Dear Neighbors,
As we head into this year’s budget season, I wanted to share with you some of the priorities recently announced by Governor Whitmer.
Proposing, negotiating and agreeing on a state budget is an important process — one that aims to successfully support Michigan’s schools, infrastructure, community development and economic growth. To learn more about the proposed budget, please go to www.michigan.gov/budget.
As your representative, your input is always welcome. As you may know, I am the chair of the House Regulatory Reform Committee. I also serve on the following House committees: Judiciary; Criminal Justice; Military, Veterans and Homeland Security; and the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Economic Development, and Lifelong Learning.
I encourage you to reach out to me and my staff with any questions, comments or concerns you may have about issues in the district or legislation that will impact our state. You can contact me at (517) 373-0154, toll free at (888) 254-5291, by email at TyroneCarter@house.mi.gov, or through my website. Thank you for your commitment to the community we both call home; I look forward to hearing from you!
In Service,
Tyrone Carter
State Representative
House District 1
A Reminder about the Upcoming Coffee Hours
Please Join Me!
I hope you can join me for my upcoming coffee hours! I look forward to having an informal conversation with you about what I’ve been doing in Lansing and in the community as well as any concerns you may have about issues facing House District 1.
Date and time: March 8, 1-2 p.m.
Location: River Rouge City Hall,
10600 W. Jefferson Ave., River Rouge
Date and time: March 8, 2:30-3:30 p.m.
Location: Midwest Civic Center
6602 Walton St., Detroit
Budget Recommendations from the
Joint House Session
Gov. Whitmer’s Feb. 7 presentation of the 2025 fiscal budget for the state proposed several priorities that will continue to put people first and help more Michiganders live better lives. The budget recommendation totals $80.7 billion, including a General Fund total of $14.3 billion and a School Aid budget totaling $19 billion. The budget provides a significant amount of one-time funding while maintaining balance in future years and utilizes one-time funds for one-time purposes. It also continues paying down debt obligations, freeing up future funding for programs ahead of schedule, like free preschool.
A look at the numbers
K-12 Education – Helping Kids Learn
- $370 million to support school operations through a 2.5% increase in base per-pupil funding that equates to an additional $241 per student, for a total of $9,849 per pupil.
- $300 million to continue historic investments for student mental health and school safety needs.
- $251.2 million to help students reach their full academic potential, including continuation of payments for literacy grants and literacy coaches.
- $200 million to continue providing free breakfast and lunch to Michigan’s 1.4 million public school students, helping students focus on learning and saving families $850 per year.
- $200 million for tutoring through the MI Kids Back on Track program, and continuation of expanded learning opportunities through before- and after-school programs.
Higher Education and Workforce Development
- $30 million investment to increase funding for the Michigan Achievement Scholarship, the state’s flagship scholarship program.
- Expand the Michigan Achievement Scholarship with the Michigan Guarantee to ensure every Michigan high school graduate can receive an associate degree or skilled certificate tuition-free at a community college, saving more than 18,000 students up to $4,820 on tuition each year.
- $62 million to continue Michigan Reconnect, providing a tuition-free pathway to adult learners 25 and older.
- $20 million increase in the Tuition Incentive Program, which provides tuition support to lower-income students in Michigan’s community colleges, public universities and private universities.
Lowering Costs for Michiganders
- $37.5 million to create the Caring for MI Family Tax Credit, saving families who care for an aging or sick relative up to $5,000 a year on their taxes.
- $500,000 to continue the federal EBT summer food benefit program, which distributes $108 million in federal funds to ensure children have access to nutritional food throughout the summer months, saving families $120 per child.
Making it in Michigan Budget Recommendations
A glimpse of the proposed investments to power economic development, rebuild our roads and bridges, build strong communities, and more, including:
Economic Development
- $500 million in continued investment in the Strategic Outreach Attraction Reserve fund to attract new manufacturers and industries to Michigan, helping to diversify our economy and compete nationally for high-paying jobs.
- $100 million for a research and development tax credit to spur innovation while lowering costs for businesses.
- $60 million to establish an Innovation Fund to invest in scalable startups and help launch hundreds of new Michigan-based companies, creating thousands of jobs.
