Dear Friend,
I am proud that this fall, my colleagues and I in the Michigan Legislature came together in a bipartisan fashion to pass bills enacting a state budget for Fiscal Year 2022 — which began on October 1. Totaling just under $70 billion — $26.8 billion in state funds coupled with federal funding — our budget agreement provides exciting possibilities to renew and rebuild Michigan in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Putting Michigan residents first, the budget fully funds numerous initiatives to help workers get the skills they need to earn well-paying jobs; increases the number of families eligible for quality and affordable childcare; will fix roads, bridges and dams across Michigan; and much more. As a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, I was also proud to help secure funding for several important projects here in Kalamazoo County detailed further in this newsletter.
I am thankful to have heard important input from many of you throughout this year’s budget process and encourage you to please continue to stay in touch with me. I can be reached by email at sensmccann@senate.michigan.gov or by phone at (517) 373-5100. I’d love to hear what your priorities are for the great state of Michigan as we continue to move forward together.
Sincerely,
Website: SenSeanMcCann.com
Toll-free: (855) 347-8020
Email: sensmccann@senate.michigan.gov
Sean McCann
State Senator
20th District
U.S. 131 Interchange Project
Kalamazoo County leaders at the local, state, and federal levels have sought for decades to construct a complete, all-direction U.S. 131 interchange on the north end of Kalamazoo. This exchange would allow for critical economic development, provide expanded transportation options for commercial routes of local businesses, and relieve traffic, wear, and tear on nearby local roads. I have worked on this issue since 1999, when I was a Kalamazoo City Commissioner, and am pleased that this state budget includes $3 million toward construction costs of this proposed interchange that I advocated for alongside State Representative Julie M. Rogers. The Michigan Department of Transportation is currently working through a design study of the interchange that was funded in the Fiscal Year 2020-21 state budget. While additional construction funds will need to be secured for the completion of this project, this new state funding is a critical step forward for this long-awaited, necessary infrastructure in our community.
SCHOOL FUNDING
In June, I was proud to cast a ‘yes’ vote for record school funding for Kalamazoo County’s students, teachers, and school administrators who have all been pushed to their limits by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two academic years. The legislature and Governor achieved a decades-long goal of closing the long-standing per-pupil foundation funding gap between school districts, resulting in an additional $17,949,439 in foundation allowance coming to Kalamazoo County school districts for the upcoming year, and an $18,621,636 overall funding increase for our community’s schools.
While this unprecedented overall $17.1 billion education spending bill for Michigan’s K-12 schools was a great step in the right direction, we must also ensure it will be sustained into the future. There is still more work to be done and I look forward to working on long-term policy, with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, to provide our kids and schools with the greatest opportunities they deserve and need to be successful.
Portage Senior Center
I was pleased to work with State Representative Christine Morse to deliver $1.5 million to support the City of Portage with their construction of the new Portage Senior Center. Combined with local and private contributions, this new center will serve seniors throughout Kalamazoo County. The Portage Senior Center will offer extensive programming and assistance to older residents, health and wellness classes, and a wide variety of interest and hobby groups.
Autism Treatment and Research
The Great Lakes Center for Autism Treatment and Research in the City of Portage is a unique residential program that supports Michigan children primarily diagnosed with autism who engage in behaviors so disruptive and dangerous, they can no longer live at home. The need for these services in Michigan is great and a waiting list to access services often exceeds one year. I was pleased to support the inclusion of $1 million in the budget that will help expand capacity right here in our community to serve these children in dire need.
Workforce Development
Voting to implement Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s Michigan Reconnect and Futures for Frontliners scholarships are two of my proudest moments in the Michigan Senate. Reconnect provides a tuition-free pathway to community college for an industry certificate or associate degree for Michigan adults age 25 or older. Governor Whitmer launched the Futures for Frontliners during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow essential frontline workers to attend local community college tuition-free. This state budget equips Michigan workers with in-demand skills by providing $55 million for Reconnect and $25 million for Futures for Frontliners to continue these successful programs, as well as $8 million for apprenticeship programs that serve as a pathway into good careers in the building and construction trades.