Senate Bill 685: Revise weights and measures law detail
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on May 15, 2014, to update a date reference in the state’s uniform weights and measures law.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690585
Senate Bill 803: Require state to operate and maintain governor’s Mackinac Island residence
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 15, 2014, to give the state responsibility for operating and maintaining the governor’s “official” Lansing residence, and create a commission to oversee this.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690586
Senate Bill 869: Remove specific fishing season dates from statute
Passed 108 to 1 in the House on May 15, 2014, to eliminate the statutory fishing season dates for largemouth and smallmouth bass, which would leave setting the dates to the state Natural Resources Commission.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690647
Senate Bill 934: Preempt $10.10 minimum wage initiative; hike mandated minimum
Passed 24 to 14 in the Senate on May 15, 2014, to repeal the current state minimum wage law that makes it unlawful to employ a worker for less than $7.40 an hour, and replace it with a new law gradually increasing the mandated minimum to $9.20 an hour, and increasing the minimum amount the employer of a worker who receives tips must pay from $2.65 to $2.93 an hour. (A tipped-worker’s employer must pay the difference between this amount and the regular mandated minimum if tips come up short).
As introduced the bill was seen as a Republican gambit to keep an “initiated law” off the November ballot, to hike the mandated minimums to $10.10 for both tipped and non-tipped employees. It became a bipartisan gambit after negotiations for the higher rate and inflation indexing brought most Democrats on board.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690613
Senate Bill 935: Impose licensure on “genetic counselors”
Introduced by Sen. Judy Emmons (R) on May 13, 2014, to impose licensure, fees, certification through a nationally recognized certifying agency, and more on “genetic counselors” as they are defined in the bill.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164310
Senate Bill 936: Impose new Lansing utility governance requirements
Introduced by Sen. Rick Jones (R) on May 14, 2014, to establish new requirements for the governance of certain municipal utilities that would require their governing boards to be comprised of eight commissioners appointed by the municipalities served by the utility; require them to establish emergency response and communications plans; and require customer rates to be equal to the cost of service. The bill was introduced following the report of a body convened to review the Lansing Board of Water and Light’s inadequate response to a massive loss of power to customers following a December, 2013 ice storm. Although the Lansing electric utility serves other municipalities, they are not represented on its board, and the Lansing City Council has imposed surcharges on the utility and its customers related to the city’s own budget issues.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164322
Senate Bill 937: Impose new Lansing utility governance requirements
Introduced by Sen. Rick Jones (R) on May 14, 2014, to require the City of Lansing to comply with the municipal utility governance standards proposed by Senate Bill 936.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164323
Senate Bill 938: Revise nursing home regulation detail
Introduced by Sen. Goeff Hansen (R) on May 14, 2014, to revise the extensive regulatory regime imposed on nursing homes, so as to establish that patient care policies and compliance procedures should be based on nationally recognized guidelines or best-practices (rather than a similar but less specific prescription in current law), along with other detail changes.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164324
Senate Bill 939: Extend state food code to nursing homes
Introduced by Sen. Mike Nofs (R) on May 14, 2014, to repeal an exemption for nursing homes, homes for the aged, and adult foster care facilities, from the extensive state regulatory regime imposed on “food establishments,” including food processors, groceries, restaurants, etc. The exemption for other health facilities or agencies would remain.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164325
Senate Bill 940: Revise vehicle width limit detail
Introduced by Sen. Jim Ananich (D) on May 15, 2014, to revise the maximum width of vehicles allowed on Michigan roads to 108-inches for vehicles hauling steel pipe (a width that is already allowed for vehicles hauling concrete pipe, agricultural products, unprocessed logs, pulpwood, or wood bolts).
