Whitmer signs budget, education funding and housing bills into law
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed her eighth and final education budget into law Tuesday at an event in Southfield, celebrating wins in continuing to fund free school meals, free pre-K, free community colleges and what Whitmer's office called a "historic investment in student literacy."
The budget totaled about $22.9 billion -- $20.6 billion from the school aid fund and $1.2 billion from the general fund.
"This year, we're making historic investments in early starts, proven methods, and extra help for our students so that Every Child Reads," Whitmer said in a news release from her office. "I'm proud to sign this education budget, which will invest in our educators, continue free school meals for all 1.4 million public school students, and deliver on the literacy plan laid out in my State of the State Address earlier this year."
K-12 schools received $19.8 billion in total funding, including a per-pupil funding increase to $10,300, a smaller increase than last year.
She also signed five bills that codified elements of the budget -- including a new weighted funding formula for at-risk students and English language learners, as well as students in rural and isolated school districts, providing a higher proportion of funding for those students than the general per-pupil allocation.
"At a time when our politics too often reward division instead of solutions, today proves we can still come together to do what's right for our kids. This budget makes meaningful investments in Michigan's future by putting students at the center of school funding," said state Sen. Darrin Camilleri, D-Trenton, chair of the Senate PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee and the sponsor of the bill that codified the weighted funding formula. "Our work isn't finished, but today we've taken another important step toward building the education system our children deserve."
Whitmer celebrated the policy bills as building on the progress already made to close the school funding gap, expand college affordability and skills training, and support students with greater needs.
The governor also signed two bills that require elementary teachers to complete intensive training in the science of reading, including phonics, which were celebrated by Republican representatives.
"I'm proud to have participated in another historic education budget and particularly thrilled with the energy around literacy," said state Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Frankenmuth. "We have provided a no excuses pathway to exponentially raise reading proficiency, and that's great for Michigan."
The budget continued funding for community colleges and higher education institutions, which was highlighted in the press release by Ryan Fewins-Bliss, the executive director of the Michigan College Access Network, who said it "builds on years of progress to strengthen pathways to education and training beyond high school, helping more students prepare for, access, and complete a postsecondary degree or certificate."
Similarly, Brandy Johnson, president of the Michigan Community College Association, said, "From launching Michigan Reconnect to creating the Community College Guarantee, expanding Reconnect to younger adult learners, and making the state's first dedicated investment in dual enrollment, Governor Whitmer has helped expand access to affordable postsecondary education for learners at every stage of life. These investments will continue opening doors for students and strengthening Michigan's workforce for years to come."
The education budget passed through the state Legislature on the morning of July 3 after an all-night session by wide margins in both chambers -- 24-12 in the Senate and 99-8 in the House, with all of the opposition coming from Republicans except for three House Democrats.
All three of those Democratic representatives -- Reps. Dylan Wegela of Garden City, Regina Weiss of Oak Park and Veronica Paiz of Harper Woods -- cited the siphoning of money from funding K-12 education in the state to other purposes, including higher education and community colleges, as well as the state's general fund, as their criticism of the school aid budget that lead to their votes against it.
"We don't have enough revenue for schools as it is, and because of a combination of the federal cuts, but also bad decisions that have been made at the state level in terms of revenue cuts that we've approved, and also continued increased spending that we've approved," Weiss said. "I'm also worried that the sustainability of what we've been doing just isn't there, because once the school aid fund dollars go away, there's going to be nowhere else to pull money from."
Wegela added that last year, $1.3 billion was taken from the K-12 schools budget, and this year, that increased to $1.8 billion. Paiz similarly told the Michigan Advance that the movement of that money out from the school aid fund was the reason behind her vote against.
Later on Tuesday, Whitmer signed into law the remainder of the state budget, which combines to about $85 billion.
Key points in the budget, according to a news release from Whitmer's office, are that it "lowers costs, grows opportunity for Michiganders, protects access to health care, fixes the damn roads, and supports small businesses, making our state the best place to live, work, and raise a family."
The budget was celebrated by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, with House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, noting it "moves even more money out of wasteful spending and into the real priorities of Michigan families, like road repairs, schools, and public safety."
The budget also includes more than $184 million to mitigate the impacts of the federal H.R. 1, otherwise known as the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," that put into place significant new requirements for federal programs like Medicaid and SNAP.
"While politicians in Washington have stoked fear, chaos, and uncertainty across the state and nation, here in Michigan, we've worked across the aisle to deliver a budget that provides residents with financial relief, stability, and peace of mind," Senate Appropriations Chair Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing, said in a news release. "As the Senate's lead budget negotiator, I'm incredibly proud to have championed a fourth state budget that responds to the pressing challenges that people and communities are facing across the state."
Her counterpart in the House, Rep. Ann Bollin, R-Brighton Township, added that it "protects essential services and invests more in priorities like public safety and saving Medicaid while reducing overall spending, maintaining healthy reserves, and advancing reforms that make government more effective and accountable."
Whitmer also signed a package of bills designed to advance housing affordability -- including one to create the Michigan Housing Opportunity Tax Credit to work in tandem with the federal low-income housing tax credit to build more affordable housing.
"Today we're taking decisive action to build more homes, invest in affordable housing and protect the American Dream," state Rep. Stephen Wooden, D-Grand Rapids, said in a news release. "By modernizing state building regulations with smart stair reform, we're making smaller-scale apartment buildings doable again, opening the door to thousands of new residences in neighborhoods and business districts across our state."
Other bills signed include those that change the state's building and construction codes to allow for more flexibility in housing construction projects while still ensuring safety.
"Excess red tape has made it too difficult for local builders to create the kinds of affordable apartment options that young people, workers, and growing families need in order to call Michigan home," Lauren Strickland, the executive director of Abundant Housing Michigan, said in a news release.
Some of the bills have been criticized, however -- specifically HB 6074, one of the bills Whitmer signed, which some say will make it harder to rent homes, despite its well-intentioned goal of prohibiting large institutional investors from purchasing a single-family home.
Jon Wright, a managing partner of Spear Partners, a modular workforce-housing developer, wrote in a commentary published by Bridge Michigan that by eliminating the "build-to-rent option," it would make it harder to attract private capital into the state, including in underserved neighborhoods.
"Renters lose the most. Push the well-capitalized, mid-sized owners out of the market, and the number of well-maintained rental homes goes down. Lower-income tenants get left with the substandard properties that undercapitalized landlords cannot afford to keep up," he wrote.
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