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January 17, 2025

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Governor Whitmer Signs Bills Supporting Technology and Innovation, Attracting Investments to Create Jobs and Lower Costs Across Michigan Communities

Additional legislation protects Indigenous communities, expands pay transparency, upholds Michigan’s free and fair elections, and more

LANSING, Mich.  – Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed 35 commonsense bills that will expand Michigan’s talent pool and create jobs right here at home, supporting Michiganders as they search for housing and pay their bills. The bills build on Governor Whitmer’s vision to grow Michigan’s economy presented during her “Road Ahead Address” this Wednesday, ensuring Michigan is the ideal place for innovators and entrepreneurs to live, work, and invest. Additional legislation signed bolsters the Whitmer-Gilchrist administration’s commitment to making sure everyone can make it in Michigan. Including today’s legislation, Governor Whitmer has signed a record 1,466 bipartisan bills into law since taking office.

House Bill 5649, sponsored by state Representative Carol Glanville (D-Walker), will support science and technology education in Michigan by requiring every public high school to offer at least one computer science course. This bill aligns Michigan with a majority of the country, ensuring our state is a leader for the future. This bill advances technological literacy, ensuring young Michiganders are well-equipped with the critical thinking skills necessary for success in the workforce.

House Bill 4906, sponsored by state Representative Joey Andrews (D-St. Joseph), will bolster the Whitmer-Gilchrist administration’s commitment to creating jobs and supporting local economies by providing incentives for data centers to locate in Michigan. The bill supports Michigan business owners and helps to expand data center production in Michigan by extending a tax exemption for individuals and companies investing in data center equipment. The jobs created and increased tax revenue could provide Michigan communities with tens of millions of dollars for schools and operating costs.

House Bill 5600, sponsored by state Representative Carrie A. Rheingans (D-Ann Arbor), supports tribal relations with the State of Michigan by creating the Office of the Tribal Legislative Liaison within the Legislative Council. The liaison will help establish and maintain a government-to-government relationship between the 12 federally recognized tribes in Michigan and the Legislature, ensuring Michigan’s Tribal Nations and their citizens are represented in legislative decision-making.

House Bill 4854, sponsored by state Representative Helena Scott (D-Detroit), requires schools to allow Native American students to bring traditional objects or wear traditional regalia during ceremonies of honor, including graduation ceremonies. This bill will help preserve Native American cultures in Michigan and ensure Native American students can honor their heritage as they celebrate milestones.

House Bills 5231, 5232, 5233, and 5234, sponsored by state Representatives Regina Weiss (D-Oak Park), Stephanie A. Young (D-Detroit), Samantha Steckloff (D-Farmington Hills), and Helena Scott (D-Detroit), will increase transparency in Michigan’s education system by requiring charter schools to make the names of those authorizing and managing the school easily accessible. These bills will help Michigan parents make informed decisions about their child’s education.

House Bill 5269, sponsored by state Representative Matt Koleszar (D-Plymouth), requires charter schools to post certain information on their website regarding teachers’ salaries. Specifically, the bill will align charter schools with traditional public school transparency requirements. As such, this change will support pay transparency in Michigan, ensuring all prospective teachers are able to review their salaries and negotiate accordingly. Additionally, this will support pay equity within charter schools, ensuring teachers are being paid competitively.

House Bill 4924, sponsored by state Representative Emily Dievendorf (D-Lansing), adopts the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act.  This aims to protect family inheritance for Michiganders by making it easier for inheritors of real property to keep the property in the family. By preventing the involuntary sale of property, this bill allows families to maintain financial stability for generations to come, pass down property-related wealth assets, and preserve their homes for future generations.

House Bill 5022, sponsored by state Representative Alabas Farhat (D-Dearborn), will help put money back into small businesses by streamlining state tax procedures. This change will help businesses save money by reducing administrative costs, ensuring businesses can focus on profits instead of payments.

House Bill 5204, sponsored by state Representative Kelly Breen (D-Novi), cuts red tape by granting power to the Court of Appeals judicial districts to swear in and admit new lawyers to the Bar of Michigan without a special request to the Michigan Supreme Court. This bill will help reduce unnecessary barriers for prospective lawyers, attracting talent and building Michigan’s legal community.

House Bills 5379 and 5747, sponsored by state Representative Jenn Hill (D-Marquette), will support economic development in our state by simplifying Michigan’s ability to form agreements with other states about how materials to support the logging industry are taxed, promoting the smooth transportation of wood products and supporting local UP logging businesses.

