This week, the House and Senate returned to session. As we head towards the end of the year, expect news on the budget and a wide variety of policy issues as legislators make the final push for their legislative priorities to close out 2020.
We’ve heard from many of you anxious to get back to your gyms and ice rinks, especially knowing how important sports and physical health are to our overall health and well-being – and we continued to communicate that feedback up to the state’s public health officials and the Governor’s office as they contemplated next steps. Good news on that front: gyms may reopen at limited capacity beginning on September 9th, along with rinks, bowling alleys for organized sports. Learn more, including details and recommendations on organized sports, here.
To all the students, parents, teachers and staff starting school — we know the start of the year may look a little different this year, but we wish you a great start to the year!
And while we’ve still got some warm weather, the signs of Fall are here. Cider mills and apple orchards are starting to open around our district and the region. Check out the list and make your plans.
Happy September and we hope to see you at a virtual coffee hour soon!
In this Edition
- UIA Assistance/ MI Works! Oakland County Job Fair
- Senate Bill 745
- Senate Bills 1078 & 1079 Federal Unemployment
UIA Assistance / MI Works! Oakland County Job Fair Our local Oakland County Michigan Works! office is ready to help every resident get back on their feet, find a new career, and get back to work. If you’re still seeking assistance with the Unemployment Insurance Agency, our local MI Works! office is now able to help. Click here to learn what their office is able to do — and not able to do — if you still need assistance with your account.
Looking for a new job or ready to start a new career? MI Works! is dedicated to getting Oakland County back to work and assisting residents with tips on finding new jobs. To reach this goal, MI Works! is hosting virtual career workshop events. These events offer free registration and flexible time slots throughout the day.
Additionally, on Sept. 23, MI Works! is hosting a virtual job fair event with over 50 companies looking to hire. Anyone seeking employment is encouraged to attend; for more information you can click here.
Senate Bill 745
This week, the Senate passed SB 745. This is an appropriations bill that included:
- $2.8B in federal funding for the Lost Wages Assistance Program
- Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency estimates about 910,000 workers will be eligible for the $300 weekly federal benefit, which comes in addition to the state’s $362 weekly maximum benefit
- $6M for Midland to help provide relief for those areas impacted by the Edenville and Sanford dam failures
This bill is now on its way to the Governor for her approval. For additional information on this legislation, you can click here.
Senate Bills 1078 & 1079
This week, I introduced a two-bill package, SB 1078 and SB 1079, which would fill in a gap in Michigan’s existing laws by allowing the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) to designate specific lanes for the use of high-occupancy vehicles (HOVs), or carpool lanes.
Currently, 20 other states offer HOV lanes to encourage the use of public transit, carpooling, and ridesharing to cut down on the total number of vehicles traveling during high-traffic hours and improve traffic flow for all drivers. Learn more about HOV lanes here.
As we are seeing the expansion and modernization of I-75 throughout Oakland County, the legislation could position Oakland County to lead the state in this adoption and innovation.
Both bills have been referred to the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
In the News
- Violence at Protests Sparks Conversation on Open-Carry Gun Laws in Michigan (WWMT)
- Michigan Senate Passes SB 745, allowing for an additional unemployment benefit of $300 a week from the Federal Government.
What We’ve Been Up To
- This week was another session week, which means I was in Lansing voting on legislation and working to represent your voice. To keep you in the loop, I am hosting virtual coffee hours on my Facebook page to talk about what we voted on, what is going on in the state, and answer any questions you may have! If you are unable to make the event, no worries. Each of our coffee hours are recorded and posted under our video tab for you to view.
- Aug. 26: I, along with a few of my Senate colleagues, attended a virtual facility tour of TORMA North American and Schupan Recycling to learn more about their facilities and their process. Some key findings:
- 100% of the items recycled in Michigan are re-used, with most directly recycled to Michigan manufacturers. How to ensure your item gets recycled? Make sure it’s cleaned, sorted, and returned to your single-stream recycling center, which has a much higher acceptance rate than items placed at bins at the curb.
- Aug. 26: Team McMorrow attended a virtual briefing from Oakland University to hear about their plan to safely reopen campus for the fall 2020 semester.
- Aug. 26: Team McMorrow attended the second Mental Health Task Force meeting, hosted by the Michigan Counseling Association.
- In this meeting we discussed how mental health services have expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how it has helped students and families. We also addressed how we can advocate to continued investment in those services beyond the pandemic.
- Aug. 31: At the “Fundamentals of COVID Testing” legislative briefing, I was able to learn more about what is involved in the process of COVID-19 testing and hear from some Michigan companies working to advance technologies and services in the field.
- Testing is critical to our ability to reopen and stay open safely. During this webinar, I learned that a shortage of plastics is causing a slowdown due to the shortage of pipettes used in testing, and heard about some of Wayne County’s efforts to make mobile testing vehicles to ensure everyone can have access to tests, even with limited transportation. We’ll keep you posted on efforts to improve access to tests and speed of results to ensure we can keep our businesses and public places open safely while we continue to battle COVID-19.