LANSING – A day after a conference committee approved a higher education budget without funding for the $4,000 Promise Grant college scholarship, the Michigan House Appropriations Committee acted Thursday to restore that program under a supplemental bill.

But while HB 5403 restored the $120 million expected to be needed to fund the college scholarship, there was no funding source tied to it.

Rep. George Cushingberry Jr. (D-Detroit) said he expected the House Tax Policy Committee would act on a revenue bill either Thursday or Friday (it didn’t happen Thursday).

He said acting on a supplemental came after legislators started voting on steep cuts, including the Promise Grant, on Wednesday and several wanted to restore those.

But members of both sides of the aisle were skeptical.

Rep. John Proos (R-St. Joseph) said restoring the Promise Grant wasn’t part of the deal struck between House Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Twp.) and Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester).

“We can all in concept say the Promise is something we like. This has been the number one topic I have received from constituents in southwest Michigan,” Proos said. “But in front of us we don’t have a funding mechanism.”

House Minority Floor Leader Dave Hildenbrand (R-Lowell) said voting to restore the cuts was an “11th hour curveball.” He said taxes can be pursued by any legislator who wants to propose them, but not until after the start of the fiscal year on October 1. He said right now lawmakers should be focused on balancing the budget before that deadline.

On the Democratic side, Rep. Fred Miller (D-Mount Clemens) said if the Promise Grant is such a priority it should have been included in the higher education budget and he praised the two Democrats who opposed that measure as it came out of conference.

Rep. Gary McDowell (D-Rudyard) expressed continued concern that the original intent of the tobacco settlement money was to remedy the health care affects of smoking within the Medicaid population, but it has long been diverted to college scholarships.

Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-Salem Twp.) said since the tobacco settlement money is the source of revenue for the Merit Award and there is a balance in that fund, then lawmakers don’t need to look for new revenue to replace the Promise Grant.

But Cushingberry worried that since some of the tobacco settlement money was securitized to fund the 21st Century Jobs Fund, tapping into it for the Promise Grant could harm the state’s bonds for the jobs fund.

House Fiscal Agency Director Mitch Bean advised lawmakers that the state’s fiscal problems are compounding for 2011 when the federal stimulus will run its course and that part of the budget agreement already relies on transferring $37.5 million from the jobs fund to the general fund.

In the end, Republicans opposed the supplemental, except Rep. Darwin Booher (R-Evart) and Rep. Bill Caul (R-Mount Pleasant), who abstained.

The only Democrats to oppose the move were Smith and Miller.

Bishop criticized the House Appropriations Committee for the move.

“That’s what they do,” he said. “They spend money they don’t have. At least they’re consistent.”

This story was provided by Gongwer News Service. To subscribe, click on Gongwer.Com

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