State Reps. Abed and Cochran Respond to Governor’s State of the State Address

LANSING – State Representative Theresa Abed (D-Grand Ledge) and Tom Cochran (D-Mason) said today that, contrary to Governor Rick Snyder’s claims in his State of the State address, Republican policies have damaged Michigan’s middle-class families and have failed to kick-start an economic recovery in Michigan.

“It’s another example of the disconnect between the Governor and our middle class families who continue to struggle to make ends meet. Governor Snyder has pushed for policies that hurt our families, workers and children,” said Rep. Abed. “In the area of education alone, he is still advocating for his Education Achievement Authority which will give parents and teachers little say over what happens in their neighborhood schools in the EAA. As someone who has worked in our schools for over 30 years, I am deeply concerned about our children’s future and the Governor’s direction for our public education system.”

In his State of the State address, Gov. Snyder proposed more ideas that would hurt the middle-class families, students and seniors of Michigan. He continued his support of the Education Achievement Authority, which paves the way for school vouchers and makes it possible to allow for-profit corporations to take over public schools. Michigan drivers would also pay more in what the governor referred to as user fees. Snyder also called for reforms to Michigan’s No-Fault Insurance law. Last year, Republicans proposed so-called reforms that would have imposed lifetime caps on auto injury benefits. In his nearly one-hour speech, Snyder did not mention middle-class tax cuts, relief for seniors who now pay taxes on retirement income or restoring $2 billion in education funding.

“This year, Michigan’s working families are going to pay higher taxes because Governor Snyder and the GOP paid for billions of dollars in tax-cuts for corporations by eliminating tax-credits for the middle class and slashing funding for our schools,” said Cochran. “These policies have not created jobs and are not the way to move our state forward. We need a pro-growth agenda for everyone that focuses on investing in education instead of trying to win the race to the bottom on the backs of our state’s seniors, workers, and students.”