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164335
Senate Bill 941: Revise scrap tire regulatory regime details
Introduced by Sen. Mike Kowall (R) on May 15, 2014, to revise and update details of the extensive regulatory regime imposed on the storage, transportation and processing of scrap tires. The bill includes changes to bonding requirements and regulations on storage facilities and hauling companies, imposes new permit fees on the latter, adds exemptions for a “community cleanup site,” prohibits openly burning a scrap tire, and more.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164336
Senate Bill 942: Revise scrap tire regulatory regime details
Introduced by Sen. Tom Casperson (R) on May 15, 2014, to establish sentencing guidelines for violations of the regulations on scrap tire storage, processing and transportation that Senate Bill 941 would modify.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164337
Senate Bill 943: Authorize start-of-summer, back-to-school and hunting season “sales tax holidays”
Introduced by Sen. Mark Jansen (R) on May 15, 2014, to exempt from sales tax up to $100 spent on clothing, $20 for school supplies, and $750 for a personal computer if purchased from Aug. 29 through Sept. 1, 2014. Also, to exempt from sales tax up to $100 spent for camping or fishing supplies, $750 for non-motorized watercraft and accessories, and $750 for off-road vehicles if purchased from May 30 through June 1, 2014. Finally, to exempt from sales tax up to $750 spent on guns and archery equipment, $50 on ammunition and arrows, and $100 in hunting supplies, if purchased from Nov. 7 through Nov. 9, 2014.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164338
Senate Bill 944: Repeal ban on mandating Detroit employee residency
Introduced by Sen. Morris Hood, III (D) on May 15, 2014, to exclude Detroit from the state law that prohibits local governments from imposing employee residency mandates. Under current law, a city can still prohibit employees from living more than 20 miles away.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164339
House Bill 5191: Establish ORV helmet exceptions
Passed 35 to 3 in the Senate on May 15, 2014, to provide an exception to the law that requires operators and riders of ORVs to wear a helmet (with certain exceptions) if a person is operating the vehicle on his or her own property.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690584
House Bill 5396: Trim mandated barber college instruction hours
Passed 102 to 7 in the House on May 15, 2014, to concur with the House-passed version of the bill.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690646
House Bill 5552: Exempt decedent’s property transfer to family from assessment “bump up”
Introduced by Rep. Peter Pettalia (R) on May 8, 2014, to exempt the transfer of residential property from a decedent to a trust whose beneficiaries are members of the decedent’s family from the taxable value “bump up,” wherein the new basis for property tax assessments becomes the property’s state equalized value (market value), rather than the capped “taxable value” of the previous owner. The exemption would apply when there is no change to the use of the property.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164283
House Bill 5553: Authorize “Pure Michigan Trail” designations
Introduced by Rep. Ray Franz (R) on May 8, 2014, to authorize the use of money in an existing “Michigan trailways fund” to develop the statewide multi-use trail network proposed by Senate Bill 873.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164284
House Bill 5554: Authorize county road commission tax powers
Introduced by Rep. Jeff Irwin (D) on May 8, 2014, to give county road commissions the power to place a property tax millage increase on the county ballot in areas outside of cities and villages, which if approved by voters in those areas could be used for road projects there.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164285
House Bill 5555: Authorize natural gas utility surcharges for “infrastructure”
Introduced by Rep. Aric Nesbitt (R) on May 8, 2014, to authorize a surcharge on natural gas utility customer bills to pay for utility “infrastructure” projects.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164286
House Bill 5556: Revise natural gas pipeline regulation detail
Introduced by Rep. Jim Townsend (D) on May 8, 2014, to require natural gas pipeline operators to coordinate with local governments regarding a “public education program” mandated by federal law, increase fines for pipeline safety violations, and make related changes to current law.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164287
