(WXYZ) — Governor Gretchen Whitmer and the leaders of the state House and Senate say they have reached an agreement to pass the School Aid Budget and state budget before October 1. However, an overall deal has not been reached.
The announcement came in statements from Whitmer, Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, and Speaker of the House Matt Hall.
The press release says the "agreement ensures top priorities for both Democrats and Republicans are included in the bipartisan budget, which will lower Michiganders’ costs, reduce waste and increase government efficiency, and help Michiganders thrive."
It also says the agreement includes $2 billion for road funding.
However, the agreement is also called a framework by Brinks, with Hall indicating in his statement that more work needs to be done.
Whitmer's statement says:
Today’s agreement in the legislature puts us on a path to lower costs, fix the damn roads, and pass a balanced, bipartisan budget by October 1. I am grateful to Majority Leader Brinks, Speaker Hall, and legislators on both sides of the aisle for working hard to move this budget forward. In Michigan, we’ve proven again and again that we can work together to get things done by staying focused on the kitchen-table issues that make a real difference in people’s lives. Amid so much national economic uncertainty, I am proud that we are taking action to lower costs, cut taxes for seniors and working families, create jobs, fund schools, fix roads, keep people safe and healthy, and so much more.
Hall's statement says:
We have an opportunity here to reform Michigan’s broken process and get much better value for the taxpayers. There is still work to be done, but it is an important step that all of us are agreeing to implement meaningful tax relief for Michigan workers and seniors, bring transparency and accountability to the earmark process for the first time, and eliminate ghost employees. Government has grown far too much in recent years, and we need to trim the waste, fraud and abuse in Lansing. That’s how we can afford the real priorities of Michigan families – like education, public safety, and fixing our local roads and bridges. This agreement puts us in position to do just that.
Brinks statement says:
The people of Michigan deserve a budget that makes their daily lives better — a budget that boosts education, improves roads, and protects healthcare. The framework we have agreed to reflects the priorities of Michiganders from every region, and while no budget will be a perfect product, I am confident that the final result we vote on next week will have features that benefit every resident.
