MichiganVotes.org April 29 Weekly Roll Call Report

Every week, MichiganVotes.org sends a report on interesting votes and bills in the Michigan Legislature, and includes how each legislator voted. To find out who your state senator is and how to contact him or her go here; for state representatives go here.

House Bill 4361, Gov. Snyder's business and personal income tax overhaul, passed in the House 56 to 53
To replace the Michigan Business Tax with a 6 percent corporate income tax; eliminate several corporate tax breaks and subsidies; repeal a gradual cut in the personal income rate from 4.25 percent to 3.95 percent; scale-back the current income tax exemption for pension income; replace the Earned Income Tax credit with a $25 per child payment to low income parents; eliminate or reduce other income tax deductions and credits including the homestead property tax credit, personal exemption and dependent child credit; and make many other tax code revisions.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4361, Don't repeal Earned Income Tax Credit, defeated in the House 48 to 59
Amendment to House Bill 4361 offered by Rep. Phil Cavanagh (D), to retain the state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), rather than replacing it with a $25 per child payment to low income parents. The EITC is a refundable tax credit (or “reverse income tax”) that sends checks to low income workers. Under it, more than $300 million worth of Michigan tax revenue is redistributed annually to workers with low incomes.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4415, Allow pension "double dip" for DNR firefighters and legislature's lawyers, passed 108 to 0 in the House
To allow Department of Natural Resources retirees to collect a pension while also being compensated on a per diem basis for wildfire suppression. The bill was amended to also allow the lawyers who draft bills for the legislature to retire and collect a pension even if they return to work and are on the payroll ("double dipping").

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 183, 2011-2012 School Aid budget, passed 19 to 19 in the Senate (Lt. Gov. Calley broke tie)
The Senate version of the 2011-2012 school aid budget. The largest area of state spending, this would appropriate $12.398 billion, which is $225 million more than recommended by Gov. Rick Snyder. It would reduce per-pupil foundation grants by $170, compared to a $300 reduction recommended by the Governor.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 178, Higher Education budget, passed 20 to 18 in the Senate
The Senate version of the 2011-2012 higher education budget. This would appropriate $1.362 billion in gross spending, compared to $1.578 billion the previous year. The Senate did not adopt Gov. Rick Snyder's recommendation to cut more from universities that increase tuition by more than 7.1 percent.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 173, Department of Corrections budget, passed 23 to 15 in the Senate
The Senate version of the 2011-2012 Department of Corrections budget. This would appropriate $1.906 billion in gross spending, compared to $2.007 billion the previous year. The reduction reflects fewer prisoners, privatization of mental health services, plans to close some prisons, and other changes.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4248, Allow Houghton DDA to borrow longer at higher net cost, passed 37 to 1 in the Senate
To allow the downtown development authority of the City of Houghton to extend the duration of debt it incurred to pay for certain past spending, thereby reducing its current payments at the expense of imposing greater overall interest costs on city taxpayers over time. Essentially, the bill exempts the city from a ban on debt extensions that leave taxpayers in a worse position.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 207, Create “mentored youth hunting program," passed 30 to 6 in the Senate
To allow a person under age 10 to hunt if accompanied by an adult approved by a new government “mentored youth hunting program” the bill would establish.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

SOURCE: MichiganVotes.org, a free, nonpartisan website created by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, providing concise, nonpartisan, plain-English descriptions of every bill and vote in the Michigan House and Senate. Please visit MichiganVotes.org.

Permission to reprint this blog post in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided that the author (or authors) and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy are properly cited.