August 9, 2013, MichiganVotes.org Weekly Vote Report

The House and Senate are in the midst of a summer break, so rather than votes this report contains several recently introduced bills of interest.

Senate Bill 439: Impose licensure on "anesthesiologist assistants"
Introduced by Sen. Tonya Schuitmaker (R), to impose licensure and regulation on anesthesiologist assistants, with $50 annual license fees, continuing education mandates and more. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

Senate Bill 442: End automatic tax increases to pay union contract lawsuit judgments
Introduced by Sen. Jim Marleau (R), to revise a provision that requires school property taxes be raised to pay off lawsuit-related judgments against a school district, by establishing that this does not apply if the lawsuit was to enforce a school employee union contract or other contract that specifically relates to school operations. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

Senate Bill 448: Mandate employers grant leave to departing military family member
Introduced by Sen. Vincent Gregory (D), to mandate that employers grant 20 work-days of leave (160 hours) to a member of the U.S. military reserves or national guard called to active duty during a period of military conflict, and the same for the spouse of a service member called to duty. The bill does not mandate the leave be with-pay, but does mandate a continuation of fringe benefits during the leave time. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

Senate Bill 449: Mandate employers grant leave for parent school events
Introduced by Sen. Jim Ananich (D), to mandate that employers must grant an employee up to eight hours of unpaid leave per child, per academic year to attend academic activities.. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 4623: Repeal criminal penalties for marijuana possession
Introduced by Rep. Jeff Irwin (D), to repeal criminal sanctions on possession of an ounce or less of marijuana, and instead authorize a civil penalty of $25, and $50 to $100 for subsequent violations Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 4625: Base teacher salaries primarily on student performance
Introduced by Rep. Pete Lund (R), to require that the “primary factor” (rather than a “significant factor") in setting compensation levels for new public school teachers and administrators be student performance, determined primarily by student growth measured through assessments and other objective criteria. Setting pay on the basis of seniority or having more academic credentials would be prohibited. Reported from committee, pending before the full House.

House Bill 4626: Authorize land bank sanction and complaint process
Introduced by Rep. Ken Yonker (R), to authorize sanctions for a local government “land bank” that acquired tax reverted property in violation of the law authorizing these entities, and establish an administrative complaint adjudication process. If a ruling went against the land bank and was upheld by a circuit court, the director of the land bank would have to be fired. This relates to an alleged scheme in which the city of Grand Rapids has been purchasing properties and selling them at cost to the Kent County land bank, as a way of circumventing a ban on land banks acquiring tax reverted properties before private parties have an opportunity to bid on them at a public tax auction. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 4677: Earmark some sales tax on gasoline to roads
Introduced by Rep. Phil Potvin (R), to earmark a portion of the sales tax collected on gasoline to road funding. Under current law, the sales tax imposed on gasoline goes mostly to schools and local governments, with essentially none going to roads. The bill would make about $100 million available for road projects according to the House Fiscal Agency. Reported from committee, pending before the full House.

House Bill 4641: Prohibit occupational licensure exceeding public health and safety interest
Introduced by Rep. Tom McMillin (R), to prohibit the state or local governments from imposing a form of occupational licensure, registration, certification, bond-posting, inspection mandate or other restriction on an individual seeking to perform a lawful occupation, if it is more restrictive than required for public health and safety. Instead, governments would be allowed only to impose the “least restrictive” burden required for public health and safety. Individuals would have a right to sue if an occupational regulation excessively burdens their right to earn a living in a lawful occupation. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bills 4694 to 4697: Authorize “mental health courts”
Introduced by Rep. Kevin Cotter (R) and others, to authorize a type of alternative judicial proceeding for mentally disturbed or disabled individuals who commit minor crimes, similar to the state “drug courts” for minor drug use crimes. These “mental health” courts would allow dismissal of charges if the individual agrees to and abides by an agreement that includes a prescribed mental health treatment program. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

SOURCE: MichiganVotes.org, a free, non-partisan website created by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, providing concise, non-partisan, 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.