5093, were not passed in either chamber. The House adjourned before considering the bills, which could not subsequently be voted on in the Senate.
Public Safety Grants
Michigan’s budget set aside just over $100 million to establish a Public Safety and Violence Prevention Fund, and HBs 4605 and 4606 were intended to legislate how grants from the fund would be distributed among eligible communities.
Passing the subsidy bills was one of the priorities cited by state Rep. Karen Whitsett, D-Detroit, as a condition for ending her boycott of the House of Representatives, which, along with a boycott of the Republican Party, has left the lame- duck session of the House of Representatives ended prematurely. Thursday.
The Senate passed the measures on Friday, but by passing replacements for both bills they effectively nullified the measure, as the House adjourned on Thursday and cannot agree to send the replacements to the governor.
Sen. Thomas Albert, R-Lowell, on Friday described the Democratic majority’s handling of the Senate bills as “political gamesmanship,” suggesting that the passage of replacement bills was a thinly veiled reward to Whitsett for the trouble she faced in the House of Representatives caused.
Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan Legislature’s lame-duck session: What didn’t get done
