In order to keep you and your neighbors better informed about the legislation we discuss, I am posting the agenda for any scheduled committee meetings at the beginning of the week and an update with any votes that were taken that week in committee or on the House floor. I hope you find this information helpful and please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of further assistance.
Week of April 28: House Votes
For votes of the full legislature, I will include a summary of each bill with the sponsor, the vote totals and the next step in the legislative process for the bill. If you would like to read more information about a given bill you can head to www.legislature.mi.gov.
Parolee Hiring Package
HB 5216- (Rep. Kesto) – Passed: 110-0
HB 5217 – (Rep. Walsh) – Passed 65-45
HB 5218 – (Rep. Santana) – Passed 110-0
House Bill 5216 would allow the Department of Corrections to award a “certificate of employability” to a prisoner who the department determines is a suitable candidate for employment on release. The bill would amend the Corrections Code.
House Bill 5217 would provide certain protections and immunities to employees who hire or retain individuals with certificates of employability. It would amend the Revised Judicature Act.
House Bill 5218 would specify that if a judgment of criminal prosecution is used by a licensing board or agency as evidence in determining an individual’s “good moral character,” then that board or agency would also be required to consider the individual’s certificate of employability from the Department of Corrections as evidence in the determination. The bill would amend Public Act 381 of 1974, which specifies that a judgment of guilt in a criminal prosecution or a judgment in a civil action cannot be used, in and of itself, by a licensing board or agency as proof of the lack of good moral character, but can be used as evidence in any such determination.
Week of April 28: Committee Meetings
Regulatory Reform
SB 862 – (Sen. Schuitmaker) – Liquor; licenses; sale of alcohol at certain sporting events held at a university’s outdoor stadium; include certain soccer events.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 14-0
HB 5393 – (Rep. Haines) – Tobacco; retail sales; sales to minors; prohibit sale of electronic cigarette or any oral device that provides vapor nicotine, and require electronic cigarettes to be sold in child-proof containers.
Testimony Only
Energy and Technology
Date: Tuesday, April 29
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: Room 519, House Office Building
Agenda:
HB 5476 – (Rep. Stamas) – Public utilities; electric utilities; proceedings to modify cost allocation methods and rate design methods; provide for.
Testimony Only
Transportation and Infrastructure
HB 4923 – (Rep. Nesbitt) – Highways; name; portion of I-94 in Van Buren county; designate as the “Trooper Rick Johnson Memorial Highway”.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 15-0
HB 5447 – (Rep. Kivela) – Highways; name; portion of US-41; designate as the “Earl DeMarse Memorial Highway”.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 15-0
HB 4251 – (Rep. Cotter) – Counties; boards and commissions; requirement for competitive bidding by county road commissions on certain projects involving townships; provide for.
Testimony Only
HB 4630 – (Rep. McCready) – Vehicles; registration; registration fees; modify.
Testimony Only
HB 4925 – (Rep. Lane) – Transportation; other; public-private partnerships; allow the state transportation department to enter into.
Testimony Only
HB 5167 – (Rep. Schmidt) – Transportation; funds; contracts entered into by state transportation departments and local road agencies; change bidding requirements and allow state transportation department to borrow money from local road agencies.
Testimony Only
HB 5452 – (Rep. McCready) – Traffic control; traffic regulation; permit fees charged by state transportation department for vehicles excluding vehicle weight or size limits; modify.
Testimony Only
HB 5453 – (Rep. Kosowski) – Traffic control; traffic regulation; traffic fines for overweight and oversized vehicles; increase.
Testimony Only
HB 5460 – (Rep. Lauwers) – Highways; construction and repair; replacement warranties on road repairs; modify, and extend warranty requirement to local road agencies.
Testimony Only
HB 5477 – (Rep. VerHeulen) – Transportation; motor fuel tax; motor fuel tax; modify.
Testimony Only
Oversight
HB 5133 – (Rep. Shirkey) – State financing and management; budget; acceptance of grant funds; impose certain notice requirements.
Testimony Only
Natural Resources
SB 59 – (Sen. Booher) – Natural resources; forests; commercial forests; modify eligibility requirements for commercial forests and allow for withdrawal under certain circumstances.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 9-0
Military and Veterans Affairs
HR 319 – (Rep. Forlini) – A resolution to memorialize the Congress of the United States to oppose the U.S. Department of Defense’s budget proposal that would potentially close commissaries at U.S. military bases and to ensure that replacement aircraft are assigned to Selfridge Air National Guard Base to compensate for the proposed elimination of the A-10 fleet.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 11-0
HB 4761 – (Rep. Barnett) – State financing and management; purchasing; state contract preference to disabled veterans; provide for.
Testimony Only
Agriculture
HB 5439 – (Rep. Daley) – Agriculture; other; industrial hemp; authorize research.
Testimony Only
HB 5440 – (Rep. Schmidt) – Controlled substances; marihuana; definition of “marihuana”; revise to exclude industrial hemp grown or cultivated for research.
