LANSING, Mich. – Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is proposing to spend $74 billion in her budget for the next fiscal year.
It’s a big increase over last year and she’s looking to use a lot of the federal COVID relief dollars to increase funding to education and infrastructure. It also includes targeted tax cuts.
Read: Michigan Gov. Whitmer proposes school funding boost, bonuses and tax cuts
Whitmer spoke at Grand Ledge High School on Wednesday (Feb. 9) after her budget manager brought her plan to the Legislature. Her plan is a 6% increase over last year’s budget.
It includes billions of dollars in federal COVID relief money available. Whitmer wants to use it for her priorities, but it all comes down to negotiation.
It asks to use more than $18 billion for education and another $6 billion for infrastructure. Her biggest request is a record per-pupil-funding at $9,100 with a $435 per child increase.
She is also looking to spend more than $1.5 billion for education retention, bonuses and incentives. It starts at $2,000 and goes up to $5,000 in later years.
“It’s a tough time to work in schools. Staff shortages, quarantine, increased trauma and learning loss make their jobs even more difficult,” Whitmer said.
Whitmer wants to repeal the senior pension tax and is proposing a four-year rollback of 25% a year, netting some seniors $1,000 annually by the end.
Whitmer also wants to increase the state earned income tax credit up to 20% of the federal credit, meaning eligible taxpayers would get a possible $3,000 refund.
Those targeted tax cuts in opposition to Republican Legislators wanting across-the-board tax relief.
House Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Thomas Albert of Lowell said the proposal is a bridge too far. Albert said these kinds of debates are pitched battles when there isn’t a lot of money to go around.
He said just because there are budget surpluses, doesn’t mean the Legislature is going to green light Whitmer’s requests.