By Mary Pollock
SCRAP THE CAP UPDATE
On October 8, Governor Whitmer signed Michigan’s $81 billion fiscal year (FY) 2025-26 budget, including the general government (House Bill (HB) 4706) and school aid (Senate Bill (SB) 166) omnibus bills. The budget funds roads, education, health care, public safety, environmental programs, and maintains a balanced budget for the new fiscal year after contentious negotiations and a brief shutdown of State government.
Missing – But the budget did not include funding for elimination of the 1987-adopted $300 cap on the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for defined benefit State employee retirees. Over 85 percent of these 60,000 State retirees face a declining value of their pensions in the face of aggressive inflation since 1987. Other budget priorities took up the time and space for consideration of our longstanding request even though we identified a possible funding source. There is only one year left of the terms of the current Legislature and Governor, some of whom are termed out. We must move this issue now.
Act NOW – Please leave a message with the Governor urging her to include our request in the FY 2026-2027 Executive budget which she and her staff are preparing now for presentation in February 2026.
Contact the Governor –
- 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
NOVEMBER 4 ELECTIONS
The Democrats generally had a good day on November 4, 2025, taking the Governor’s races in New Jersey and Virginia, the Mayor’s race in New York City, retaining three Democrat judges in Pennsylvania, two statewide races in very red Georgia, and passing California’s Proposition 50, also known as the Election Rigging Response Act.
California’s Proposition 50 is designed to redraw Congressional boundaries in California mid-decade to produce five more Democrat Congressional seats to counteract Texas and other Republican trifecta states also redrawing district boundaries mid-decade at President Trump’s request to favor more Republicans elected to Congress. Lawsuits will follow challenging all of these but generally the courts have permitted politically partisan gerrymandering that does not violate the race discrimination provisions of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1964 in the process. Michigan replaced its partisan, legislatively drawn redistricting process with a 2018 constitutional amendment providing for a non-partisan redistricting commission, so Michigan is not a player in this national drama, at least not right now.
Michigan State Rep. Tyrone Carter and State Rep. Karen Whitsett, both Michigan House Democrats, lost their Detroit City Council races and will be completing their legislative terms before January 2027. Both could run for re-election to the House.
Detroit City Councilmember Mary Sheffield was elected mayor of Detroit, the first woman ever to do so since Detroit’s official founding 324 years ago.
FUTURE MICHIGAN SENATE NEWS
Eleven of the 38 Michigan State Senators are serving their last 4-year term. Those 11 open seats have set up a scramble among sitting and former House members as well as newcomers ahead of the primaries in 2026. Candidate filing is due in April 2026.
Michigan Advance is reporting that 12 current members of the Michigan House have already announced campaigns for the Michigan Senate in 2026, marking the first test of the State’s revised term limits under Proposal 1 of 2022. That measure allows lawmakers to serve a combined 12 years in either chamber, replacing the previous limits of six years in the House and eight in the Senate.
Additionally, two former State representatives have entered Michigan Senate races: Democrat Abraham Aiyash of Hamtramck, former House Majority Leader, is running for the open 1st Senate District covering parts of Detroit and Downriver communities, while Republican Ryan Berman of Commerce Township is seeking the open 13th District in Oakland County.
MICHIGAN LEGISLATURE
Silver Alert Bill Moves – SB 330 to require notification of the public by text message of a missing senior or vulnerable adult passed the Senate unanimously on October 21. It has been referred to the House Government Operations Committee. Michigan SERA supported the bill in committee. Bill sponsor Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak) testified that states with a similar system have a 90 percent success rate in locating missing seniors.
If enacted, the Department of State Police would activate the alerts through the existing emergency alert system. The change would cost $20,000 annually, the House Fiscal Agency indicated in its bill analysis.
Wandering is one of the most dangerous symptoms of dementia, and six out of ten living with dementia will wander at least once. If that person is not found within 24 hours, then up to half of those cases result in serious injury or death.
Nine Hostage Bills – In early October, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that the Michigan House must present the nine un-transmitted 2023–24 legislative session bills to Gov. Whitmer. Judge Thomas Cameron said the Michigan Constitution requires presenting approved bills, even from a past Legislature. The case returns to the Court of Claims for Judge Sima Patel to order delivery.
On October 31, Republican Michigan Speaker of the House Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) announced that the House would appeal the order to the Michigan Supreme Court. SERA supported three of the nine hostage bills to put corrections officers into the State Police pension system during committee hearings (HB 4665 of 2023, HB 4666 of 2023, and HB 4667 of 2023).
