As Governor Gretchen Whitmer prepares to share her proposed state budget in early March, we heard from the governor on her list of priorities in her first State of the State Address given last week.

Whitmer focused on our infrastructure and education, as well as making Michigan’s economy more competitive and ensuring residents have access to clean and safe drinking water.

During her address Whitmer announced two new initiatives and a new goal for our state when it comes to education and supporting a stronger economy.

Postsecondary Attainment Goal
The governor shared that Michigan now has a new statewide goal of increasing the number of Michiganders with a postsecondary credential to 60 percent by 2030. Prior to her announcement Michigan was one of only nine states in the U.S. without a formal goal for postsecondary attainment.

Many CMF members have been engaging in this work for some time through their Local College Access Networks (LCAN) and the Michigan College Access Network (MCAN) which has a goal of 60 percent postsecondary attainment by 2025.

“MCAN had adopted the Lumina Foundation established goal of 60 percent postsecondary attainment by 2025, but this was never officially ‘endorsed’ or ‘codified’ by a governor as a state-wide aspiration,” Brandy Johnson, executive director of MCAN said. “As you can imagine, we are thrilled to join other states in the U.S. with an official proclamation of a specific goal. Between 2016 and 2017, Michigan saw the largest annual increase with our attainment rate approaching 45 percent. We continue to make positive progress toward the goal, but we need statewide investments to further accelerate our momentum."

Michigan Reconnect
Whitmer announced the launch of this new initiative which will include two key components - training adults seeking an in-demand industry certification or associate degree and connecting Michigan businesses to qualified candidates for the growing number of jobs that are currently unfilled.

“This initiative is modeled after a similar effort that Tennessee’s former Republican governor, Bill Haslam, launched last year. And it is already surpassing expectations,” Whitmer said.

MI Opportunity Scholarship
Whitmer’s new initiative will guarantee two years of debt-free community college for all graduating high school students who qualify. For those seeking a four-year degree, the scholarship will provide two years of tuition assistance at a four-year, not-for-profit college or university for students who graduate from a Michigan high school with at least a “B” average. The scholarship will be officially launched this spring and available to students in the fall of 2020.

“Real paths. Real opportunity. Together, these paths will go a long way toward closing the skills gap, making Michigan’s economy more competitive and creating real opportunity for everyone,” Whitmer said.

Additional key takeaways from the address:

• Environment: Whitmer added our state to the U.S. Climate Alliance with a bipartisan coalition of governors from 20 other states and committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. This was one of a series of executive orders signed by the governor which also included a streamlined Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and new offices including Clean Water Public Advocate and the Environmental Justice Public Advocate. The Detroit News reported on Thursday that the state Senate voted to overturn Whitmer’s executive directive that reorganized the department. Bridge Magazine reports the reorganization eliminated review panels where half the seats were filled by businesses. Bridge reported “Republican lawmakers crafted the oversight commissions last year, saying they would bolster transparency.” While Democrats say it gives businesses too much authority over such issues.

• Healthy Michigan Plan: Whitmer says with the added work requirements coming to Medicaid, she intends to work with the Legislature to find ways that both promote work and preserve coverage for people who need it. The state shared in a press release that an analysis shows in Arkansas where similar work requirements were implemented 18,000 people in that state lost their insurance within the first seven months of the requirements. According to the state, an independent study by Manatt Health found that Michigan’s waiver, once implemented, would result in 61,000 to 183,000 Michiganders losing their health insurance.

The Michigan League for Public Policy (MLPP) released a statement following the address stating that the policy proposals align with what the MLPP heard from Michigan residents while they received input on creating a new resource, the Owner’s Manual for Michigan.

“Improving public health by addressing our water systems and other failing infrastructure, maintaining the resounding success of the Healthy Michigan Plan, investing in education and literacy improvement from preschool to college and skills training, and many of the other policy proposals discussed are spot-on,” MLPP shared. “Like the governor, we think these issues can and should transcend party lines and political agendas, and we’re looking forward to working with her and Republican leaders in the Legislature to get things done.”

Republican leaders had questions as to how such initiatives, including free community college, would be funded.

Whitmer is expected to share her state budget proposal March 5.

Want more?

Check out MLPP’s Owner’s Manual for Michigan.