By Mary Pollock
Michigan’s House and Senate have been on spring break since March 19 and are expected to return the week of April 13.
DEATH CERTIFICATE BILLS
Two bills important to seniors that SERA has supported throughout the hearings process were signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer on March 18. The new laws require death certificates to be filed online by authorities within 48 hours of a person’s death. They allow qualified physicians to sign off on death certificates if they had seen the deceased within a year before death. If not, a medical examiner could still perform the certification. The legislation streamlines death certification processes to reduce delays so that necessary legal matters can be handled more quickly. House Bills (HBs) 4077 and 4078 are now Public Acts 3 and 4 of 2026 with immediate effect in 90 days.
NINE HOSTAGE BILLS TO SUPREMES
The Michigan Supreme Court has agreed to hear oral arguments in May on whether the State House was required to present to the Governor nine bills approved by previous majorities in the Michigan Senate and House but not administratively processed before a new majority party in a new legislative session assumed control of the House in early 2025.
The Senate filed a lawsuit against the House to compel presentment of the nine bills. Four of the bills would allow covered State employees in the Department of Corrections access to the more generous State Police Retirement System. Lower courts have supported the Senate position that presentment in this situation is required by the Michigan Constitution. A decision is expected by July.
MORE DRIVING TESTS FOR 75+ DRIVERS?
A proposed bill introduced March 18, Senate Bill (SB) 847 sponsored by Senator Rosemary Bayer (D-West Bloomfield), could change eligibility for driver’s licenses for those 75 and above. Currently, Michigan does not require additional driving tests based on age. Any action must be based on a person’s ability to safely operate a vehicle.
SB 847, if enacted into law as introduced, would require drivers 75 and above to appear in person at a Secretary of State’s office one time every four years to renew or issue a driver’s license. The applicant would have to pass a vision test, a written knowledge test, and a driving skills test. Under the bill, those 75 and above wanting a chauffeur’s license would have to pass the tests every year.
The bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure chaired by Senator Erika Geiss (D-Taylor) for first consideration. The SERA Coordinating Council Executive Board opposed the bill as introduced, favoring use of past driving records and reports concerning a driver’s ability to safely operate a vehicle to trigger any special testing for a driver’s license regardless of age.
BUDGET BRIEFING
At a recent briefing with Budget Office staff sponsored by the Coalition for a Secure Retirement of which the SERA Coordinating Council is a member, I was able to pose two questions important to SERA members. Here’s the approximate transcript:
- Q. What are the requirements for the Governor’s proposed 10% property tax refund for seniors aged 65+? Governor Snyder’s income tax overhaul in 2011 for tax year 2012 abolished the senior (age 65 and over) property tax credit and established a $30,000 eligibility ceiling for a property tax credit, regardless of age.
A. The Governor’s Executive budget raises the $30,000 ceiling to $70,000 for seniors 65 and older. It is estimated to provide an average $345 income tax credit per eligible senior.
- Q. Does the Executive Budget contain any provisions intended to provide state employee retirees with relief from the $300 cap on the annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA), which has remained in law since 1987? An actuarial study indicates it would only cost $6 million in the first year of implementation to give these deserving former state employees a COLA equal to the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly.
A. We have included the Civil Service Commission approved 3 percent wage increases for active state employees. We are aware that there is legislative interest in addressing the $300 cap on pensions for retired state employees.
Frankly, I was thrilled that Budget Office staff were somewhat informed about our Scrap the Cap efforts. SERA members should keep up the good advocacy work by writing to the Governor and your State legislators:
By U.S. Mail: Governor Gretchen Whitmer, P.O. Box 30013, Lansing, Michigan 48909
Phone Message: 517-335-7858 (Constituent Services)
On Governor’s Webpage (which sends an e-mail): https://somgovweb.state.mi.us/ContactGovernor
Find your legislator’s contact information at www.legislature.mi.gov. Attend their community gatherings or virtual meetings and ask if they support improvement in the static pension COLA for State employee defined benefit retirees.
ELECTION RELATED NEWS
Moving the Primary – The Senate Elections and Ethics Committee advanced a bi-partisan eight-bill package that would move Michigan’s future statewide primary election from August to May in even-numbered years, with implementation scheduled for January 1, 2028. Election clerks have found it is difficult to manage an August primary and November general election considering early voting and other recent voter-initiated changes to the State’s election laws.
