House approves education, general government budgets

The Michigan House has approved the controversial education budget, meeting the governor’s May 31 deadline with time to spare. The bill is on its way governor’s desk.

The vote was 59 to 50. The legislation cleared the Michigan Senate Wednesday. The budget has a $470 per pupil reimbursement cut for K-12 schools and so-called “best practices” provisions which would restore $100 per pupil in funding if districts adopt them. The deal is part of a wider budget deal approved last week by Republicans who control the House, the Senate and the Governor’s office.

The general budget omnibus passed on a 62-47 vote.

Senate Minority Leader Gretchen Whitmer (D-East Lansing) pleaded with Republican lawmakers Wednesday not to pass the education budget, calling it the “worst of the worst.” House Minority Leader Richard Hammel (D-Mt. Morris Twp.) issued the following statement after the House vote.

“Let’s be clear about what the Governor and House Republican leaders did today: Over the objections of the majority of Michigan residents, they passed massive, unnecessary cuts to our schools that will cause long-lasting economic damage to our state. They could have used a $900 million surplus to actually increase funding for our children’s education. Instead they raided the School Aid Fund and made the biggest per-pupil cuts since Proposal A was passed in 1994 – all to pay for their 82 percent tax break for giant corporations with no guarantee of a single new job. This comes on top of their restructuring of the tax burden that permanently ends a major source of support for schools. What we’re seeing from Republican leaders is not a commitment to creating jobs by building a world-class workforce. What we’re seeing is a commitment to the dismantling of public education in Michigan.”

Ari Adler, spokesperson for House Speaker Jase Bolger (R-Marshall), issued a press statement comparing overall budget numbers. The House approved both the education omnibus and the overall omnibus bill Thursday.

Total On‐Going Adj. Gross Spending:

FY11 $47,190,770,600
FY12 $46,028,767,700

Difference: $(1,162,002,900) or ‐2.46%

Total On‐Going GF/GP Spending:

FY11 $8,311,787,300
FY12 $8,279,432,800

Difference $(32,354,500) or -0.39%

In response to the education cuts, Michigan Education Association released an ad on YouTube, that it will begin airing statewide shortly.

“Michigan citizens, including teachers and school employees, are fed up with the state politicians who voted to cut $1 billion from local schools while giving a $1.8 billion tax break to rich CEOs and corporate special interests,” MEA President Iris K. Salters said. “The new ads leave no room for interpretation: Out-of-touch politicians are balancing their budget on the backs of our kids, and they will be held accountable for their actions.”

House Republican Leadership praised the new budget.

“This is truly a new era in Michigan for responsible leadership and a budget process that focuses on protecting taxpayers by bringing government spending in line with available revenues rather than the other way around,” said Bolger. “I felt from the beginning that a comprehensive format would help us maintain a tighter control on spending and it did. In addition, many people scoffed at the challenge by House Appropriations Chairman Chuck Moss to complete the budget by June 1 and we are delighted to deliver on promises to our taxpayers.”

And Moss concurred with Bolger.

“We’ve reduced spending, tackled long-term and long-neglected debt, and created a structurally balanced budget without using accounting gimmicks or funny money. We’ve also gotten a solid handle on a balanced budget for 2013,” said Moss, R-Birmingham. “Voters said they wanted things done differently in Lansing and we’ve delivered. You can’t just talk about wanting to do the right thing — you’ve got to actually do it, if you want to truly make a difference.”

Flint Democrat Rep. Jim Ananich, a former teacher, also slammed the budget vote in a press statement.

“You can slather this pig of a budget in buckets of lipstick, but it won’t change the fact that it’s a job killer, plain and simple,” said Ananich, a former teacher who participated in public forums across Genesee County and around Michigan to hear about how these cuts would damage communities. “There are people who are earning a paycheck today who won’t be once this budget takes affect and when you claim job creation is the top priority, that result is unacceptable.”