House Bill 5557: Prohibit natural gas utility surcharges for pipeline fines
Introduced by Rep. Aric Nesbitt (R) on May 8, 2014, to prohibit a natural gas utility from recovering fines incurred for pipeline safety violations through higher customer charges.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164288
House Bill 5558: Clarify preemption of insurance lawsuits under Consumer Protection Act
Introduced by Rep. Tom Leonard (R) on May 8, 2014, to clarify that a prohibition of lawsuits against insurance companies under the state Consumer Protection Act applies regardless of when the cause of action occurred. Under current law, industries like insurance that are already subject to a comprehensive state regulatory regime are not covered by the Consumer Protection Act.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164289
House Bill 5559: Authorize “Pure Michigan Trail” designations
Introduced by Rep. David Pagel (R) on May 8, 2014, to revise the law authorizing the state to operate an “adopt a trail” program using the services of volunteers so as to conform to the proposal in Senate Bill 873 to create a statewide multi-use trail network.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164290
House Bill 5560: Revise, eliminate certain government notice publication in newspapers
Introduced by Rep. Amanda Price (R) on May 8, 2014, to repeal the requirement that local governments publish certain legal notices in local newspapers, and instead require them to post these on their own website. The change would be phased in over a 10 year period.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164291
House Bill 5561: Establish retention requirement for felony biological evidence
Introduced by Rep. David Nathan (D) on May 8, 2014, to require that biological evidence collected in felony cases must be stored for lengths of time specified in the bill, which vary based on the type and severity of the crime.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164292
House Bill 5562: Revise employer unemployment insurance fines
Introduced by Rep. Ray Franz (R) on May 8, 2014, to waive fines of $50 or $250 imposed for errors made by employers in filing quarterly wage reports mandated by the state unemployment insurance law, if the “error” is a figure that is off by less than $1.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164293
House Bill 5563: Revise abandoned vehicle regulations
Introduced by Rep. Andrea LaFontaine (R) on May 8, 2014, to expand the scope of a state prohibition and comprehensive regulatory regime that prescribes penalties, procedures and rules for abandoned vehicles, so that it includes boats and vessels, and add new regulations to accommodate the addition of vessels.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164294
House Bill 5564: Require report on natural gas pipeline inspections
Introduced by Rep. Jim Townsend (D) on May 8, 2014, to require the Public Service Commission to file annual reports on the number of natural gas pipeline inspectors it employs, and the scope of their inspection activities.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164295
House Bill 5565: Require metrics for natural gas pipeline safety
Introduced by Rep. Jim Townsend (D) on May 8, 2014, to require the Public Service Commission to adopt safety performance metrics for natural gas pipeline safety performance.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164296
House Bill 5576: Detroit bankruptcy settlement and grant package
Introduced by Rep. Joseph Haveman (R) on May 13, 2014, to subject to the approval of the Detroit fiscal management oversight commission proposed by House Bill 5566 the rulings on Detroit fire and police union contracts of a “PA 312” binding arbitration panel, which otherwise has the power to impose contract terms between a city and public safety unions in the event of a collective bargaining impasse.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164318
House Bill 5577: Designate peeper as official state amphibian
Introduced by Rep. Sam Singh (D) on May 14, 2014, to establish in law that henceforth the northern spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) shall be designated as the official State of Michigan amphibian. Note: At present, Michigan does not have an official state amphibian, but past bills have proposed designating peepers, the marbled salamander (Ambystome opacum), the gray tree frog (Hyla versicolor) and the Blanchard’s cricket frog (acris crepitans blanchardii, a designation that has no relation to a former Governor of the same name). However, Michigan does have an official state reptile, which is the painted turtle (chrysemys picta).
