LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – As Michigan’s House of Representatives continues to meet and discuss bills, the previous Democrat majority is struggling to accomplish new bills they have been working on.
What happened this week?
On Tuesday, two of the bills that House Democrats tried to pass, Senate Bills 388 and 389, failed because the legislature stands at a 54-54 member tie.
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House Republican Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Township), has expressed numerous times interest in bipartisanship with the tied chamber, but commented on Tuesday’s bill failure.
“As House Democrats keep rejecting collaboration, they were once again hit by a dose of shared power reality,” he added in a statement yesterday. “Today, House Democrats refused to take up any of the bills our caucus requested, even though the House is evenly split between the parties. Instead of taking up pressing issues like keeping kids safe or protecting patients from fraud, Democrats are sticking with bills that only deal with hypothetical situations; they’re trying to turn a financial institution administrative issue into a veterans issue so they can play politics.”
House legislators share about the experience.
Representative Ken Borton (R-Gaylord) commented on the situation stating that “it’s impossible to help people who don’t want to help themselves.”
“Democrats have zero interest in helping themselves, or the people of Michigan right now,” he said in a statement. “All they have to do is walk across the aisle and negotiate if they’re truly interested in putting people first and making things better. But instead, they’re still grasping to the convoluted idea that they have complete control.”
Rep. Borton expressed that the opposing party needs “a single Republican vote, a lifeline, to pass anything.”
State Representative Dave Prestin (R-Cedar River) also weighed in on the “tale of two parties.”
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“On the House floor, we hear them complain when we don’t work in a bipartisan way, but behind the scenes, they’re steamrolling their radical agenda through the committee process,” he said in a statement.
Possible bipartisanship opportunity.
Last year, Representatives John Roth (R-Interlochen), Karen Whitsett (D-Detroit), Kelly Breen (D-Novi), Samantha Steckloff (D-Farmington Hills), and Representative Alicia St. Germaine (R-Harrison Township) introduced a package of bills that would increase penalties for those who commit fertility fraud, or assisted reproduction fraud.
“When I was first approached by Rep. Roth last session about this package, I was appalled to learn that fertility fraud has been allowed to go unchecked for so many years with absolutely no legal repercussions,” Rep. Whitsett said of the bills. “It’s time to change that. This package of bills provides justice to families and individuals across the state of Michigan who have been victims of this unethical and deceptive practice. I am proud to be joining my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to reintroduce this crucial legislation.”
Rep. Roth expressed that he hopes the bills will be considered before the House floor soon.
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