LANSING – Speaker Pro Tempore Pam Byrnes (D-Lyndon Twp.) said today that although Governor Jennifer M. Granholm signed the final state budgets to avoid a government shutdown, she and the Governor agree that the overall budget takes Michigan in the wrong direction and is the result of the Senate's refusal to fund priorities such as education that will turn our state around.
"These drastic cuts will bankrupt our communities, cripple our schools and put Michigan's future at risk," Byrnes said. "The Senate needs to put its political games aside and work in a bipartisan fashion for the good of Michigan. While the budget will help us avoid another government shutdown, it fails to move our state forward. We must fund education, health care and public safety services if we are going to have a Michigan we're proud to pass on to our kids and grandkids."
The Governor and House Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Twp.) had sought to work in a bipartisan fashion with the Senate. Dillon had received a commitment from Majority Leader Mike Bishop (R-Rochester) to work in a bipartisan manner and show a good-faith effort to seek a middle ground through compromise, but Bishop broke his word.
Byrnes will continue to fight to fund key programs and services through targeted revenues to support vital priorities such as education, the Promise Scholarship, police and fire services, and health care for kids and seniors.