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Senate Bill 244: Increase fine for illegally shooting game animals
Passed 76 to 29 in the House on October 28, 2015, to increase the amount of restitution a person must pay for illegally shooting certain game or protected animals. Among others the bill would impose a $5,000 fine for illegally killing an elk or moose, $3,500 for a bear, $1,500 for an eagle, etc.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718431

Senate Bill 245: Increase illegal game killing penalties
Passed 78 to 27 in the House on October 28, 2015, to increase the number of years an individual is banned from hunting for illegally shooting, buying or selling a deer, bear, elk, moose, etc. Under current law the suspension is for three years, and the bill would change this to up to 15 years depending on the species.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718432

Senate Bill 246: Increase illegal game killing penalties
Passed 77 to 28 in the House on October 28, 2015, to establish sentencing guidelines for the increased penalties proposed by Senate Bills 244 and 245 for illegally shooting, buying or selling certain game or protected animals.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718433

Senate Bill 538: Revise unclaimed property law
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on October 28, 2015, to revise details of the state ”escheats law” that lets the state government take possession of unclaimed property if the owner does not claim it within three years. Among other changes the bill authorizes a streamlined audit process for some holders of unclaimed assets.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718405

Senate Bill 543: Authorize foster care scholarships tax checkoff
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on October 28, 2015, to allow an individual to choose to automatically contribute $5 or more from his or her state income tax refund to provide college scholarships to children in foster care.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718406

Senate Bill 544: Authorize foster care scholarships tax checkoff
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on October 28, 2015, to allow an individual to choose to automatically contribute $5 or more from his or her state income tax refund to provide college scholarships to children in foster care.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718407

House Bill 4022: Require steps to avoid foster child identity theft
Passed 105 to 0 in the House on October 28, 2015, to require foster care caseworkers to annually request credit reports on each foster care child they are assigned, and if the report suggests the presence of fraudulent activity in the child’s name, report this to the court at the next 90-day review of the child’s foster care plan. The individual appointed by the court to guard the child’s legal interest (guardian ad litem) would then be required to contact the credit reporting agency immediately and request they remove the fraudulent activity from the report. The caseworker also would be required to discuss these matters with the child.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718430

House Bill 4134: Establish that military experience meets boiler installer licensure requirements
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on October 28, 2015, to establish that having recent and relevant military training and experience meets the criteria for obtaining the state license mandated to earn a living as a boiler installer, boiler repairer or boiler special inspector.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718408

House Bill 4321: Restrict warrantless residence searches
Passed 83 to 22 in the House on October 28, 2015, to establish that a law enforcement officer may not search a residence without a search warrant if a resident expressly objects, even if another resident consents after the objector is no longer physically present. This would not apply if one resident is the victim of a crime committed by another resident, or in “exigent” circumstances, meaning there is imminent danger to people, a suspect may escape or evidence may be destroyed.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718429

House Bill 4362: Revise workers comp insurance detail
Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate on October 28, 2015, to establish that employers in a workers compensation self-insurance group possess a proportional share of the group’s assets that exceed its self-insurer group obligations, and require these groups to establish processes and procedures to distribute the excess, with state approval.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718404

House Bill 4653: Authorize use of drivers license photos for CPL license
Passed 101 to 4 in the House on October 27, 2015, to allow the Secretary of State to provide access to digitized drivers license photographs to the State Police for purposes of using this photo on an individual’s concealed pistol license.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718381

House Bill 4727: Restrict “meteorological towers”
Passed 103 to 2 in the House on October 28, 2015, to prohibit the state aeronautics commission from allowing construction of a tower that does not comply with local zoning restrictions, and impose regulations and restrictions on “meteorological towers” erected to measure wind for commercial wind generation turbines. Owners of existing towers would be required to register them, paint them and place lights on the according to specifications in the bill, and meet other regulations. The National Safety Aviation Board has asked states to regulate these towers because they are hard for airplane pilots to see.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718428

House Bill 4767: Expand meth-related pseudoephedrine restrictions
Passed 104 to 1 in the House on October 28, 2015, to authorize up to one year in prison and a $1,000 fine for attempting to persuade a person to purchase ephedrine or pseudoephedrine while knowing that it will be used to manufacture methamphetamine. Current penalties apply only if the attempt succeeds in persuading someone.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718434

