2005 House Bill 4887 (Appropriations: 2006 school aid budget )

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Public Act 155 of 2005

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Introduced by Rep. John Moolenaar (R) on June 7, 2005, to provide a “template” or “place holder” for a Fiscal Year 2005-2006 School Aid budget. This bill contains no appropriations, but may be amended later to add them. Note: This was introduced the same week the House passed House Bill 4831, an “omnibus” budget with the House’s version of parts of this budget, plus all departmental budgets. However, the Senate developed separate departmental budgets, Gov. Jennifer Granholm has recommended her own versions of separate budgets, and when this bill was introduced it was not known how all of that will be reconciled. This “placeholder” gives the House flexibility.
- Referred to the House Appropriations Committee on June 7, 2005.
  - Reported in the House on June 15, 2005, with the recommendation that the substitute (H-1) be adopted and that the bill then pass.
- Substitute offered in the House on June 22, 2005, to replace the executive proposal for this budget with one that expresses policy differences between the Republican majority in the House and Governor Jennifer Granholm on certain spending items and funding sources. Some of the features of the budget are: It agrees with the governor in increasing the per-pupil foundation grant to schools by $175. (The minimum grant has been $6,700 for three years, and the average is around $7,000.) It increases special education funding by $59 million to $1.291 billion (less than the governor proposes), gives Intermediate School Districts (ISDs) the same $77 million they received in 2005 for operations, and reduces but does not eliminate a laptop computers for sixth-graders program (which the governor recommends be eliminated). It does not increase the current year’s $314 million in “at risk” student funding by 10.5 percent, as proposed by the governor, but adds more than the governor proposed for adult education programs. $25 million for a proposed middle school mathematics program was reduced to $3 million by the Moore amendment. For much more detail see analysis from the non-partisan House Fiscal Agency. The substitute passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Tom Meyer (R) on June 22, 2005, to remove a $250,000 approptiation for a disabled children's teaching material library at Central Michigan University. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Tom Meyer (R) on June 22, 2005, to remove a $500,000 appropriation for the Charter School Development and Performance Institute at Central Michigan University. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. David Robertson (R) on June 22, 2005, to direct that certain funds be used for reading improvement, mentoring, cognitive development, and preschool to grade-four mentor-tutor reading programs. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Philip LaJoy (R) on June 22, 2005, to give an extra $100 per pupil to certain school districts that spend less than 10 percent of their revenue on administration, spend at least 60 percent on instruction, and whose students do well on state math and other tests. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. John Moolenaar (R) on June 22, 2005, to make the general fund the source for a $500,000 approptiation for the Charter School Development and Performance Institute at Central Michigan University; and eliminate a reference to a school aid stabilization fund in the appropriation for a laptop computers for sixth-graders program. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. John Moolenaar (R) on June 22, 2005, to revise the definition of "consortium" in a provision that requires smaller school districts to join a consortium with other districts so as to more efficiently provide various administrative and purchasing functions. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Tim Moore (R) on June 22, 2005, to provide schools receiving less than $7,200 per student in their basic foundation grants with an additional $25 per student, with the extra money coming out of a proposed middle school mathematics program. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Jim Plakas (D) on June 22, 2005, to revise the adult education funding allocation for the Inkster school district. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Pam Byrnes (D) on June 22, 2005, to add $2.3 million for the "great parents, great start" program, in which government employees provide certain parents of children age 0-5 with "information on child development, methods to enhance parent/child interaction, access to needed community services, and learning opportunities". The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Craig DeRoche (R) on June 22, 2005, to add a $100 "placeholder" that will facilitate adding a substantial grant to the Detroit School District to subsidize its transition back from a state-imposed reform school board to its previous school board system. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Paul Condino (D) on June 22, 2005, to provide extra money for certain school districts that elect not to levy the full amount of school operating millage they are authorized to levy, in the amount of the difference between the actual and potential local property tax receipts. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. LaMar Lemmons III (D) on June 22, 2005, to prohibit the Detroit Schools District from closing any schools or reducing staff levels below those it had in 1998, for one year after the elected school board takes over on Jan. 1, 2006. Note: The number of students in the district has declined by approximately 20,000 in this period, to 141,600. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. LaMar Lemmons III (D) on June 22, 2005, to give the Detroit School District an extra $87 million in each of the next three years, with the money coming from casino tax revenues. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Marsha Cheeks (D) on June 22, 2005, to allow schools to use money appropriated for part time preschool programs for certain "at risk" children to instead enroll fewer children a more costly "school-day" program. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Marsha Cheeks (D) on June 22, 2005, to give the Detroit School District extra money. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Marsha Cheeks (D) on June 22, 2005, to not eliminate an extra $15 million that the Detroit School District has received in recent years. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Jim Plakas (D) on June 22, 2005, to exempt the Inkster School District if a revenue shortfall in FY 2006 requires the governor to impose "pro-rated" school aid cuts. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Jim Plakas (D) on June 22, 2005, to allocate an extra $500,000 to the Garden City School District. In 1993 the voters in this district defeated a millage renewal proposal, and the district's funding formula determined by the 1994 Proposal A reflects the lower local funding at the time. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Barbara Farrah (D) on June 22, 2005, to allocate an extra $500,000 to the Wyandotte School District. In 1993 the voters in this district defeated a millage renewal proposal, and the district's funding formula determined by the 1994 Proposal A reflects the lower local funding at the time. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Substitute offered by Rep. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on June 22, 2005, to replace this version of the budget with the one proposed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. The substitute failed in the House (52 to 58) on June 22, 2005. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Amendment offered by Rep. Marsha Cheeks (D) on June 22, 2005, to transfer $300,000 from "Michigan Virtual University" funding to the Detroit Public Library. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
- Amendment offered by Rep. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on June 22, 2005, to add $15 million for the "great parents, great start" program, $15 million for Intermediate School Districts (ISDs) operations, and $23 million for government programs for "at risk" children. The extra money would be raised by repealing a number of tax exemptions, for example collecting more taxes on vending machine food purchases ($25 million), movie theaters motion picture rentals ($20 million), toll-free telephone services ($22 million), purchases of trucks used in interstate commerce ($16 million) and more. The amendment failed in the House (52 to 58) on June 22, 2005. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Amendment offered by Rep. Marsha Cheeks (D) on June 22, 2005, to add a $100 "placeholder" for grants to the Detroit Public Library. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on June 22, 2005.
Passed in the House (66 to 44) on June 22, 2005, the House version of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2005-2006 school aid budget. This appropriates $12.783 billion in gross spending, compared to $12.467 billion authorized for the current year, and $12.808 billion proposed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. The budget increases the per-pupil foundation grant to schools by $175, with an extra $25 for schools receiving less than $7,200 per student. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the Senate on June 23, 2005.
- Referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee on June 23, 2005.
- Substitute offered in the Senate on June 29, 2005, to strip out all of the appropriations of the House-passed version of the bill, leaving it in its orginal form as a "template" or "placeholder." See Senate-passed version for explanation. The substitute passed in the Senate by voice vote on June 29, 2005.
Passed in the Senate (22 to 15) on June 29, 2005, to send the bill back to the House "stripped" of all actual appropriations, leaving it in its original form as a "template" or "placeholder." This vote is basically a procedural method of launching negotiations to work out the differences between the House and Senate budgets. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the House on June 29, 2005.
Failed in the House (0 to 99) on June 30, 2005, to concur with a Senate-passed version of the bill. The vote sends the bill to a House-Senate conference committee to work out the differences. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the Senate on August 31, 2005.
Passed in the Senate (36 to 0) on September 27, 2005, the House-Senate conference report for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2005-2006 school aid budget. This appropriates $12.757 billion in gross spending, compared to $12.467 billion authorized for the previous year. The budget increases the per-pupil foundation grant to schools by $175. (The minimum grant has been $6,700 for three years, and the average is around $7,000.) State funding for Special Education is increased by $59 million, and adult education rises by $1 million. Funding for Intermediate School districts, “Section 20j” subsidies to wealthier districts, and “at risk” student programs are unchanged from the previous year. A “laptop computers for 6th graders” program is reduced but not eliminated. The budget contains just $63 million in General Fund money, down from $165 million the previous year. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the House on September 13, 2005.
Passed in the House (107 to 2) on September 20, 2005, the House-Senate conference report for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2005-2006 school aid budget. This appropriates $12.757 billion in gross spending, compared to $12.467 billion authorized for the previous year. The budget increases the per-pupil foundation grant to schools by $175. (The minimum grant has been $6,700 for three years, and the average is around $7,000.) State funding for Special Education is increased by $59 million, and adult education rises by $1 million. Funding for Intermediate School districts, “Section 20j” subsidies to wealthier districts, and “at risk” student programs are unchanged from the previous year. A “laptop computers for 6th graders” program is reduced but not eliminated. The budget contains just $63 million in General Fund money, down from $165 million the previous year. [Vote Details and Comments]
Signed with line-item veto by Gov. Jennifer Granholm on September 30, 2005.