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164328
House Bill 5578: Revise liquor control regulation detail
Introduced by Rep. Hugh Crawford (R) on May 14, 2014, to eliminate a cap on the per case distribution fee that can be charged for liquor distributed to retailers by an “authorized distribution agent,” which is the term applied to the private companies authorized to warehouse and distribute hard liquor in Michigan.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164329
House Bill 5579: Prohibit employment for less than mandated wage
Introduced by Rep. Margaret O’Brien (R) on May 14, 2014, to make it unlawful to employ Extend Medicaid health insurance claims taxa worker for less than $8.15 an hour beginning in December 2014, notwithstanding any voluntary agreement between the employer and employee. The current state minimum wage level mandated for hourly employees not covered by a federal wage mandate is $7.40 an hour. The bill would also increase the minimum wage for employees who receive part of their compensation in tips from $2.65 to $2.75 an hour.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164330
House Bill 5580: Expand Open Meetings Act requirements
Introduced by Rep. Greg MacMaster (R) on May 14, 2014, to revise the Open Meetings Act, so as to require the minutes of state or local legislative or governing body to include all topics of discussion, a summary of “the main points of the discussion supporting and in opposition to each measure,” and “a summary of the remarks for each person who addresses the public body,” unless an audio recording is kept. Also, to require a record roll call vote by members of the body on all “matters of policy”.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164331
House Bill 5581: Transfer student testing oversight to Department of Treasury
Introduced by Rep. Robert Genetski (R) on May 14, 2014, to transfer oversight of statewide K-12 student academic testing from the State Board of Education and the state Superintendent of Public Instruction to the Department of Treasury.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164332
House Bill 5582: Restrict criminal sanctions for youth
Introduced by Rep. Joseph Haveman (R) on May 15, 2014, to no longer authorize “youthful trainee status” sanctions for convictions with a penalty greater than one year imprisonment. This status allows a person between the age of 17 and 20 who pleads guilty to criminal offenses other than serious felonies to serve a sentence and then have the proceedings dismissed without having a criminal conviction record, and with no civil disability or loss of right or privilege.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164347
House Bill 5583: Revise paternity determination process
Introduced by Rep. Marcia Hovey-Wright (D) on May 15, 2014, to establish a paternity revocation process for a determination for a man deemed be a child’s genetic father solely on the basis of genetic testing, if the genetic tests were inaccurate, or the man’s genetic material was not available to the child’s mother, or if a man who has DNA identical to the genetic father is the child’s father.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=164348
Senate Bill 690: Revise physical therapist scope-of-practice
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to repeal a ban on licensed physical therapists providing therapy unless it has been prescribed by a physician, subject to certain limits specified in the bill.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690713
Senate Bill 691: Revise physical therapist scope-of-practice
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to allow Blue Cross Blue Shield to not reimburse services provided by a licensed physical therapist unless the service has been prescribed by a physician. Senate Bill 690 would repeal a prohibition on physical therapists providing service that has not been prescribed (subject to certain limits), while Senate Bills 691 through 694 would establish that insurers can still require prescriptions if they choose.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690714
Senate Bill 693: Revise physical therapist scope-of-practice
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to allow workers compensation insurance plans to not reimburse services provided by a licensed physical therapist unless the service has been prescribed by a physician. Senate Bill 690 would repeal a prohibition on physical therapists providing service that has not been prescribed (subject to certain limits), while Senate Bills 691 through 694 would establish that insurers can still require prescriptions if they choose.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690716
Senate Bill 694: Revise physical therapist scope-of-practice
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to allow health insurance companies to not reimburse services provided by a licensed physical therapist unless the service has been prescribed by a physician. Senate Bill 690 would repeal a prohibition on physical therapists providing service that has not been prescribed (subject to certain limits), while Senate Bills 691 through 694 would establish that insurers can still require prescriptions if they choose.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690717
House Bill 5146: Revise life insurance regulation detail
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to revise provisions of a law governing group life insurance policies provided by employers, so that it conforms with a national model. The bill would expand the definition of “employee” in this law to cover affiliated companies, and would allow a group life insurance policy to be issued to an association, among other changes.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690707
House Bill 5147: Revise life insurance regulation detail
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to establish that a variable life insurance or annuity product approved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is by definition compliant with Michigan’s state law governing these products.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690708
House Bill 5148: Allow insurance reserve Canadian stock and bond investments
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to revise the law governing the amount and type of assets insurance companies are required to maintain as reserves against future claims, so as to explicitly allow preferred stock in Canadian companies.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690709
House Bill 5149: Revise life insurance regulation detail
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to clarify that long-term care insurance benefits are not subject to state regulations on “accelerated benefits,” which are benefits that may be provided under life insurance policies in anticipation of a beneficiary’s death from specified life-threatening conditions.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690710
House Bill 5150: Revise life insurance regulation detail
Passed 38 to 0 in the Senate on May 20, 2014, to revise state life insurance regulations to permit electronic applications, and revise details of regulations on variable annuity contract refunds.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=690711