Hello from Lansing!
March, are you okay? You’re warm, you’re rainy, you’re snowy! Our politics are a whiplash, too, so I am doing everything I can to protect your peace and livelihoods from House Republicans, one Democratic representative who does not caucus with the Democrats, and their billionaire donors passed a budget proposal to cut 92% of the state budget and 25% of the K-12 education budget. Read more about our work in Lansing to ensure our home, District 47, remains a thriving place. You can also attend our next coffee hour at the Millie’s Coffeehouse on Saturday, April 12, at 10:00 a.m., details below.
As always, if you or someone you know needs assistance with state departments or would like to provide feedback about what’s happening in Lansing, my team can be reached at CarrieRheingans@house.mi.gov or (517) 373-8835.
In Service,
Carrie Rheingans
State Representative
District 47
TL;DR
In A Rush? Here Are the Highlights from Below:
- Join me at Millie’s Coffeehouse in Manchester for a coffee hour and updates from Lansing on Saturday, April 12, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
- The Michigan Legislature recently passed SB 8 and HB 4002, which amended Michigan’s minimum wage law and the Earned Sick Time Act, which were set to go into effect on February 21. I voted against both bills—read on to understand why.
- Bird Flu is wreaking havoc on our grocery prices and farmer’s livelihoods. Last week, I introduced bills to lower prices, protect our farmers, and prevent the next human pandemic.
- Share your story about how the chaos of the president’s administration has affected you, your family, or your workplace.
Legislative Updates
House Republicans Remove Billions of Dollars in Services for Our Seniors, Children, and Veterans
In a surprise move, House Republicans gave House Democrats only about 30 minutes to review their proposed FY 26 state and school aid budget bills that remove around 92% ($54.4 billion) and 25% ($5 billion), respectively. The proposed smaller funding for the school aid budget means services for at-risk students and students with disabilities, transportation (including rural transportation equity), free breakfast and lunch, and entirely zeroed-out higher education in Michigan will not be provided.
In the 92% reduction to the general budget, the entire budgets of the Departments of Health and Human Services, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Rural Development, and many more were reduced by 100% from the current fiscal year. This budget also eliminates funding for the Attorney General’s office, reflecting a shift in priorities as she continues her efforts to uphold the rights of Michiganders in response to federal policies. It also removes all funding from the Secretary of State, which could prevent the administration of elections. The Republican-led budget also removes funding for Medicaid, which covers over 60% of seniors in nursing homes, and about two of every five births in Michigan. The budget plan also removes funding for food vouchers, and both child and adult protective services.
These budget bills passed the House with every single Republican supporting this massive removal of funds. I voted no, of course!
I believe the Republican’s plan of using the most vulnerable – our seniors, children, and veterans – as a bargaining chip to give tax breaks to their billionaire buddies is reprehensible. I will always stand with working families and will continue to fight to ensure that we pass a budget that gives all Michiganders the ability to thrive.
Subminimum Wage, Minimum Wage, and Paid Earn Sick Time
In the last few weeks, the Michigan Legislature passed Senate Bill 8 and House Bill 4002, two bills that keep the subminimum wage for certain tipped workers in place and created carveouts for workers to earn paid sick time, respectively.
For context, in 2018, it appears the House Republicans tried to bypass the will of the people, preventing the phase out of the subminimum wage for tipped workers, the raising of the minimum wage, and guaranteed paid sick time for all by adopting a citizen-led ballot initiative prior to the 2018 election and then amending the initiative to weaken it after the election. In the summer of 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that this move was unconstitutional and the original language that was adopted prior to the 2018 election must go into effect. The top priority of House Republicans upon regaining control of the Chamber was to introduce legislation to weaken the ruling, thereby hurting working people.
I voted no on both bills for many reasons, including that the people’s will should have been respected and the law should have gone into effect. If there were issues after these were the law of Michigan, we could have addressed targeted problems instead of making wholesale changes as happened with these two bills.
HB 4002 amended the Earned Sick Time Act, removing essential benefits and protections for workers, which I will discuss in the next few paragraphs. The bill includes some positive changes, such as allowing employers with broader PTO policies to use them for sick time and permitting frontloading instead of accrual – we could have added these changes on their own after the Michigan Supreme Court ruling was in effect. However, the exemption of thousands of workers and other issues prompted me to vote no.
One critical issue is language that is intended to provide flexibility for workers with self-set schedules, such as doctors. However, in its current form, I believe it could unintentionally strip protections from retail and gig workers, who “technically” set their schedules but may face pressure to work more hours than they would have preferred.
Additionally, HB 4002 extends the waiting period for new employees to use sick time from 90 to 120 days, delaying access for workers who may need time off to recover from illness or care for family.
Finally, it removed the private right of action that previously allowed workers to take legal action against employers who denied them earned sick time. This mechanism is crucial for maintaining worker rights; without it, accountability is significantly reduced.
On SB 8, I voted no because, with the tipped credit, workers will likely make less overall. In the seven states that have fully phased out the subminimum wage, restaurant workers earn 21% more in take-home pay while still receiving tips. Recent credit card data confirms that customers continue tipping, meaning a full phaseout would have provided greater financial stability for workers and their families. Additionally, relying on tips forces many workers to endure harassment just to make ends meet—an unacceptable reality.
Phasing out the subminimum wage would also have helped reduce poverty among working families. One-third of tipped workers have children, and parents in these industries face higher poverty rates than those without children. Research shows that in states without a subminimum wage, poverty rates for parents with young children are cut in half compared to states with a subminimum wage.
This fight isn’t over. I remain committed to ensuring all Michiganders have the pay, benefits, and workplace protections they deserve.
