You probably remember the bomb that Speaker Andy Dillon dropped earlier this year with talk of consolidating the benefits for over 400,000 public employees including emergency personnel, public school employees, and current and retired state employees, in the form of House Bill 5345.
The East Lansing-based polling firm EPIC-MRA ran a poll regardless, and released the staggering results earlier this week. Only 22% of those surveyed would support such a measure if enacted.
This is in addition to an additional poll that MRG came out with in September showing virtually the same thing - opposition was strong at 57 percent to 37 percent, and within that, 72 percent of GOP voters opposed the bill. (Which is further interesting, particularly if rampant rumors of a possible Dillon gubernatorial run as an independent.)
According to Roger Martin, speaking for the group Citizens for Accountability in Reform, hearings in the state House on HB 5345 have stalled and key witnesses have been not been allowed to testify.
“House Bill 5345 is viewed as bad and risky public policy by Michigan voters, and legislators who support it will find it to be toxic in 2010 and beyond,” said Roger Martin, spokesman for Citizens for Accountability in Reform, a growing coalition representing taxpayers, police, firefighters, teachers, insurance companies and others who are concerned House Bill 5345 doesn’t provide the reform it promises at a price taxpayers can afford.
Martin noted that a House committee holding hearings on the bill has announced that today’s scheduled hearing will be the last for possibly months, even though 10 more bills were introduced late last week to implement the $4 billion to $5 billion state government health plan.
“With an election year just around the corner, given Michigan voters’ overwhelming opposition to this legislation, it’s no wonder the committee doesn’t want to hold more hearings,” Martin said. “During the hearings over the past two months, so many witnesses have either voiced opposition or raised serious concerns, opposition to the legislation among voters has skyrocketed.”
There's been a bit of hypocrisy going on in our State Senate for quite a while now. Holding a majority by only three seats, the Senate Republicans currently have an additional $100,000 extra than their Democratic colleagues in their budgets for whatever they'd like. Staff, office furniture, salaries, donuts, whatever.
For as long as I can remember, the Republicans theme song has been slash, burn and cut, and as of late, they've been asking state employees to continue to give more and more up, while they continue to live high on the hog.
But don't take it from me. Listen to Sen. Gretchen Whitmer of East Lansing who today offered Senate Republicans the opportunity to literally put their money where their mouths have been. Check out her floor statement below, and as far as a teaser...let's just say in some parts of the state, it could be taken as a real butt-kicking, and that's being polite.
Wondering what Senate Republican cuts mean for Michigan's state employees? Consider it a major blow below the belt.
According to a Senate Fiscal Agency report from 9/23/07, here's how the cuts breakdown by department.
Attorney General - 107
Civil Rights - 25
Community Colleges - 38
Corrections - 1,300
Education - 44
Environmental Quality - 143
Human Services - 268
Judiciary - 59
Legislative Attorney General - 31
State - 80 Treasury - 137
Total State Jobs Cut - 2,232
Two thousand, two hundred and thirty two jobs will be cut if the Senate Republicans have their way. I wonder how those 2,232 people feel about that?
So we're talking about prison guards, investigators and administrative help from the AG's office, the people that print the pension and welfare checks, air and water inspectors, and that's just the very top of the list. I'm sure it's a very tiny blip in the day of a Senate (and House) Republican.
Must be nice not to care about how you're going to pay your mortage, put food on the table, clothe your kids, or put gas in the car so you can get to work. C'est la vie, right?
It's Day 5 and the news just keeps getting worse. There's presently a real rumble in the House, and if you had any doubts as to who is fighting for you in Lansing, one only need listen to the speeches by this state's public servants.
It's clear along Party lines who is for you and who is for the wealthy, the special interest, and the powerful, or in other words, that 1% of the state's 10 million citizens.
And if that doesn't send you a wake-up call, grab your tissue as you read this heart-breaking email from one state employee -
I work for the state and I am traumatized by the thought of not getting a paycheck. When I was told on Wednesday that I might not get paid the first week in October I almost broke down in tears, and couldn't sleep that night. I'm not going to complain and say that I don't make enough money, but I will say that my salary is nothing to brag about, and it forces me to live paycheck to paycheck.
I don't know what I'll do, because I'm not going to be able to pay my bills. I already have a hard time making sure that I eat 3 times a day and that I have gas money. If we shut down, I'll probably have to start eating 1x a day like I did back in college, and I probably won't be driving anywhere.
I wonder if Mike Bishop knows what it is like to not know where you're going to get your next meal from, and if he has ever not had to pay a bill because his paycheck didn't provide him the means to cover all of his expenses. I think if his family wasn't able to afford their groceries or mortgage payment, he might actually try a little harder to get something done. Instead he wants to take away everything that state employees have, because somehow we are overcompensated.
If we shut down, I will be forced to get a second job, which is something that I have already been considering for awhile. I don't know what I'll do if we really shut down.
