KEY LEGISLATION:
Senate Stages
‘Revenue Thursday’
to Tweak Governor
Yesterday could have been dubbed "Revenue Thursday"
in the Michigan Senate
as Majority Leader Ken Sikkema (R-Wyoming) took Governor Granholm to
task
for what he sees as her lack of willingness to negotiate on the budget
with
the Republican caucus. Sikkema chose to run all four of the governor’s
major
revenue-enhancement proposals in order to let them be defeated and send
a
message that there must be give-and-take in the budget negotiating process.
The four major revenue issues included taxes on estates,
cigarettes, liquor
and casinos. All failed chiefly along party lines, although the estate
tax
fared so poorly it might be dead. The procedural steps to keep it alive
for
future consideration were not completed. The liquor markup and
75-cent-increase in the cigarette tax are likely to pass in one form
or
another once differences are resolved regarding where the additional
revenue
will go to fill holes in the budget. It also appears to be a long shot
that
the tax on Detroit casinos will be doubled.
Tax on Trash Bags Proposed
Senators Ron Jelenik (R-Three Oaks) and Shirley Johnson
(R-Royal Oak)
introduced a bill they believe can help alleviate Michigan’s budget
problem
and help the environment. SB 1308 calls for a 2-cent tax on plastic
shopping
bags that aren’t biodegradable.
Estimates show the bill would raise $64–$86 million
in Fiscal Year 2005.
Part of the revenue would go to the School Aid Fund while another portion
would help fund regional recycling centers. The recycling centers issue
has
been stalled in the Senate for months because the proposed funding mechanism
is a $3-per-ton landfill tipping fee that business groups don’t
like.
Because Sen. Johnson is the Appropriations chair, the
bill could be given
greater consideration than such a bill normally would receive. The bill
has
been referred to the Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Nancy Cassis
(R-Novi).
DeRoche Tops Next-Speaker Poll
Rep. Craig DeRoche (R-Novi) was picked by Capitol insiders
as the most
likely successor to Speaker Rick Johnson (R-LeRoy) by a relatively wide
margin. Thirty-two percent of those polled in the MIRS EPIC/MRA survey
picked DeRoche as the next Speaker of the House.
DeRoche, who is the sponsor of MRA’s Item Pricing
Modernization legislation,
finished 12 percentage points ahead of Rep. Mike Nofs (R-Battle Creek)
and
19 points ahead of Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Zeeland).
The key to winning the Speaker’s chair between
now and November is to be out
raising money for the Republican caucus, help members in their district
elections and work to expand or at least retain the solid Republican
majority in the House.
KEY BILL INTRODUCTIONS:
SB 1308, sponsored by Sen. Ron Jelinek (R-Three
Oaks), to impose and earmark
tax on retail use of non biodegradable shopping bags.
HB 6029, sponsored by Rep. William O’Neil
(D-Allen Park), to allow use of
pledged items and provide usage fee.
To view the content and current status of retail-related
bills, visit BillTrack,
MRA's legislative tracking database exclusively for members, at
www.retailbilltrack.com
If you are currently receiving Capitol F@cts by fax
and would like to receive
it via e-mail, please contact Kathleen Wilson at 517.372.5656 or
kawilson@retailers.com.
For back issues of online Capitol F@cts, visit MRA's main Capitol F@cts page.
Specific comments or questions regarding this bulletin
should be directed to:
Kathleen Wilson, Administrative Assistant to the Governmental Affairs
Office at
kawilson@retailers.com.
Michigan Retailers Association
603 South Washington Avenue
Lansing, MI 48933
517.372.5656
Toll-Free: 800.366.3699
Fax: 517.372.1303
govt_affairs@retailers.com
www.retailers.com
www.mallofmichigan.com
