Michigan Politics

Updated 12/21/2020 10:30 a.m.

The Michigan House has approved a COVID-19 relief bill that includes a pay boost for workers on the front lines of dealing with COVID-19; funding for vaccine distribution; and extending unemployment benefits. There’s also money to help small businesses that have been hurt by the continuing health crisis. The bill now goes to Governor Gretchen Whitmer for her signature.  

A Republican state lawmaker has been disciplined by his party’s leadership. That’s after state Representative Gary Eisen (R-St. Clair Township) refused in a radio interview to denounce the possibility of violence during Monday’s Michigan Electoral College vote for President-elect Joe Biden.

On Monday, Michigan’s 16 electoral votes will be formally awarded to President-elect Joe Biden in a ceremony at the state Capitol. Other US states and territories also convene their electoral colleges today.

State Representative Cynthia Johnson (D-Detroit) has been punished by House Republican leaders for a Facebook video in which she appears to threaten supporters of President Donald Trump.

At the Michigan Board of State Canvassers meeting on Monday, two Democrats and two Republicans will meet to certify the results of Michigan’s election. Unofficial results, which have been certified by all of Michigan’s 83 counties, show President-Elect Joe Biden with a lead of more than 154,000 votes, roughly 14 times the margin by which President Donald Trump won the state in 2016.

The legislative committee looking into the state’s COVID-19 response meets again Monday – where top health officials in Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s administration will face questions from lawmakers.

This will be the first committee hearing since the state Supreme Court struck down the governor’s continued use of emergency powers and encouraged the Legislature and Whitmer to strike a bargain.

The state Senate returns Thursday after the Michigan Supreme Court declared many of Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s COVID-19 executive orders unconstitutional.

State lawmakers plan to finish up their work in Lansing this week.

The state House is expected to vote on bills to restore funding for some of the items vetoed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in late September.

Lieutenant Gov. Garlin Gilchrist became the first African American Lieutenant Governor to sign a bill into law Thursday.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed all of the state’s budgets for the new spending year — and used a lot of red ink in the process.

One of the many items Whitmer said “no” to was millions of dollars in one-time funding toward the state’s roads. She also vetoed the School Aid budget.

Thousands rallied at the state Capitol Wednesday against Michigan’s auto insurance law. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed sweeping changes to the law in May that ended requirements for everyone to have unlimited, lifetime medical benefits for catastrophic car accidents.

MichiganGov. Gretchen Whitmer says the budgets on their way to her desk are “a mess.”

Discussions to bring sports betting and online gaming to the state are on hold until Michigan has a budget.

Negotiations to come up with a long-term plan to fix Michigan’s crumbling roads have been put on hold. Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the Republican legislative leadership announced Monday that their main priority is the budget.