So Mike, how do you respond to that? And to the Republican State Representatives, can you still at your podium and preach the wonders about excess and waste of the state government?
As Rep. Coleman Young II (D-Detroit) just mentioned on the House floor, by way of Woodrow Wilson "If you're always worried about re-election, you'll never get re-elected."
Time to get to work on behalf of the People, not on behalf of the privileged and special-interest.
It's Day 4 and there's some extremely scary news coming out -
Reports are coming in from across the state that state employees have been informed that their next paycheck maybe their last for a while due to the overwhelming probability of a government shutdown.
Senator Mike Bishop (R-Vanity), has your golf game been worth it?
To the thousands of state employees, this is why you might not have another paycheck for a while. Are you okay with that?
Are you a state employee? What would happen to your job/department if Mike Bishop gets his way and we're forced to a government shutdown? Email us your story, and we'll anonymously post it here.
It's Day 3 and state employees are chomping at the bit to tell Senate Republican Majority Leader Mike Bishop how upset they are at him for choosing his golf outing over finding a budget solution. Can you blame them?
Thanks to Bishop's ineptness, the state government is facing a possible government shut down on Oct. 1st. Here's another story from the disgruntled state employee mailbag -
I work for the Michigan State Police (MSP) and I am the sole full-time employee for the system that processes all non-fingerprint-based MSP background checks. (A limited-term employee was brought in earlier this year but the position could not be extended due to budget cuts.)
The system is used by government agencies, schools, non-profit organizations, health care and child care providers as well as the general public to check for criminal histories that are available under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act of 1976.
One person who is the sole tester, trainer, auditor, and analyst for the system that performs 4000-5000 background checks on average every day; in 2006 the total was over 1.1 million. Also on an average day about 40 to 80 people need assistance with the system, and there is just one person whose job it is to help them.
And since I am a civilian, not a trooper, if the state government shuts down then that one person will not be there for anyone.
Is Mike willing to take responsibility for all the chaos that could ensue following a government shutdown? In the end, would his golf outing be worth it? If these remarks from state employees are any indication, perhaps he should think his responsibility to the people of Michigan.
Are you a state employee? What would happen to your job/department if Mike Bishop gets his way and we're forced to a government shutdown? Email us your story, and we'll anonymously post it here.
With the news about Republican State Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Hair Gel) ditching the state for his golf game, the response has been overwhelming. Heck, we even picked up some serious ink with political insider MIRS -
Michiganliberal.com has a photo of Senate Majority Leader Mike BISHOP (R-Rochester) in a ridiculous looking golf outfit to advertise the fact that his golf outing was scheduled last Friday while the House was in session...
Today's piece from our first state employee precisely highlights why Bishop has got to stop puttering around with the State's budget.
I work at Community Health where we track serious diseases. Just last month, Michigan had its first outbreak of West Nile virus and if we weren't telling people about this serious health problem, we could have a huge health crisis on our hands.
DCH works with all of the other state departments on lots of other diseases too, especially when it's something like Bovine TB where we work with Dept of Ag or the Flu where we work a lot with DHS.
I think that saving the lives of children and senior citizens is far more important than any sporting event, much less a golf game. Tell Mike Bishop to stop playing games and get back to work on our budget.
Are you a state employee? What would happen to your job/department if Mike Bishop gets his way and we're forced to a government shutdown? Email us your story, and we'll anonymously post it here.
It's hard work being Republican State Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Hair Gel).
Why just last Friday poor Mike nearly missed his golf outing fundraiser because the silly people of Michigan wanted a state budget. Can you imagine that? We actually expected him to stay late into the night on Thursday to pass a budget. Goodness only knows what might have happened if he hadn't caught his beauty rest before donning his jaunty golf apparel for the fundraiser!
Bishop's been such a busy boy, he's gotten completely out of touch with the rest of the state. That's why we need you to remind Mikey why your job is more important than his golf outings, and why we need him to get to work with the rest of our elected officials, Republican and Democrats alike, on passing a state budget.
So, to the thousands of state employees out there, from Hancock to Muskegon, Bay City to Monroe, tell us why your job is more important than a golf outing, and we'll publish your entries (anonymously) here each day till a budget that works for all of Michigan is passed. Heck, we'll even award some of the top entries with some truly excellent gifts.
We want to hear what would happen if the state government were to shutdown, and/or you lost your job because of his ridiculous tax cuts. Whether you work in Corrections, Food/Ag Safety, if you're a Caseworker with the Dept. of Human Services, an accountant in the Treasury Dept, a State Trooper patrolling the roads, where ever, we want to hear from you.
You can submit your story to us here, and we promise to post your entry anonymously. Tell your friends, tell your co-workers, tell everyone, and keep checking back here at MichLib for all the latest. If nothing else, keep coming back to preview the rest of Mikey's haute couture golf apparel.