House Bill 4768: Expand meth-related pseudoephedrine restrictions
Passed 103 to 2 in the House on October 28, 2015, to establish sentencing guidelines for the penalties proposed by House Bill 4767 for attempting to persuade a person to purchase ephedrine or pseudoephedrine to manufacture methamphetamine.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718435

House Bill 4769: Increase meth production penalties near school
Passed 99 to 6 in the House on October 28, 2015, to increase the penalties for manufacturing methamphetamine near a school or library.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718436

House Bill 4864: Expand meth-related pseudoephedrine purchase restrictions
Passed 103 to 2 in the House on October 28, 2015, to impose a five-year “stop sale alert” on individuals convicted of the crime proposed by House Bill 4767 of attempting to persuade a person to purchase ephedrine or pseudoephedrine while knowing that it will be used to manufacture methamphetamine (called “smurfing”). This refers to an existing mandate on retailers to electronically submit information on would-be pseudophed buyers to a national database, which is capable of generating a real-time “stop sale” alert on an individual.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718437

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Senate Bill 225: Revise procedure for taking ownership of inherited pistol
Passed 99 to 6 in the House on October 29, 2015, to revise the law that requires an individual who obtains a pistol from a private person to first get a government permit. (This does not apply to purchases from a licensed firearms dealer.) The bill would clarify that a person who inherits a pistol would have 30 days to get this government license after taking physical possession of the pistol.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718505

Senate Bill 226: Ban gun dealers keeping photos of buyers
Passed 99 to 6 in the House on October 29, 2015, to revise statutory references in the state’s sentencing guidelines to reflect the gun purchase provisions proposed by Senate Bill 225.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718506

Senate Bill 349: Revise delinquent property tax procedure detail
Passed 105 to 0 in the House on October 29, 2015, to revise the requirement that county treasurers notify a delinquent property owner on a specific date that foreclosure and forfeiture proceedings will begin. Instead, the bill would allow this notice to be sent anytime in the 60 days before specified date.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718507

Senate Bill 539: Expand “promise zone” tax increment financing authorities
Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate on October 29, 2015, to expand from 10 to 15 the number of “promise zone” tax increment financing authorities (TIFA) located in low income and “low educational attainment” areas. These entities were authorized by a 2008 law to “capture” a portion of any increases in the state portion of school property tax revenue in the area, and use the money to partially subsidize college tuition for local students.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718478

Senate Bill 540: Expand allowable uses of state education tax
Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate on October 29, 2015, to revise the law that authorizes a 6 mill state property tax for school funding, to authorize using some of this money for other purposes. This is related to changes to the proposal in Senate Bill 539 of expanding “promise zone” tax increment financing schemes.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718479

House Bill 4195: Limit some government “venture capital investment” spending
Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate on October 29, 2015, to prohibit the state from pledging any more future tax revenue to guarantee investor returns under an “early stage venture capital investment” scheme authorized by a 2003 law. The bill would not affect several other government “venture capital” schemes however, including a “Venture Capital Development” program under the Granholm-era “21st Century Jobs Fund” rubric, a “Venture Match Fund,” a “Venture Development Fund,” an “Accelerator Fund,” past grants to a “Venture Capital Association” and more.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718475

House Bill 4196: Repeal government “venture capital investment” program
Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate on October 29, 2015, to move forward from 2054 to 2030 the expiration of a state “early stage venture capital investment corporation,” which pledges future tax revenue to guarantee investor returns on certain types of investments. See also House Bills 4195 and 4365.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718476

House Bill 4365: Cap certain previously authorized corporate subsidies or tax breaks
Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate on October 29, 2015, to reduce from $600 million to $450 million the total amount of subsidies or tax breaks that may be delivered to firms who made deals with the state guaranteeing them a certain return on investments in “early stage ventures” under a 2003 law. See also House Bills 4195 and 4196.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718477

House Bill 4680: Extend prison industry law
Passed 104 to 1 in the House on October 29, 2015, to extend for five years a law that allows a private business to market textiles produced cut and sewn by state prisoners if this does not compete with any other products made in Michigan.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=718504