Inside208

Governor Continues Week of Policy Announcements

Posted on January 31, 2018 by Dene Westbrook

Following Governor Snyder’s eighth and final State of the State speech last week, his team has immediately moved into announcement mode, capitalizing on the initiatives he announced during his January 23rd speech to the Legislature.

A new announcement is planned for each day this week, in advance of next Wednesday’s (Feb 7th) FY 2018-19 state budget presentation.

On Monday, the Governor signed Executive Order 2018-2 in Port Huron, promoting the expansion of broadband internet service.  This E.O. creates a new state-level commission, the Michigan Consortium of Advanced Networks, to advise the Governor on the state’s broadband infrastructure needs, identifying gaps in coverage and capacity and recommending solutions for state and private sector investment to bridge those gaps.

On Tuesday, the Governor announced his Renew MI plan as a replacement for the former Clean Michigan Initiative bond program.  This $675 million bond program, approved by the state’s voters in the late ’90s, is nearly tapped of remaining bond capacity, so the Governor is proposing an increase in landfill tipping fees as a replacement for that bond revenue to avoid adding to the state’s long-term debt liabilities.  This new proposal would increase the tipping fee from the current .36/ton to $4.75/ton as a way to bring in an estimated $79 million per year to clean up contaminated sites, invest in recycling programming, assist with local solid waste management planning, and support ongoing water quality monitoring efforts at beaches, lakes, and rivers.

Wednesday’s announcement centers around efforts to curb invasive species, like Asian Carp from entering the Great Lakes.  On Thursday, the Governor is expected to announce his plans for investment in the state’s water infrastructure systems.  Finally, on Friday he is scheduled to detail his specific proposals for improving the state’s recycling efforts.

League staff have participated in briefings on these announcements and are reviewing the available information and awaiting the forthcoming announcements to determine the various impacts on local governments.  We will share additional details as the remaining initiatives are announced later this week.

Please contact our office if you have any questions.

Chris Hackbarth is the League’s director of state & federal affairs. He can be reached at 517-908-0304 and [email protected].

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