Oct. 7 MichiganVotes.org Weekly Roll Call Report

MichiganVotes.org sends a weekly report to newspapers and TV stations around the state showing how state legislators in their service area voted on the most important or interesting bills of the past week.

Senate Bill 618, Eliminate charter school cap, allow "privatized" teachers: Passed 20-18 in the Senate
To eliminate the cap of 150 on the number of charter schools that can be chartered by universities, and allow all community colleges to authorize charters outside their regular district. Also, to allow school districts to contract out the employment of teachers meeting the same qualifications. The bill would also allow charters to operate the same grade levels at multiple sites, exempt charter schools from property tax, and more.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4087, End retired legislator health benefits: Passed 37 to 1 in the Senate
To end the post-retirement health care insurance coverage provided to legislators, but only for those who have not completed at least six years in the legislature by January 1, 2013. Reportedly, this means 36 out of 38 Senators would still get the benefits, plus 14 out of 109 currently in the House. Under current law, former legislators who have served six years get full health coverage beginning at age 55.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4732, Revise youth employment limits: Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate
To revise the law that restricts the maximum number of hours that minors age 16 and 17 who are in school can work. Under current law the maximum is 48 hours of combined school and work a week, and 48 hours of work during the summer. The bill would change this to a maximum of 24 hours of work when school is in session.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 644, Shift business tax break/subsidy dollars: Passed 35 to 3 in the Senate
To authorize using money appropriated for the “21st Century Jobs Fund” business subsidy program to instead pay for the corporate and real estate developer subsidies proposed by Senate Bill 567.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4721, Take "bridge card" of criminal warrant targets: Passed 36 to 2 in the Senate
To require the Department of Human Services to get arrest warrant data from the State Police, and revoke the welfare “bridge cards” of any warrant targets. “Bridge cards” are debit cards that have replaced food stamps and are also used for cash welfare payments.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

Senate Bill 43, Create new residential mortgage fraud crime: Passed 109 to 0 in the House
To create a new crime of residential mortgage fraud covering various actions intended to obtain or benefit from someone else obtaining a mortgage loan under false pretenses, subject to penalties of up to 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 4087, End retired legislator health benefits: Passed 96 to 11 in the House
To end the post-retirement health care insurance coverage provided to legislators, but only for those who have not completed at least six years in the legislature before January 1, 2013. Reportedly, this means 36 out of 38 Senators would still get the benefits, plus 14 out of 109 current House members. Under current law, former legislators who have served six years get full health coverage beginning at age 55.

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 https://www.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.