Updates About Legislation

The Michigan House and Senate took further action on gun reform legislation by taking steps to finalize a package of bills containing legislation from both chambers. Senate Bills 79, 80, 81, and 82, along with House Bills 4138 and 4142 will head to the desk of Governor Gretchen Whitmer. House Bill 4143 will need a concurrence vote in the House prior to presentation to the Governor.

The package of bills would require background checks to be performed on all gun purchases, require individuals to obtain a license to own a firearm, enact red flag laws that would allow family, friends, or others to petition the court to remove firearms from those who may harm themselves or others, and require gun owners to safely store their firearms.

In separate but related news, President Biden issued an Executive Order this week seeking to reinforce background checks for gun buyers, strengthen red flag laws, encourage safe storage of firearms, and ask the Federal Trade Commission to analyze how gun manufacturers market firearms.

On Tuesday, November 29, the Michigan State Senate approved, by a vote of 34 to 1, legislation that would move the 2024 presidential primary a month earlier. Senate Bill 1207, sponsored by Sen. Wayne A. Schmidt (R-Grand Traverse), would change Michigan’s presidential primary from the second Tuesday in March to the second Tuesday in February.

Earlier this year, a panel of Democratic National Committee (DNC) members voted to eliminate Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status for presidential primaries. On December 2, the Democratic Rules and Bylaws Committee approved moving South Carolina’s primary to February 3, followed by Nevada and New Hampshire three days later. Georgia and Michigan would vote thereafter.

SB 1207 did not pass the Michigan House of Representatives prior to adjournment for the year. If passed out of both chambers in the new legislative session, it will need sign-off from both national parties.

On September 28, one of the final session days ahead of the November 8 election, the Michigan State Legislature finalized a $1 billion supplemental appropriation bill, most of which would additional funding to the Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve (SOAR) Fund for various economic development projects.

In light of the negotiations, Representative Thomas Albert (R-Lowell) announced during the House Appropriations committee meeting that he would be resigning as chair due to his concerns with approving additional spending. Albert, who again addressed the chamber during his no-vote explanation, said he could not support the spending during a “period of economic uncertainty”. Representative Mary Whiteford (R-Casco Township) will serve as the Appropriations Chair for the remainder of the 2021-22 legislative session.

Following an agreement struck between the Whitmer administration, local clerks and lawmakers, the Michigan State Legislature also took up a package of bills related to election security and preprocessing of absentee ballots. All bills in the package passed out of both chambers and now head to the desk of Governor Gretchen Whitmer. House Bill 4491 would allow county clerks to remove deceased individuals from the qualified voter file as well as allow absentee ballot preprocessing up to two days before the election. Currently, Michigan only allows preprocessing 24 hours prior to an election and only in municipalities of at least 1,500 voters. House Bill 6071 would increase access to polling locations. Senate Bill 8 defines “verified electronic signature” for military personnel, while SB 311 allows the electronic return of ballots for military voters.

The legislation is expected to be signed into law and be in effect for the upcoming November general election.