NOTE-Links to our interviews with State Sen. Ed McBroom (R-Norway) and State Sen. Beau LaFave (R-Iron Mountain) are posted at the end of this article.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich,) delivered her fourth State of the State speech Wednesday night. It was done remotely, from the Detroit Diesel manufacturing facility, rather than before a joint session of the legislature.
In it, Whitmer proposed an end to the state’s retirement tax, an increase in the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor, a cap on the cost of insulin for Michigan diabetics, and a large increase in school funding,
She also made it clear that she wanted in-person instruction, rather than remote learning.
Two Upper Peninsula state lawmakers reacted to Whitmer’s speech. State Sen. Ed McBroom (R-Norway) and State Rep. Beau LaFave (R-Iron Mountain) both noted that Whitmer is up for re-election this fall, and that her proposals are counting on money that’s come in from the federal government that won’t be here long-term.
“Honestly, it was a lot-less partisan and awful as the last one,” LaFave said. “We had a bill that we put on her desk to get rid of the pension tax, but she vetoed that. There’s a lot of electioneering going on. I was surprised to hear the governor talk about tax cuts after spending the last couple of years trying to raise the gas tax 45 cents a gallon. But it is an election year, and even she knows that tax increases are not popular.”
LaFave said he would prefer an across the board tax cut for everyone making $40,000 a year, not just those making that amount in retirement income.
For his part, McBroom was also skeptical.
“It was a great campaign speech,” he said. “It painted a rosy, optimistic picture, and it was full of the volume of promises one can make when one has a pocket full of (federal stimulus) dollars, right? Big, big promises that are good sales pitches in an election year, but we just really have to sit down and put pencils to these things and ask if it is really sustainable to do this. Once this money is gone, then what?
McBroom was also disappointed that there was no talk of the Line Five pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac, which Whitmer has been trying to shut down out of environmental concerns.
“It can’t be ignored,” McBroom said. “It’s a huge issue that has to be dealt with. She’s not talking about spending money to buy everybody in the U.P. cheap propane while we close down Line Five.”
That said, McBroom agreed with Whitmer that in-person learning is essential.
In the Eastern U.P. and northern lower peninsula, state representative John Damoose (R-Harbor Springs) said there areas of common ground.
“I voted last year to bring down the soaring cost of insulin and deflate the pressure on the wallets of working families, and Gov. Whitmer agrees. I also appreciated the governor’s comments on the pension tax. Retired Michigan residents do deserve a break. The governor’s speech focused a lot on bipartisan engagement with the Legislature. This tone is a positive but stark contrast with many of her past, solo actions — unilateral orders restricting families and businesses. The governor must continue to acknowledge the Legislature’s critical role in our state government.”
The next step in the process is the governor, and her state budget director, officially presenting her state budget proposal to the legislature. That will likely happen in early February.
CLICK BELOW TO HEAR JACK HALL’S FULL INTERVIEW WITH STATE SEN. ED MCBROOM
CLICK BELOW TO HEAR JACK HALL’S FULL INTERVIEW WITH STATE REP. BEAU LAFAVE
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