Dear Neighbor,

Welcome to this month’s Capitol and community update e-newsletter!

As always, please encourage neighbors and friends in House District 56 — Troy, Clawson, Royal Oak, Birmingham and Bloomfield Township — to also sign up for these updates at MacDonell.housedems.com. Please let us know if you have any thoughts on state-level issues or want to meet with me. My office can be reached by phone at (517) 373-2617 or by email at SharonMacDonell@house.mi.gov.

I can also be found on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. I want to hear from you and work with you to make the 56th House District a better place!

In Service,

Sharon MacDonell

State Representative

House District 56

Upcoming Events

Community and Conversation

Community Conversation in Birmingham

I will be participating in a community conversation later in the month with fellow Birmingham-area legislators state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and state Reps. Natalie Price and Sam Steckloff.

When: Monday, July 17, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Where: Baldwin Public Library, 300 W. Merrill Street, Birmingham, MI 48009

Legislative Updates

The following are highlights from my recent work in the legislature. All of my sponsored and co-sponsored legislation from this term are available at the provided hyperlink. You can also see my press releases page for additional updates.

graphic

Big Budget Wins: I-75 Sound Walls and Cricket Field!

Late last month, I voted for the state’s 2024 budget plan, which contains two huge items for our district that I advocated for. Many residents in House District 56 have been calling for these investments for years, and I am proud to have brought them home.

  • $10 million for sound wall construction along the I-75 corridor in Troy. Along with the $4.3 million secured by Sen. McMorrow and former Rep. Kuppa in a previous term, this funding will be enough to build sound walls in the two neighborhoods deemed eligible by the state Department of Transportation.
  • $900,000 to build a regulation cricket field at Raintree Park in Troy! This will be Michigan’s first state-funded regulation field. I know how important cricket is to our large and vibrant South Asian community, so I’m thrilled to help make this dream a reality.

budget graphic

Other Budget Highlights

In voting to approve this year’s budget, I am supporting:

  • A 5% increase in per-pupil funding for all public school students.
  • The MI Kids Back on Track program, which will provide tutoring for K-12 students who experienced learning loss in math or reading during the pandemic.
  • Hundreds of millions of dollars in highway and local road repairs.
  • A 6.4% increase in operations funding for all universities and a 4.9% operations increase for community colleges.

picture with Hayes Family

Counterclockwise from bottom left: Allie Hayes, Dawn Hayes, Paul Stankewicz of the Michigan Catholic Conference, Dawn Calnen of the Arc of Oakland County, Mark Hayes, and I celebrate a successful hearing.

Justice for Allie bills Pass Committee

My bills known as Justice for Allie, which would criminalize the online sexual exploitation of vulnerable adults, were recently passed UNANIMOUSLY out of the House Committee on Families, Children, and Seniors. Next stop: a vote of the full House, which I anticipate taking place early this fall.

MacDonell in Classroom

I was honored to participate in a meeting of the Boulan Park Middle School’s Young Activist Club last month, where participants wrote postcards to their federal legislators.

Summer Legislative Recess

The Legislature has adjourned for the summer. This means that my team and I will have more time to connect about issues that matter to you!

  • If you want to meet with me to discuss an issue impacting you or our community, please call or email my office with the issue you want to discuss and the times you’re available to meet. During the legislative recess, I will have much more time to meet with constituents, either one-on-one or in small groups.
  • My team and I will be going door-to-door throughout the summer to learn more about how we can best support the community. If someone from Team MacDonell hands you a survey or leaves one at your door, please fill it out — we want to learn how we can best serve you!

Community Recognitions and Resources

CASA

Volunteer Opportunity – Advocate for Foster Youth

Michigan CASA is an organization that trains and supports Court-Appointed Special Advocates, community volunteers appointed by a judge to advocate for the needs of children experiencing the foster care system due to abuse or neglect. CASA of Oakland County is in need of more adults in the community to become advocates due to the sheer number of children in the foster care system. If you’re interested in becoming an advocate for vulnerable youth, email casa-info@carehouse.org or visit www.casaoaklandcounty.org.

Submissions for Small Business of the Month AND Teacher of the Month

Each month, I recognize a small business in the community from House District 56 as our small businesses of the month. To nominate a business for this recognition, please fill out this form for Small Business of the Month. I am also excited to recognize a Teacher of the Month! Teachers are the backbone of this nation, and our district has the BEST teachers! Please fill out this form to recognize a Teacher of the Month.

Last month, I presented a tribute to my Lansing office’s intern, Nabil Chamra, to celebrate his graduation from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of arts in Economics and a minor in political science. The future of government in Michigan is bright!

Tribute

Tributes, Letters and Certificates

Do you know someone in the district who is retiring and would like a legislative tribute to celebrate their years of service? Has a local team or group reached a milestone that they would like to be acknowledged with an official certificate for each member? Our office can provide legislative tributes, letters and certificates on a wide range of recognitions for constituents. If you would like to request any of these materials for yourself or others, please email my office at SharonMacDonell@house.mi.gov with as much information as possible on the requested recognition, and we will work with you to arrange delivery or presentation of the recognition!