House Bill 5924, sponsored by state Representative Alabas Farhat (D-Dearborn), designates a portion of Highway I-94 as the “Corporal Mohamed Said Memorial Highway.” This change honors Corporal Mohammed Said, a member of the Melvindale Police Department, who lost his life in the line of duty.

House Bills 6052 and 6053, sponsored by state Representative Penelope Tsernoglou (D-East Lansing), support free and fair elections in Michigan by streamlining election processes. Specifically, the bills increase voter access through improved ballot printing efficiency and clarifies the timeframe for election related lawsuits. These changes will help ensure that every Michigander’s voice is heard, regardless of whether they vote early or on election day.

House Bills 5949, 5950, and 5951, sponsored by state Representatives Tyrone Carter (D-Detroit), Brenda Carter (D-Pontiac), and Matthew Bierlein (R-Vassar), expand affordable transportation options in Michigan by creating a regulatory framework for peer-to-peer car sharing programs. This provides an opportunity to lower the cost of owning a car by creating clear provisions and protections for an individual or company to share a car. In Michigan, we’re always on the move. This bill helps lower everyday costs like travel, giving hard-working Michiganders more paths to “make it in Michigan.”

House Bill 5046, sponsored by state Representative Nate Shannon (D-Sterling Heights), ensures courts can continue to operate effectively by updating the fee court reporters and recorders can charge to align with current costs, updating the current rates for the first time since 1986.

House Bill 5551, sponsored by state Representative Noah Arbit (D-West Bloomfield), prohibits an individual from serving on the Board of State Canvassers or a county board of canvassers if they have been convicted of certain election crimes. Ensuring the validity of election results protects Michiganders’ right to a free and fair election they can trust.

House Bill 4842, sponsored by state Representative Natalie Price (D-Berkley), eliminates the requirement for certain funding mechanisms used by the State Building Authority to mature every five years, providing greater flexibility in funding for critical infrastructure and buildings, while mitigating unnecessary costs for the state.

House Bills 5300 and 5303, sponsored by state Representatives Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia) and Helena Scott (D-Detroit), cut unnecessary and complex red tape by reforming the process for Michiganders to change their legal name. The bills streamline requirements for individuals to change their legal name. This change also supports individuals changing their name as a result of domestic violence, stalking, human trafficking, or gender affirmation by creating a presumption of good cause to waive the previous publication requirement for these cases.

House Bills 5077 and 5078, sponsored by state Representatives Curtis VanderWall (R-Ludington) and state Representative Carrie Rheingans (D-Ann Arbor), support public safety and health for Michiganders by making it easier for government agencies to distribute and administer life-saving overdose-reversal drugs like naloxone. These bills are critical to addressing the effects of the opioid epidemic in our country and reducing opioid-related deaths in our state, ensuring all Michiganders have access to life-saving emergency overdose treatment.

House Bill 5829, sponsored by state Representative Samantha Steckloff (D-Farmington Hills), simplifies the scholarship application process for Michigan students by sunsetting the state competitive scholarship and Michigan tuition grant, as the Michigan Achievement Scholarship replaced both programs. This bill will help reduce confusion during the college application process, expanding access to education and ensuring students can “make it in Michigan.”

House Bill 5574, sponsored by state Representative Joey Andrews (D-St. Joseph), supports free and fair elections in Michigan by clarifying and simplifying the petition process. Specifically, this bill will amend when updates on the status of a petition need to be posted online and what materials needs to be transmitted to local clerks.

House Bill 6166, sponsored by state Representative Tyrone Carter (D-Detroit), will support Metro Detroit’s tourism industry by providing the option to increase the local hotel room assessment. This bill aligns Detroit with other major cities, including Cincinnati, Columbus, and Chicago, that charge at least a 4% assessment. This increase will boost tourism revenue by $295 million over five years, supporting the revitalization of Detroit and its surrounding counties.

House Bill 6088, sponsored by state Representative Alabas Farhat (D-Dearborn), sponsored by state Representative Alabas Farhat (D-Dearborn), supports region-wide affordable transportation by ending transit opt-out zones in Wayne County and giving voters a direct say in whether to continue funding public transit services. Prior to this bill taking effect, 17 out of 43 communities in Wayne County, representing 500,000 residents, have opted out of the transit millage, reducing affordable public transportation options for all residents. Specifically, the lack of transit access for these opt-out communities has harmed students, seniors, and people with disabilities. The bill will empower voters county-wide to approve or deny the renewal of a transit millage.

House Bill 5188, sponsored by state Representative Amos O’Neal (D-Saginaw), increases the monetary limits for drain assessments, allowing drain authorities to maintain drains more efficiently and saving unnecessary maintenance costs for both local municipalities and their residents.