LANSING, Mich. — The Republican-controlled Michigan Senate authorized Thursday a lawsuit against Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, setting up a potential legal fight over millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds
Lansing The Republican-controlled Michigan Senate authorized Thursday a lawsuit against Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, setting up a potential legal fight over millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds tied to limits on the administration s power.
The dispute focuses on two policy bills the Legislature connected to a portion of the funds in its $4 billion COVID-19 relief plan. The proposals would limit the state Department of Health and Human Services epidemic orders to 28 days and shift decisions on school closures from the state department to local health agencies. Whitmer opposes the bills.
If Whitmer s administration spends the money tied to the bills but blocks the limits on her power, it would be contrary to both law and Michigan’s constitutional system, said a resolution approved Thursday in a party-line vote by the Senate.
The plan will pump money into several bipartisan priorities, including $110 million for vaccine distribution, more than $1 billion for schools, $150 million for a pay raise for direct care workers and $283 million for an emergency assistance program for families struggling to pay rent and utilities during the pandemic.
But small businesses hit hard by the pandemic will not get any relief after Whitmer vetoed $405 million in business tax and fee breaks proposed by the GOP-led Legislature, which rejected her earlier proposal for $225 million in business grants.
“The bills I received were not negotiated with me or my administration, and I continue to call on the Legislature to ensure that we work together to ensure we maximize every penny that is available,” Whitmer said in a statement.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer approved measures allocating hundreds of millions in federal COVID-19 relief funds on Tuesday, but used vetoes to nix other provisions including a bill to take away state pandemic powers that ultimately represent more than $1 billion in federal dollars.
Whitmer called the bill to remove power from the state health department director a reckless idea, poorly executed and poorly timed. But because of legislative maneuvering by the GOP-controlled House and Senate, the veto at least temporarily imperils more than $840 million in education funding.
The moves come after substantial public fighting between the governor and Republican legislators over how best to provide billions in available federal funds that advocates say families and businesses desperately need.
Whitmer signs COVID-19 relief bills, but vetoes more than $1 billion in GOP-backed deals Dave Boucher, Detroit Free Press
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer approved measures allocating hundreds of millions in federal COVID-19 relief funds on Tuesday, but used vetoes to nix other provisions including a bill to take away state pandemic powers that ultimately represent more than $1 billion in federal dollars.
Whitmer called the bill to remove power from the state health department director a reckless idea, poorly executed and poorly timed. But because of legislative maneuvering by the GOP-controlled House and Senate, the veto at least temporarily imperils more than $840 million in education funding.