Michigan Nears Housing Target as Budget Talks Stall
Michigan is advancing towards its ambitious housing goal, with state officials recently celebrating the creation of 75,000 new housing units. This achievement marks significant progress towards their revised target of 115,000 units.
Amy Hovey, the executive director of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority, emphasized the need for simplified building processes. She supports a proposal that would allocate funds to local governments that relax zoning laws to facilitate construction. “We are always looking for creativity, new ways of doing things to get more housing built here. I love the idea of incentivizing governments to look at their zoning and improve their zoning and become housing ready,” Hovey expressed during a Grand Rapids event celebrating the milestone.
The state has invested over $2 billion in housing in its latest budget. However, the passage of a new budget is delayed, with state lawmakers yet to reach an agreement for the upcoming fiscal year.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer is gearing up for discussions with Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks and House Speaker Matt Hall, as reported by MIRS News and corroborated by the Michigan Public Radio Network. This meeting is crucial, as budget negotiations have been stagnant for weeks, with Brinks mentioning the lack of recent direct talks with Hall.
The looming deadline of October 1 brings the threat of a partial government shutdown, which Governor Whitmer insists would be detrimental. “I will not be the hold up, I can tell you that,” Whitmer assured, adding, “It behooves no one for us to miss that deadline. It will be bad for everyone. Most importantly, it would be bad for the people of Michigan.”
One of the contentious topics in the budget talks is road funding, as Whitmer has stated the necessity of including a plan for it. The lack of a comprehensive budget proposal from the Michigan House has also contributed to the delays. Senate Democrats have already made strides by releasing their budget proposal in May, while Hall suggested the House might present theirs post-Labor Day.
In other news, Governor Whitmer commented on President Donald Trump’s executive order, which aims to expand National Guard deployments in Washington D.C. and potentially other cities like Chicago. While Trump deployed troops in Los Angeles against California’s governor’s wishes, Whitmer emphasized the importance of keeping Michigan’s National Guard within the state. “Our National Guard is the best of the best of the best. We are [aware] of no need to send the Michigan National Guard outside of the state. We need them here,” she stated, underscoring her role as Commander in Chief to ensure the Guard is available for state safety needs. Meanwhile, Trump has defended the use of soldiers to assist law enforcement.
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