Testimony Only
Tax Policy
HB 5492 – (Rep. Poleski) – Use tax; distribution; 1% of use tax revenue; earmark to road funding
Testimony Only
HB 5459- (Rep. Pettalia) – Sales tax; distribution; portion of sales tax revenue; earmark distribution and limit use to transportation purposes.
Testimony Only
Appropriations
Date: Wednesday, April 30
Time: 9:15 a.m.
Location: Room 352, House Appropriations, State Capitol Building
Agenda:
Legislative Transfer Request 2014-5
SB 648 – (Sen. Moolenaar) – Higher education; financial aid; loan repayment grant program for certain health professionals and students; expand eligibility criteria and increase maximum grant amount.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 29-0
SB 649 – (Sen. Marleau) – Higher education; financial aid; report to legislature on adequacy of maximum award; require for loan repayment grant program for health professionals and students.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 29-0
Commerce
HB 5273 – (Rep. Jenkins) – Trade; securities; local stock exchanges for transactions in Michigan securities; authorize and regulate.
Reported favorably from committee by a vote of 12-0-6
HB 5430 – (Rep. Jenkins) – State agencies (existing); licensing and regulatory affairs; organization of securities regulation office and securities regulation advisory board; provide for.
Testimony Only
Education
HB 5223 – (Rep. O’Brien) – Education; teachers; performance evaluation requirements for teachers; revise.
Testimony Only
HB 5224 – (Rep. Zemke) – Education; employees; performance evaluation requirements for school administrators; revise.
Testimony Only
Presentation by the Michigan Department of Education on the 2013-14 Proposed Accountability Scorecard Changes
Criminal Justice
SB 535 – (Sen. Proos) – Criminal procedure; other; methamphetamine offenders registry; create, and require offenders to obtain a prescription to purchase ephedrine or pseudoephedrine products for a period of 10 years.
Testimony Only
SB 756 – (Sen. Proos) – Crimes; other; selling or furnishing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine without a prescription to individual previously convicted of methamphetamine-related offense; prohibit under certain circumstances.
Testimony Only
SB 563 – (Sen. Proos) – Criminal procedure; sentencing guidelines; sentencing guidelines for crime of purchasing or possessing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine knowing that it will be combined with any other quantity of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine for the purpose of manufacturing or attempting to manufacture methamphetamine; enact.
Testimony Only
SB 564 – (Sen. Proos) – Crimes; controlled substances; purchase of pseudoephedrine or ephedrine for another individual who intends to manufacture methamphetamines; establish as a crime.
Testimony Only
HB 5363 – (Rep. Price) – Crimes; controlled substances; purchasing or possessing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine knowing or having reason to know it is intended to be used to manufacture methamphetamine; prohibit, and provide a penalty.
Testimony Only
HB 5364 – (Rep. Price) – Criminal procedure; sentencing guidelines; sentencing guidelines for crime of purchasing or possessing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine knowing that it is intended to be used to manufacture methamphetamine; enact.
Testimony Only
Families, Children and Seniors
HB 5338 – (Rep. MacGregor) – Children; protection; provision related to access to certain documents, reports, or records; provide for.
Testimony Only
HB 5341 – (Rep. Hooker) – Human services; county services; certain documents received from another agency or department; exempt from freedom of information act.
Testimony Only
HB 5463 – (Rep. Denby) – Family law; paternity; certain genetic testing establishes paternity; provide for.
Testimony Only
HB 5464 – (Rep. Hooker) – Family law; paternity; genetic parentage act; create.
Testimony Only
HB 5465 – (Rep. Kurtz) – Family law; paternity; summary support and paternity act; establish.
Testimony Only
HB 5466 – (Rep. Kosowski) – Family law; paternity; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the paternity act.
Testimony Only
HB 5467 – (Rep. Hooker) – Family law; paternity; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the revocation of paternity act.
Testimony Only
HB 5468 – (Rep. Victory) – Family law; child support; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the family support act.
Testimony Only
HB 5469 – (Rep. Kurtz) – Family law; child support; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the uniform interstate family support act.
Testimony Only
HB 5470 – (Rep. Kesto) – Family law; child support; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the uniform reciprocal enforcement of support act.
Testimony Only
HB 5471 – (Rep. Outman) – Family law; child support; consolidation of child support functions into 1 local agency; provide for in the status of minors and child support act.
Testimony Only
Health Policy and Senate Health Policy
Presentation on Childhood Obesity from Students Reinventing Michigan
Judiciary
HB 5055 – (Rep. Johnson) – Criminal procedure; warrants; defraying of costs incurred by local unit of government in executing bench warrants; allow.
HB 5082 – (Rep. Heise) – Family law; parenting time; parenting coordinator; create.
SB 714 – (Sen. Schuitmaker) – Civil procedure; alternate dispute resolution; uniform collaborative law act; enact.
Local Government
SB 354 – (Sen. Jones) – Animals; animal shelters; methods of euthanizing animals; restrict to injection of certain commercially prepared solutions.
Testimony Only