LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The Michigan Legislature was officially sworn in Wednesday morning at the Capitol. Despite minor electric board trouble, it inducted the first African American Speaker of the House.  

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Joe Tate (D-Detroit), a former NFL player and veteran of the Marines, was officially sworn in as Speaker of the House after House Minority Leader, Matt Hall, seconded the motion to nominate him as speaker.  

Of the 108 votes for the election of the speaker, eight voted against him including Reps. Steve Carra (R-Three Rivers), James Desana (R-Carleton), Joseph Fox (R-Fremont), Neil Friske (R-Charlevoix), Mike Hoadley (R-Au Gres), Matthew Maddock (R-Battle Creek), Angela Rigas (R-Caledonia Township/Kent County), and Josh Schriver (R-Oxford). 

In the debut 2023 session, there were a number of bills submitted for enrollment, including the Republicans’ number one priority: a bill regarding tax relief for Michigan workers and retirees. 

“On day one, House Republicans are hitting the ground running to help the people of our great state,” said Hall, (R- Richland Township). “Inflation has put Michigan families in a bind, and we’re working to make life more affordable for every Michigander. As House Tax Policy chair last term, I prioritized tax cuts for the people, although the governor vetoed multiple bipartisan relief plans. As we begin a new year in the Legislature, let’s start by delivering tax relief to workers and seniors.” 

Representative Andrew Beeler (R-Fort Gratiot) submitted House Bill 4008 which would enable elders ages 67 years and older to deduct “$40,000 of all income from the state income tax, or $80,000 for couples filing jointly.”  The plan would also accommodate seniors ages 62 to 66 by permitting them to deduct retirement income, $20,000 for individuals or $40,000 for joint filers.   

Representative Bill G. Schuette (R-Midland) introduced HB 4009 which if passed would increase the earned income tax credit by more than triple of the equivalent federal credit, and make it so those who have not yet filed taxes can apply retroactively to the previous year. While the previous Legislature approved an increase to the tax credit for 2022, the governor vetoed the plan.  

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“I was chairman of the Tax Committee. I’ve been all over the state.  What I’ve seen is the most pressing issue is that people are struggling with this cost of living right now,” Minority Leader Hall said. “We want to see real relief, we want to see immediate relief for our seniors and working families across our state.  For all retirees, not just people with public pensions.” 

After the House Republican press conference regarding HB 4008 and 4009, Minority Leader Hall responded to questions about divisions in the Republican Caucus.  

“When I seconded speaker Tate, I talked a lot about the need to govern in the middle and work together,” Hall said, “Speaker Tate has a lot more in common with me and a large group of Republicans that want to govern than he does with an extreme fringe of his caucus which is actually bigger than this group you’re talking about.”