In Michigan House, time for Democrats is running out. What to expect

• Michigan Republicans gained control of the state House early Wednesday, ending two years of Democratic control
• Democrats have about seven weeks to pass a laundry list of bills before relinquishing power
• That includes potentially opening the Legislature to public records requests and deciding what to do with new minimum wage requirements

LANSING — Democrats’ control of Lansing proved short-lived after Republicans retook the state House on Tuesday, paving the way for a busy “lame duck” session and a check on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s power.

Democrats vastly outspent opponents in key swing districts, but Republicans knocked out several incumbents and held onto vulnerable seats in Oakland and Jackson counties. 

Republicans are projected to win or are leading in 58 of the state House’s 110 seats.  Democrats, who had a two-seat majority, will relinquish control when the Legislature reconvenes next year.

“With a Republican majority, Michigan will have a stronger voice fighting for the values of hardworking families and addressing the issues that matter most — safe schools and neighborhoods, an affordable economy and a government that provides value for dollars,” House Republican Leader Matt Hall said in a Wednesday statement.

The election marks the beginning of the end for Democrats’ historic control of the state House, Senate and governorship in Michigan. Winning full control in 2022 for the first time in nearly four decades, Democrats acted quickly, repealing Right to Work laws, passing firearms reforms and adding protections for LGBTQ community into the state civil right’s act. 

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But they also have many unfinished goals, and the transition to Republicans likely means a busy “lame duck” session is in the works in the final weeks of Democrats’ full control.

Members of both party caucuses will need to choose their leaders for the coming session year on Thursday. Hall, of Richland Township, is the heavy favorite on the Republican side. 

Outgoing House Speaker Joe Tate,D-Detroit, has announced he will not seek a leadership position next term, despite winning reelection. 

That leaves the party with options including Speaker Pro Tempore Laurie Pohutsky of Livonia and Rep. Jason Morgan of Ann Arbor, according to Gongwer News Service, an online publication covering Lansing.

Tate was mum on Democrats’ plans for the next six weeks, but said in a statement that Tuesday’s election is “an opportunity to regroup and rebuild.” 

“Come January, we will look for every opportunity to work with our Republican colleagues in a bipartisan manner to put the people of Michigan first,” Tate said. 

Adrian Hemond, a Democratic strategist with the bipartisan Grassroots Midwest consulting firm in Lansing, told Bridge on Wednesday that Democrats’ first order of business is securing leadership positions.

After that, anything’s fair game: changes to the state’s minimum wage increase and sick time expansion, opening up the governor and Legislature to public records requests and economic development spending.

“I’d be kind of surprised if there wasn’t some sort of supplemental (budget) bill that passed before the end of this year,” Hemond said. “I think we’ll have a fairly active lame duck.”

Democrats still control the state Senate and the governor’s office, meaning bipartisan buy-in would be necessary for any legislation. 

That’s often proved difficult in recent history, especially in the final years of governors’ administrations. Term limits will force Whitmer out of office in 2027.

Conservative observers said Wednesday that Democratic leadership should take heed of the message voters sent as they prepare plans for the rest of the year and beyond. 

“Clearly, the people of Michigan didn't agree with the direction that the Democrats had taken us,” said Jase Bolger, a Republican strategist who served as House speaker from 2011 to 2014. 

Though he believes bipartisanship is possible, Bolger predicted Republicans wouldn’t “go along to get along.” and would block objectionable proposals. 

With the House reconvening Thursday for the first time since Sept. 25, here’s some of the still outstanding bill packages they could tackle during the “lame duck” session.

Minimum wage, sick time 

Massive changes to the state’s minimum wage and paid-time-off laws are slated to take effect in early 2025 after a July Michigan Supreme Court ruling.

If implemented as written, Michigan’s minimum wage would increase from $10.33 an hour to a nearly $15 an hour minimum wage by 2028 and require businesses with 10 or more employees to provide up to 72 hours of paid sick leave per year. 

The voter-backed 2018 petition drive also allows workers to accumulate unused benefits into new years. Smaller firms have to provide up to 40 hours of paid sick time. 

Senate Republicans have introduced legislation to scale back the pending change and restaurant employees, business owners and even union members are pushing hard for lawmakers to scale back or somehow terminate pending changes.

Public records reform

Just before lawmakers adjourned for the summer in June, the Senate passed legislation to open the governor’s office and Legislature to public records requests under the Freedom of Information Act. 

Along with Massachusetts, Michigan is the only state that provides such exemptions and, despite promising to do so when she ran for governor in 2018, Whitmer has refused to voluntarily open her office to requests.

Under the bills, legislative offices would not have to disclose communications between lawmakers and their constituents, internal investigation records, caucus counsel records, personal cell phone numbers and records related to ongoing civil actions until those matters are settled. 

Communications between a lawmaker and a constituent would only be made public if that constituent was a registered lobbyist – but not if the constituent was part of a special interest group or a powerful business leader. 

The proposal now awaits action in the House, which has not held any votes on any legislation since Sept. 25. 

Lobbying legislation

Lawmakers have also proposed further transparency and ethics reforms such as implementing a one-year cooling period preventing elected officials from immediately taking jobs as lobbyists.

The package, known as the BRITE Act, is supported by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Attorney General Dana Nessel, both Democrats.

The bills have not yet advanced out of committee, however, let alone received a vote in the full House. 

There has been no action on the legislation since it received an April hearing. 

School safety 

Following the 2021 mass shooting at Oxford High School, proposed several measures to improved school safety that would: 

• Outline safety and security training requirements for all security personnel
• Require tips sent to the OK2Say student safety tip line be forwarded to authorities within 24 hours
• Require each intermediate district to employ at least one emergency and safety manager as well as at least one mental health coordinator.

Reintroduced in February 2023 — after failing to gain traction in 2022 — only five of the 12 bills have since received a hearing, and the legislation continues to languish in the House Education Committee.

Economic development 

When the House did come back briefly in September, it signed off on one part of a two-bill package that could give big tax breaks to major tech companies that build multi-billion dollar server farms.

Its companion bill, which would offer sales tax exemptions for these data centers, passed the Senate in June but stalled in the House.

At the time, bill sponsor and state Rep. Joey Andrews, D-St. Joseph, told reporters he hoped the legislation would be put back up for a vote in the “lame duck” session. 

Environmentalists have opposed such deals, saying the data centers provide few jobs and require lots of energy.

Polluter pay 

Reforms to crack down on companies that pollute in Michigan have remained stalled in committee since first introduced in the Senate in October 2023.

The seven-bill package would strengthen cleanup standards, require pollution-prone companies to carry insurance to cover cleanup costs, and make it easier for Michiganders to sue polluters who may have compromised their health.