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1) more money [by Anonymous Citizen on June 23, 2005]
Now the salaries will go sky high.
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2) Rep. Kathleen Law's "no vote journal explanation" [by Admin003 on June 23, 2005]
Rep. Kathleen Law, having reserved the right to explain her protest against the passage of the bill, made the following statement:

"I voted against the Republican school aid budget, HB 4887, because it once again puts corporate greed over kids in need. Governor Granholm offered a school aid budget that struck the proper balance between budget cuts and eliminating corporate tax breaks.

House Bill 4887 did not include the $33 million increase for at-risk pupils that the Governor recommended. That funding is sorely needed for our students facing the greatest challenges.

Additionally, this budget did not include the $50 per pupil grant increase for high school students that would have guided our schools toward a more scholarly curriculum, leading to greater success in post-secondary institutions. Studies show that providing such a scholarly program for our high school students is very expensive, and this funding would have provided our schools the resources they need to help our students meet the increased challenges of a global economy.

Failing to fund these programs, while protecting antiquated corporate tax breaks, is reprehensible.

For these reasons, I voted no on House Bill 4887."

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3) "No vote explanation" of Reps. Cushingberry, Zelenko and Gonzales' [by Admin003 on June 23, 2005]
Reps. Cushingberry, Zelenko and Gonzales, having reserved the right to explain their protest against the passage of the bill, made the following statement:

"Mr. Speaker and members of the House:

I voted against the Republican school aid budget, HB 4887, because it once again puts corporate greed over kids in need. Governor Granholm offered a school aid budget that struck the proper balance between budget cuts and eliminating corporate tax breaks.

House Bill 4887 did not include the $33 million increase for at-risk pupils that the Governor recommended. That funding is sorely needed for our students facing the greatest challenges.

Additionally, this budget did not include the $50 per pupil grant increase for high school students that would have guided our schools toward a more scholarly curriculum, leading to greater success in post-secondary institutions. Studies show that providing such a scholarly program for our high school students is very expensive, and this funding would have provided our schools the resources they need to help our students meet the increased challenges of a global economy.

Failing to fund these programs, while protecting antiquated corporate tax breaks, is reprehensible.

For these reasons, I voted no on House Bill 4887."

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