Hi all!
I hope you all are enjoying the transition into spring. In this update, I plan to cover community conversations, which are a great opportunity to meet with me, and the recently passed House Republican budget and roads plan. Please contact my office if you need any help from the state government, and I hope to see you around our community soon!
All the best,
Regina
Community Conversations
Community conversations are a chance to connect directly with me in our community. If you have any issues or want an update on what has been happening in Lansing, these are fantastic opportunities to meet in person. Here is a list of community conversation dates to mark your calendar for the coming months!
- Tuesday, March 27, from 6-7 p.m. at the Oak Park Library
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- 14200 Oak Park Blvd., Oak Park, MI 48237
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- Monday, April 21, from noon-1 p.m. at the Detroit Coffee Lodge
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- 19737 James Couzens Fwy., Detroit, MI 48235
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- Thursday, May 8, from 5-6 p.m. at the Royal Oak Township Library
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- 21131 Garden Lane, Ferndale, MI 48220
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- Thursday, May 22, from 5-6 p.m. at the Detroit Northwest Activities Center
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- 18100 Meyers Road, Detroit, MI 48235
House Republican-led Budget
A House Republican-led budget recently passed that would take away school meals from kids. This budget hurts kids and will likely result in increases to your grocery bill. On March 6, Michigan House Republicans, without advance notice, pushed through a budget that didn’t fund essential supports for students and eliminated $5 billion in education funding1. This budget removes departments and programs for things people need most, like healthcare, senior services and education. It reduces the school aid budget by 25%,1 the general budget by 92%,1 and the transportation budget by 95%.1
I voted against these bills because I believe they completely disinvest in Michigan and our people. They gut many programs that Michiganders rely on. We stand to support hard-working Michiganders, and we will continue to advocate for your success and the well-being of our state. This Republican-led budget is now sitting in the Senate, and it is very unlikely that Senate Democrats, who are in majority, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will agree with it.
House Road Funding Plan
This week the House voted on a roads plan. The proposal includes an increase in the gas tax from 31 cents to 51 cent per gallon and ties the rate to inflation going forward. It will also remove the 6% sales tax on gas. The removal of the sales tax is extremely concerning to me because it will cause a huge reduction in the general fund and less constitutionally protected revenue for schools. The House Fiscal Agency estimates that this plan could lead to a decrease of $3.1 billion to the state’s general fund in the 2025-26 budget year.2
While there are some positive impacts of the plan, including increasing funding for roads and dedicated funding for local roads and side streets, the proposed roads funding package will significantly impact our community by disinvesting in Michigan and its people due to the dramatic hit to the general fund. We cannot pave our roads at the expense of seniors, health care, schools and other essential services that we all rely on.
As it stands, I do not support the current version of the road funding package due to the cuts to essential programs it will cause. The proposed plan is irresponsible as it does not clarify how it will fund the many services our residents rely on while increasing funding for roads.