Earmark Bills Moving – On October 21, the Michigan Senate approved 31 – 5 its version of legislation to establish statutory transparency requirements for budget earmarks, an issue raised by House Republicans in the 2025 budget negotiation process. Earmarks are special spending measures sponsored by legislators usually for projects in their own districts. SB 596 as introduced mandated that earmarks be submitted at least ten days before votes in both chambers, limited to nonprofit or government entities meeting State operation requirements, and all requests would be posted online within five business days. The bill exempted certain categories such as disaster response funds and required disclosure of the bill sponsors, fund recipients, and intended use of the allocations. Related HB 4420 outlined the information required on earmark request forms, including conflict-of-interest statements and verification of nonprofit status.
The following Thursday, the Michigan House took up the bills and made changes to them, increasing the timeline for earmark registration and notification from ten days to 60. SB 596 passed the House with a 99 – 4 vote. House Speaker Matt Hall has announced that if the Senate does not move transparency legislation with a 60-day timeframe, the House will not pass any bills from the other chamber.
Free Speech Bill Reported – HB 4045 to create a Uniform Public Expression Protection Act would allow the filing of special motions for expedited relief concerning certain lawsuits the bill calls eligible causes of action. The bill is based on a model uniform law drafted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. Basically, HB 4045 protects individuals who testify in public proceedings on a matter of public concern or asserting the rights guaranteed by the U.S. or Michigan Constitution from civil lawsuits seeking damages. These suits discourage the public from testifying or speaking out in public forums. HB 4045 is sponsored by State Rep. Kara Hope (D-Holt) and passed the House unanimously on October 22. It was then referred to the Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety Committee for further consideration.
Homestead Property Tax Credit Reform Bill Moves – Of interest to senior Michigan homeowners facing rising real estate values and increased property taxes is HB 4088, which would revise upward the homestead value factor determining eligibility for the Homestead Property Tax Credit. If enacted, it would make more homeowners eligible for the Tax Credit.
To qualify for the homestead property tax credit in Michigan, an individual must meet certain criteria, such as being a Michigan resident and having household income below a specified amount that is adjusted annually for inflation. Additionally, the home must meet certain value standards. The adjusted maximum home value for the 2024 tax year was $160,700. The bill would set the maximum amount at $196,500 for the 2025 tax year and then, for the 2026 and subsequent tax years, the maximum would be annually adjusted using the United States House Price Index (HPI) as reported and published by the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency.
The House Fiscal Agency says that HB 4088 would provide some property tax relief (and therefore reduce general fund revenue to the State) by approximately $30 to $40 million annually. Additionally, the provision changing the inflation adjustment from the United States Consumer Price Index to the HPI would likely lead to the taxable value cap growing at a faster rate. For example, for the ten-year period between 2014 and 2024, the CPI grew by 32.5 percent and the HPI grew by 100.3 percent.
The bill was reported by the House Finance Committee on October 28 and referred to the whole House for further consideration.
Menopause Bills – Older women and those who love or live with them will be glad to know that the Michigan House is concerned about menopause awareness and continuing education for health care workers and the public. HB 4790 would require the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs to promulgate rules approving a continuing education course or program on women’s midlife health. HB 4791 would require the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to create, implement, and disseminate to health professionals and the public menopause education materials. The bills were reported from the House Committee on Health Policy with recommendation for referral to the House Committee on Rules.
CON-CON NEWS
Every 16 years the Michigan Constitution requires that voters be asked whether they would like to call a Constitutional Convention to modify the current Michigan Constitution. It will be Proposal 2026-01 on the November 2026 ballot. The last convention was in 1961-62 with voters narrowly passing the proposed constitution in 1963. Voters have rejected the three previous proposals to call a convention. In 2010, the last time the proposal was before voters, it failed with nearly 70 percent of voters rejecting it.
Protect MI Constitution from Special Interests launched in August 2025 to advocate for a no vote “to protect the Michigan Constitution from extremist groups and politicians hoping to advance a narrow agenda.” It has collected $150,050 by the campaign finance filing deadline of October 20. The group has a Washington, D.C. address. There is no organized campaign to support a yes vote on Proposal 1 so far.
(Editor’s Note: Mary Pollock is the Lansing SERA Chapter and SERA Coordinating Council’s Legislative Representative. She may be contacted at michigansera@comcast.net.)