Legislative Update Week of May 27th

This week the legislature saw a short but very important week with the House working hard to meet it's self imposed deadline of getting the budget approved. Let's take a look at what happened before the legislators left for the week:

Budget:

The Detroit Regional Chamber had it's annual policy conference on Mackinac Island this week that included names like Governors Jeb Bush and Scott Walker. This left the legislator looking at a shorten schedule for this past week with the conference starting on Wednesday. The House started with the School Aide budget with an increase in the foundation allowance for most school districts around Michigan that averaged out to $52 per student. The Senate agreed with the House and the Conference Committee' s work and passed the Education Omnibus budget, sending it to the Governor for his signature.

The General Government Omnibus budget is still in limbo. The House received the report of the Conference Committee, a report that came without the Medicaid Expansion. Mental Health Services saw the majority of extra funding with the Governor's push for greater access and increased services for those needing mental services. The House voted the bill out on party lines to the Senate for their approval but the Senate decided with the short timeline for the week that they were not interested in rushing the budget through. The Senate will be considering the budget this coming week.

This coming week the budget will be finalized, Expedited Partner Therapy could see a vote in the House Health Policy committee along with other action. Stay will MSMS to get the most up to date information at http://www.msms.org/advocacy.