LANSING – A months-long budget standoff could be nearing an end, as Michigan lawmakers moved bills Wednesday to reappropriate some $459 million of the nearly $1 billion Gov. Gretchen Whitmer line-item vetoed from the state’s 2020 budget.
Millions of dollars would be returned to programs that fund rural police patrols, charter schools, isolated school districts, county jails, autism programming and rural hospitals, among others. The bills would also reverse millions of dollars worth of transfers Whitmer made using a rare maneuver with the State Administrative Board in October.
The bills passed unanimously in the Senate and nearly unanimously in the House. One notable absence from the deal is funding to continue the Pure Michigan advertising campaign.
“While this does not restore all of the governor’s vetoes and transfers, it is a good first step in the right direction,” said Senate Appropriations Chair Jim Stamas. “It is my hope this is the last time any of these programs are caught in the political crossfire.”
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