- $80 million to clean up contaminated sites and bring Michigan in line with other Midwest states when it comes to out-of-state trash haulers.
- $20 million for business attraction and community revitalization, on top of $100 million in existing ongoing funding, to stimulate job creation and private investment, revitalize and redevelop vital properties, and support small businesses that serve as the backbones of our communities — spurring economic growth.
- $5 million one-time and $11.1 million ongoing funding for the Arts and Cultural Program to expand grants to arts and cultural institutions that support the economy and contribute to vibrant communities.
- $4 million for global talent and retention to improve the state’s efforts to welcome and integrate international talent.
Rebuilding Our Infrastructure
- $700 million to authorize the final tranche of the Rebuilding Michigan Plan to fix our roads, including I-94 alongside the Metro Airport, I-696 from Southfield through Warren, and a bridge in Erie Township.
- $247.6 million to improve state and local roads, highways and bridges across the state.
- $150 million to support local bridge and culvert improvements and ensure the state fully matches available federal highway aid.
- $75 million to support federal transit capital grants, marine passenger services, rail operations and transit capital matching funds.
- $40 million to provide loans and grants to local communities to support projects associated with lead service line replacement, building on the $290 million current investment.
Reducing Crime & Keeping Michigan Healthy
$1.5 billion invested already and more proposed funding to keep Michigan families safe and healthy, including:
Public Safety
- $11 million in statutory revenue sharing (2% one-time) dedicated specifically for public safety including employee recruitment, retention, and training, and equipment for first responders.
- Hire and train 120 Michigan State Police troopers, and $5.5 million to support salary and equipment costs of the 145th state police trooper recruit school, anticipated to graduate 50 new troopers this summer.
- $5 million to establish Training, Recruitment and Retention Grants to support local law enforcement agencies. This investment will reduce violent crime by helping to ensure cities have the necessary resources to hire and retain police officers.
- $5.5 million for community violence intervention services to reduce gun violence and save lives.
- $10 million for lifecycle upgrades to the state’s safety communication system, ensuring this critical infrastructure works for state and local emergency personnel.
- $11.9 million to continue implementing improvements based on recommendations of the Task Force on Juvenile Justice Reform.
Public Health
- $193.3 million to establish new Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics sites across the state to serve as many as 50,000 additional individuals, providing them with behavioral health services.
- $15.7 million in funding to continue the Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies program, which helps new and expectant mothers receive the care they need and reduce racial disparities in infant and maternal mortality.
- $46 million for changes to the Family Independence Program (FIP), the first substantially meaningful changes to the FIP program since 1990, to help families who need a hand up during hard times.
- $24 million to provide new funds to communities that identify innovative approaches to support expectant parents and newborns.
- $1.8 million to ensure children have access to health care through MIChild, saving families $120 a year per child.
- $15 million for the Michigan Energy Assistance Program to reduce energy bills for low-income households struggling to pay energy bills. This is the first increase in this program since 2012.
- $5 million to help low-income households weatherize and improve the energy efficiency of their homes, reducing utility bills.
- $7.3 million to ensure individuals experiencing behavioral health crises have access to the Michigan Crisis and Access Line 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
A Fairer and More Equitable Michigan
Investments that will build a fairer and more equitable Michigan, including:
- $35 million to implement recommendations of the Racial Disparities Task Force, including neighborhood health grants, mobile health units, sickle cell support and more.
- $1.5 million to fund grants to nonprofit organizations to reduce veteran homelessness.
- $5 million to continue the MI Contracting program to assist small and disadvantaged businesses in securing equipment and insurance to help them compete for contracts.
- $3 million to create the MI Secure Retirement program, a state-managed retirement plan marketplace that allows small businesses (fewer than 100 employees) to participate and provide optional retirement savings plans to their employees at no cost to the employer.
 |
Photos
Covenant House Chief Executive Officer Meagan Dunn
|
Members of Provincial Parliament of Ontario, including Speaker Ted Arnott
|
Col. James F. Grady of the Michigan State Police
|
We Want to Hear from You
Representative Carter would like to hear from you! Use the link below to let us know your concerns about both legislation and issues within the district. Additionally, we would love to hear what you would like to see included in future monthly newsletters.