The proposed legislation also adjusts petition signature requirements for statewide candidates, revises campaign finance reporting schedules to four annual filings, and updates related statutes to align with the proposed election date change. Additional bills reported by the committee would shift financial disclosure deadlines for candidates and public officials from May 15 to April 15, while separate testimony was heard on legislation allowing larger consolidated election precincts in low-turnout elections.
May 5, 2026, Elections – Meanwhile, in many but not all jurisdictions in Michigan, there will be local elections on Tuesday, May 5. Most often the May election is about local millages or local government issues.
Where there are May 5 elections, absentee ballots became available March 26 and have been sent to voters who ordered one. The optional early voting period is up to May 5, but some jurisdictions will not provide early voting for this election. The last day for voter registration or to change your voting address by mail or online is April 20, 2026. New voter registration or change of address is required in person for the May election from April 21 through May 5, 2026.
Because many jurisdictions reconfigured some of their precincts recently, your in-person voting location may have changed. Your May 5 voting information can be obtained from your local city or township clerk’s office or online at https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index.
Special Election for Saginaw-Bay City-Midland Area – The special election to fill the open 35th Michigan Senate district seat will occur on May 5 and determine whether Democrats retain their slim majority in the Michigan Senate of 20-18 or whether there will be a 19-19 split.
2026 Election Dates – The State primary to choose major party candidates for Governor, U.S. Senate, U.S. Representative, State legislative offices, county offices, and other matters is Tuesday, August 5, and the general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. The State’s general filing deadline to get on the August 5 primary ballot is April 21.
Ballot Measure News – Ranked Choice Voting, Axe MI Tax, and Invest in MI Kids ballot committees have suspended signature collection for this election cycle. The minimum wage law repeal referendum failed to file any signatures by the deadline for filing.
The Americans for Citizen Voting ballot proposal to amend Michigan’s Constitution submitted over 750,000 signatures (the largest in history) for Bureau of Election evaluation on March 4 though only 446,198 are required. It awaits a decision from the Bureau about sufficiency of valid voter signatures, likely in June. There are inevitable legal challenges that will likely delay a final decision on ballot access for several months.
The measure would require a U.S. birth certificate, a passport, or U.S. naturalization documents to register to vote and eliminate the affidavit substitute for the requirement to show a government-issued ID to vote in person among other changes. Opponents of the measure argue that the Michigan Constitution and statute already requires that only U.S. citizens can vote with penalty of perjury (a felony) for a violation, and research indicates there is very rare non-compliance.
Michiganders for Money Out of Politics ballot committee announced March 18 that it would end voter signature gathering on May 13 and turn in petitions to the Bureau of Elections by May 27. The voter-initiated legislation would ban regulated utilities and corporations with large State or local government contracts from making political contributions, close the “issue ad loophole,” and modernize Michigan’s campaign finance disclosure requirements according to its website. It needs to collect 356,958 valid voter signatures to get on the ballot for November.
Michigan Supreme Court – Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Megan Cavanagh recently announced her reelection campaign while Justice Noah Hood announced he will run to retain his seat and seek a full eight-year term after being appointed by Governor Whitmer in 2025.
Michigan Republicans had their nominating convention on March 28 and selected Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Michael Warren and Oscoda County Judge Cassandra Bills-Morse to run for the two seats.
The Justices will run on the non-partisan part of the ballot, often overlooked by voters and missed if you vote a straight-party ticket. Democratic-nominated Justices currently hold a 6-1 majority on the court.
New Presidential Executive Order (EO) – President Trump issued an EO on March 31 restricting voter eligibility and establishing a federally authorized list of absentee voters among other measures. It directs the U.S. Postal Service to send ballots only to eligible voters on a federally authorized list provided by the Department of Homeland Security with help from the Social Security Administration. Those approved mail-in ballots envelopes will have a unique barcode for tracking.
A state’s failure to comply would result in loss of federal funding and criminal prosecution of election officials. In response, Democratic-led states, including Michigan, filed a lawsuit challenging the EO, arguing the U.S. Constitution gives Congress, not the President, the power to make laws about voting for federal offices and gives the states the sole authority to administer elections. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
Mary Pollock is the Lansing SERA Chapter and SERA Coordinating Council’s Legislative Representative. She may be contacted at michigansera@comcast.net.