The Review Magazine Spring 2025

League Finds Success in Chaotic Lame Duck By John LaMacchia

The 2023–24 legislative session closed with one of the strangest and most chaotic lame ducks in recent memory, and maybe ever. The final few weeks were filled with ups and downs and the type of drama meant for a Hollywood script. An entire caucus walked off the floor and didn’t return, individual legislators didn’t show up, and a 29-hour marathon session ended the year. In the end, several big issues were left on the table, and disappointment, frustration, and anger could be felt throughout the Capitol. From the League’s perspective, we were still able to get a big win amidst all the chaos and held off a dozen issues we opposed. Unfortunately, we also had some of our biggest priorities fall short because of the disorder. Our biggest victory of lame duck was the passage of the Ground Emergency Medical Transportation (GEMT) Program. Major items we were able to defeat included legislation that would have required minimum staffing be a mandatory subject of collective bargaining, and housing bills that eroded local control. Our top priority of establishing the Revenue Sharing Trust Fund died in the Senate, and the Short-Term Rental Regulation Act that would have maintained our right to regulate short-term rentals and institute a six percent excise tax on all short-term rentals died in the House. The biggest item of concern was the passage of House Bill 6058. This legislation modifies the Publicly Funded Health Insurance Contribution Act (PA 152). While we were able to hold off a full repeal, there were modifications made to the

hard cap and a flipping of the 80/20 cost share from a ceiling to a floor that are problematic for our members. In an odd turn of events, this bill was not presented to Governor Whitmer before the close of session. Since then, the new Speaker of the House has not presented the bill, and the Senate has pursued litigation to compel the Speaker to do so. This issue continues to remain in limbo and there is no clear outcome currently. The inaction in lame duck on major items such as economic development, road funding, and changes to tipped wage and earned sick time laws are certain to carry over into the first months of the new legislative session. Here is a recap of the major legislative issues from lame duck. Big Win Opens Door for Millions in Federal Funding for Michigan Communities! • Ground Emergency Medical Transportation (GEMT) Program: HB 5695 ° HB 5695 will authorize Michigan’s participation in the federal Ground Emergency Medical Transportation Program. This is a voluntary opt-in supplemental reimbursement program administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for eligible public ground emergency medical transportation providers. ° This legislation will bring tens of millions of federal dollars into Michigan that we have been missing out on and will help improve public safety services.

| Spring 2025 | 7