Michigan’s Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) has developed informational resources on the recent changes to the law:
MiCare: Health Care for All
MiCare is a state-based, single-payer health care payment system that would provide universal coverage to all Michiganders without deductibles, co-insurance, co-pays, or caps on coverage amounts. I introduced this bill last term and am revising it this spring before we introduce it again.
After traveling around both peninsulas in 2023 and 2024, we heard from hundreds of Michiganders who favored this plan and asked great questions about its implementation. To make MiCare stronger, I hosted a bill drafting workshop on February 24th, where stakeholders were invited to collaborate with me on this critical legislation. This was an informative time where thoughts and ideas were shared to update and make MiCare more effective.
I also hosted a virtual roundtable with fellow state representatives and senators from around the country who have introduced similar single-payer health care bills in their states. We shared what we have been working on, strategized how we could work together, and set goals for what this group of leaders could become. We will continue meeting and are working to coordinate the introduction of our single-payer healthcare bills across several states later this year. I hope that by utilizing a multi-state strategy, we can collaborate effectively and reach the goal of effective and affordable health care for all!
Ethics and Transparency in the House
The House recently took small steps toward greater accountability, ethics, and transparency. We passed HB 4062-4064 aimed at closing the “revolving door” that allows legislators to become lobbyists immediately after their terms end. We also passed HB 4052 and HB 4053, which would prohibit legislature members from entering into certain nondisclosure agreements. While I applaud these efforts, we still are not accountable and transparent to the people.
Weeks ago, the Senate passed SB 1 and SB 2 almost unanimously, which would make the legislature and governor subject to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. According to the bill sponsors, Michigan is nearly alone in the country with exemptions for the governor and lawmakers to prevent the public from accessing our documents in this way. In an effort to advance the Senate FOIA bills, House Democrats attempted to tie-bar (which means all “tie-barred” bills must be passed and signed for any bill to take effect) the “revolving door” and NDA bills to the FOIA bills; however, this initiative was voted down multiple times by House Republicans. I believe this demonstrates that they are not genuinely committed to transparency and accountability in government.
Bird Flu Testing
Last week, I introduced three appropriation bills, HB 4171, 4172, and 4173, to provide additional funding for testing, sequencing, and public posting of Michigan bird flu cases (H5N1) found in humans, wild animals, and livestock within the Michigan Departments of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), Natural Resources (DNR), and Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD).
Bird flu is a virus that spreads through direct animal-to-animal contact and contaminated surfaces or materials, such as egg flats, crates, farming equipment, clothing, shoes, and hands. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) viruses can infect wild and domestic birds and have also been found in various mammals, including cows, cats, and pigs.
Providing additional funding to MDHHS, DNR, and MDARD will help researchers more readily track mutations, helping to prevent the next human pandemic and reduce the spike in the price of agricultural products such as eggs, poultry, beef, and dairy.
We possess sequencing capacity in Michigan; however, additional state funds will be necessary to supplement federal dollars due to federal workforce capacity and funding gaps.
Speaking at a press conference on the Bird Flu Appropriation bills to prevent the next pandemic on March 5. Also pictured, from left, Representatives Miller (D-Van Buren Twp.), Paiz (D-Harper Woods), Foreman (D-Pittsfield Twp.), Young (D-Detroit), Longjohn (D-Portage), MacDonell (D-Troy), and Price (D-Berkley).
State of the State
On February 26, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivered her seventh State of the State address. I was pleased to hear the governor’s proposal for medical debt forgiveness and look forward to tackling this issue in the Legislature.
We need to take action to make life more affordable for everyday Michiganders, which is why I invited Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney Eli Savit. His office established the state’s first county prosecutor’s unit for consumer and worker protection. This unit has advocated for hundreds of Washtenaw County residents, putting money back in the pockets of both workers and consumers. This is particularly important as Republicans have led an effort to reduce the Attorney General’s budget by 100% from this fiscal year; she has fought tirelessly for consumer and worker safeguards.
With Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney Eli Savit at the State of the State on February 26.
Washtenaw Legislator Town Hall
On Thursday, March 6, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and the Washtenaw Delegation of State Legislators held a joint town hall at Washtenaw Community College with over 1,000 attendees. The auditorium and overflow area were completely packed!
Folks came from all over the county to voice their concerns with what is happening at the federal level and hear from us about what we are doing in our respective offices to fight back against the authoritarian takeover of our government.
The recording of the town hall can be found on Congresswoman Dingell’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DM8EH4eB1/?mibextid=wwXIfr
We will be hosting other town halls with Congresswoman Dingell and the Washtenaw delegation as soon as possible, so stay tuned!
Speaking at the town hall on March 6. Also pictured, from left, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-Ann Arbor), Senator Sue Shink (D-Northfield Twp), Senator Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor), Representative Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor), Representative Jimmie Wilson (D-Ypsilanti), and Representative Jennifer Conlin (D-Ann Arbor)
Please Share Your Story
If the chaotic presidential administration has affected you or your family (i.e., you lost your job, lost or had your funding disrupted, etc.), please share your story with us! Our office wants to use our platform to elevate your voices and experiences. Share your story here: https://forms.gle/uK3QSbUByMLHHrHv7
Upcoming Events
Constituent Engagement Hours
April’s Coffee Hour
On Saturday, April 12, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., I will be hosting a constituent happy hour at Millie’s Coffeehouse (227 E Main St, Manchester, MI 48158).
Please RSVP using my official Facebook event page.
To stay up to date on my actions in the Michigan House of Representatives, please consider following me on my official social media platforms:
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