Senator Whitmer, under her constitutional right of protest (Art. 4, Sec. 18), protested against the passage of Senate Bill No. 1281.
Senator Whitmer’s statement is as follows:
We are moving along so quickly today that I didn’t get an opportunity at the discussion, but I wanted people to understand why I voted “no” on that bill. I can appreciate the plight of the sponsor’s district. People who represent areas that border other states are concerned about having the economic tools to lure businesses to stay within their borders. In fact, I would like for us, in an ideal situation, to give every community in all 83 counties the economic tools to be competitive and to lure businesses here to the state of Michigan.
While the bill highlighted the problem, I have remaining concerns that the unintended consequences and the potential adverse impact on all the other counties—the 72 other counties in the state of Michigan—was part of why I decided to voted “no.”
I would encourage the sponsor to work with the Michigan Municipal League as this bill goes over to the House, and I am hopeful that there will be a bill that gives all communities the economic tools to be competitive—bill that I can lend my name to as well in the future.