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Lawmakers send Whitmer rest of budget – she calls it ‘a mess’

LANSING, MI (MPRN)--   Governor Gretchen Whitmer says the budgets on their way to her desk are “a mess.”

The state Legislature voted out the rest of the state budgets Tuesday. It passed the School Aid budget last week, though Whitmer has said she hasn’t received it yet. It can take several days for the clerk’s office to proofread and prepare bills for the governor.

The budget does not have a long-term road funding plan like Whitmer originally wanted. Several weeks ago she agreed with Republicans that it was okay to pass the budget, and then tackle a road funding plan later on.  Republicans decided they wanted to put some money towards roads. The transportation budget includes 400 million dollars in one-time money for roads and bridges. Whitmer says this doesn’t go far enough to fix the roads.

“Republicans are playing more shell games with the state budget so they can buy a phony talking point that they’re spending ‘record money’ on roads,” Whitmer said in a statement.

Speaker of the House Lee Chatfield (R-Levering) said there can be an ongoing conversations about roads.

“It’s our responsibility to pass a responsible budget and get it to the governor’s desk,” he told reporters after the House finished voting. “That is what we have done today. She has the obligation to sign whatever she believes is responsible and we’ll take it one step at a time from there.”

A big disagreement among Republicans and Democrats is whether the term “record funding” means anything. Republicans touted bills that they say put record amounts of money toward roads and education. But Democrats say the state wasn’t spending that much before, so the so-called “record” doesn’t mean anything.

“Let’s be very clear. Record funding is just another gimmick,” said Senator Curtis Hertel (D-East Lansing) during his “no vote explanation” on why he voted against the transportation budget. “We had record funding in 2016, and then in 2017. Do we make progress fixing the roads? The answer’s no.”

The higher education budget would increase by less than one percent if signed by Whitmer, that’s less than what she had previously proposed. Democrats and some Republicans are not happy with slight increase.

Senator Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing) called the budget a “failure”, saying in a floor speech, “Our students deserve better and we are capable of doing better in this budget.”

Supporters of the current proposed increase in the higher education budget said colleges and universities are doing well, and the state needs to keep a balanced budget.

It’s unclear at this point what, if anything Whitmer will veto. The budget deadline is midnight on September 30th.

Before becoming the newest Capitol reporter for the Michigan Public Radio Network, Cheyna Roth was an attorney. She spent her days fighting it out in court as an assistant prosecuting attorney for Ionia County. Eventually, Cheyna took her investigative and interview skills and moved on to journalism. She got her masters at Michigan State University and was a documentary filmmaker, podcaster, and freelance writer before finding her home with NPR. Very soon after joining MPRN, Cheyna started covering the 2016 presidential election, chasing after Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and all their surrogates as they duked it out for Michigan. Cheyna also focuses on the Legislature and criminal justice issues for MPRN. Cheyna is obsessively curious, a passionate storyteller, and an occasional backpacker. Follow her on Twitter at @Cheyna_R