LANSING – Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s tax reform plan passed the Senate on a party line 20-17 vote, but the measure didn’t receive the two-thirds support needed to make it go into effect immediately, which throws the future of the measure into question.
Despite the bill being passed, it stayed in the Senate Thursday, since the defeated motion on immediate effect was reconsidered, leaving a motion on the measure unresolved.
Without 26 votes on the procedural immediate effect vote on HB 4001 , a provision that would deliver $180 rebate checks to Michigan taxpayers – or $90 per married joint filer – wouldn’t happen for more than a year, if at all. Also, without “IE,” $800 million wouldn’t be shifted out of the General Fund in time to stop a trigger that would likely roll back the state’s income tax from 4.25% to 4.05%, a key Republican priority.
Senate Republicans will have a second chance at granting the governor’s tax plan immediate effect following this weekend. If they don’t, majority Democrats signaled that they could change the rules on how immediate effect votes are counted.
“We’re gonna give them a few days to think about it, and we will give them another opportunity to make that a reality for the families that need it the most,” said Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids)to the media about the postponed reconsideration of granting HB 4001 immediate effect.
Additionally Thursday, SR 12 , a resolution sponsored by Brinks to historically make the electronic roll call vote for granting legislation immediate effect optional, was referred to the Senate Majority Leader’s very own government operations committee.
“If, in the future, we find that there are people who are getting in the way of doing things and working together well for the benefit of our state, we will consider action on that resolution,” Brinks said.
Brinks said she believes the goal here is to help ensure everybody is working together for the benefit of Michigan, and if anybody stands in the way of getting things done for residents in an “unreasonable way, we will consider making changes so that that doesn’t happen.”
However, while Democrats were in the Senate minority during the last four decades, the Senate’s immediate effect rule, that all voting must take place on the electronic board for all to see, was always maintained. Democrats used this two-thirds supermajority as one of their principal negotiation tools.
If SR 12 is approved, an argument could be made that it violates the state constitution, as minority parties have long argued the House rules allow.
