NewsLocal NewsIn Your NeighborhoodState Capitol

Actions

Whitmer unveils proposed $79 billion budget proposal; here's what's in it

Michigan state capitol
Posted

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unveiled her 2024 budget recommendation on Wednesday, totaling $79 billion.

Whitmer and State Budget Director Christopher Harkins outlined the proposal in front of Senate and House Appropriations committees.

According to the governor's office, the budget includes a general fund total of $14.8 billion and a School Aid Fund total of $19 billion.

As outlined previously by the governor, the recommendation includes rolling back the retirement tax, expanding the Working Families Tax Credit, providing pre-K for all Michigan 4-year-olds and more.

"In the months ahead, I look forward to working with my partners in the legislature to deliver a balanced budget that makes a real difference in people’s lives. Let’s get it done," Whitmer said in a statement.

Below are some highlights about each area of the budget, according to the governor's office.

Education

  • $900 million deposit into a new rainy day fund for schools
  • $614 million to support school operations through a 5% increase in the base per-pupil
  • $318 million for school safety programs
  • $300 million for tutoring through the MI Kids Back on Track program.
  • $300 million to invest in student mental health
  • $257.3 million to help give all 4-year-olds free pre-K
  • $195 million to help teachers
  • $160 million to provide students free breakfast and lunch to all of Michigan’s public school students
  • $150 million to fund matching grants for school districts to modernize their bus fleet by switching over to electric vehicles. 
  • $120 million investment in various educator supports  
  • $94.4 million for literacy-related programs and activities in Detroit public schools.  
  • $79.9 million to continue expanded support for special education students 
  • $66.5 million to provide a 5% increase in funding to support academically at-risk students, English language learners, and students in rural school districts 
  • $64.7 million increase in funding for academically at-risk, economically disadvantaged students
  • $30 million supporting new math intervention programs
  • $25 million for additional support for vocational education and career and technical education equipment upgrades
  • $4 million to establish the Nature Awaits program, providing every Michigan fourth grader with a free field trip to a state park

Higher education & workforce development

  • 4% ongoing increase for university and community college operations
  • $200 million in Infrastructure, Technology, Equipment and Maintenance funding for community colleges & universities
  • $140 million to temporarily lower the eligibility age for Reconnect from 25 to 21
  • $100 million additional investment for the ongoing costs of the Michigan Achievement Scholarship
  • $75 million for the Reconnect Bachelor’s Degree Pathway program
  • $55 million for a Student Wellness Fund to help universities and community colleges improve student wellness resources on campus
  • $35 million of additional funding for Going Pro
  • $35 million for a Retraining and Retooling fund
  • $30 million for Student Wraparound Services and Basic Needs Supports for students at public colleges and universities and tribal colleges
  • $25 million for the College Success Fund to provide
  • $20 million for Talent Retention and Expansion efforts

Public Health

  • $210.1 million to increase wage support to direct care professionals serving in nursing homes and extended care facilities
  • $150 million to establish a Michigan-based insulin manufacturing facility
  • $129.7 million for additional Medicaid health access
  • $62.1 million to fund Healthy Moms, Healthy babies, a bipartisan program that supports pregnant women, new mothers, and young children
  • $58 million to implement recommendations from the Racial Disparities Task Force
  • $30 million increase in support to local health departments
  • $15 million to create a new foster care respite care program
  • $6.2 million to fund the Medicaid Plan First! program

Public Safety

  • $50.4 million to leverage the State Police Training Academy to serve as a criminal justice training hub  
  • $36.6 million in new statutory revenue sharing (2% ongoing and 5% one-time) dedicated specifically for public safety, including employee recruitment, retention, training, and equipment for first responders
  • $18.2 million to provide in-service training to licensed law enforcement officers
  • $11.5 million for the Selfridge Air National Guard Base to improve and maintain infrastructure at the base
  • $10.8 million to establish the Office of Community Violence Intervention Services
  • $10.4 million to improve safety and accountability in correctional facilities
  • $9 million to run a Michigan State Police Trooper Recruit School
  • $5 million to enact various recommendations from the Task Force on Juvenile Justice Reform
  • $5 million to expand the Jobs Court
  • $1.9 million to implement gun violence prevention policies
  • $72 million increase over current year funding for Michigan Indigent Defense Commission   

Rebuilding Infrastructure

Roads, Bridges, Transit, Electrification

  • $350 million in a reserve designed to allow the State to leverage infrastructure dollars
  • $200 million investment supporting Michigan's Bridge Bundling program
  • $160 million for Intermodal Capital Investment Grants
  • $65 million to expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure networks and access
  • $41.2 million for the Information Technology and Investment Fund
  • $45 million for the Michigan Clean Fleet Initiative
  • $10 million to begin the transition the of State of Michigan’s fleet to electric vehicles.  
  • $6.6 million to improve permitting processes and reduce permit issuance wait times. 

Housing

  • $212 million for residential energy efficiency improvements
  • $100 million for the Community Downtown Economic Development Program
  • $50 million in funding for Revitalization and Placemaking Program grants
  • $50 million for the Housing and Community Development Program   
  • $15 million to address workforce housing needs in the food and agriculture industry
  • $10 million to acquire, renovate and resell State Land Bank properties

Water, Parks, Agriculture, Environment

  • $226 million to remove and replace 40,000 lead service lines across the state over 10 years
  • $122.5 million to ensure the quality and safety of Michigan drinking water 
  • $100 million to establish an environmental justice contaminated site clean-up fund
  • $5.2 million for orphan oil and gas well remediation
  • $10 million in funding for MI Climate Smart Farming 
  • $7.8 million in state parks operations funding
  • $5 million for Michigan Saves to incentivize private investment in clean energy

Michigan Economic Development

  • $500 million annual deposit in the State’s bipartisan Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve (SOAR) Fund
  • $200 million over 10 years for the Onshoring Clean Energy Supply Chain Tax Credit 
  • $200 million for the Michigan Regional Empowerment Program
  • $135 million for the Michigan Main Street Initiative
  • $15 million in federal funding to supplement the $15 million ongoing funding for Pure Michigan
  • $10 million to support outdoor recreation businesses 
  • $10 million to promote Michigan as a destination for special events and national conventions 
  • $5 million for the Michigan Defense Center 
  • $2 million for the Arsenal of Innovation Fund 

2024 Michigan Budget by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd

Michigan Budget presentation by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd