Michigan court: House GOP must send blocked bills to Whitmer

A Michigan Court of Appeals panel rules state House must send nine bills to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for signature
The bills originally passed the Legislature last year but, for reasons still unclear, were never presented to the governor
The House, helmed by a Republican majority, could still appeal the decision to the state’s highest court

LANSING — Michigan House Republicans must send Gov. Gretchen Whitmer nine bills that were passed late last term but — for reasons still unclear — not presented to her for signature at the time, a Michigan Court of Appeals panel ruled Monday.

The Michigan Constitution requires the Legislature to send approved bills to the governor and “leaves no room for discretion in the fact that this act ‘shall’ be performed,” Judge Thomas Cameron wrote in the opinion.

Because the Legislature is responsible for passing laws in Michigan, it “therefore must be the Legislature that presents them to the governor,” he wrote.

The ruling requires the Michigan Court of Claims to issue a “writ of mandamus” ordering the Michigan House to send the bills to Whitmer.

At issue are nine potential laws to place corrections officers in the state police pension system, require governments to pay a larger share of employee health care premiums, exempt public assistance from debt collection and allow Detroit historical museums to propose a millage.

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Democrats approved the measures last year, but Republican leaders who took control of the chamber in January did not send them to Whitmer, prompting the Senate to sue.

House Speaker Matt Hall’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday’s ruling or whether he intends to appeal the case to the Michigan Supreme Court. Hall, R-Richland Township, has blocked the bills for more than 10 months, citing legal uncertainty.

Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids, celebrated the Court of Appeals decision: “No matter how deep our political differences, the Constitution must be followed,” she said.

“Skirting the law is bad enough, but it’s so much worse that they did it in the name of stopping bills that would have helped thousands of their constituents make ends meet.”

Court of Claims Judge Sima Patel ruled in February that the House had a duty to send the nine measures to the Whitmer, writing that “all bills passed by the Legislature must be presented to the governor within time” to review them before they take effect.

But Patel stopped short of requiring the House to send the bills to the governor, holding that it was not the judiciary’s place to instruct the Legislature in its duties.

On Monday, Cameron wrote that the Court of Claims erred in not issuing a writ of mandamus — or an order legally compelling a person or business to act — because the Michigan Constitution “contains no language limiting the judiciary’s authority to interpret and enforce its mandates.”

According to the Michigan Constitution, “Every bill passed by the Legislature shall be presented to the governor before it becomes law, and the governor shall have 14 days” to decide whether to sign or veto it.