Lawmakers, education groups raise alarm after school budget passes ahead of pension fund changes • Michigan Advance

“Today, I proudly cast my vote for Senate Bill 911, which would have returned between $400 and $500 per student to our school districts. This historic funding would have returned millions of dollars to districts that were overpaid into our teacher pension plans,” Steckloff wrote.

“Unfortunately, after nearly 24 hours in the Capitol, without our knowledge, the decision was made not to send the bill to the Senate, dashing all hopes of this critical funding. I am extremely disappointed and angry that the Democratic leadership of the House of Representatives is doing this to our caucus and our schools,” she wrote, later clarifying in another post that the funding was for fiscal year 2025, but not subsequent years.

Later, House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit) released a statement noting that the House had passed a significant amount of legislation in recent days and that the Clerk of the Court’s office was working to transmit the bills.

“There is also a lot of work left to do with our colleagues in the Senate and with the Governor to determine the final version of MPSERS reform, but I am committed to continuing these conversations,” Tate said. “House Democrats enthusiastically voted for these bills because we know that the school employees who have worked over the past few years to cover the cost of pensions and met their obligation deserve to see those dollars back in their paychecks,” Tate said.

As the budget moves forward ahead of passage of the MPSERS legislation, some education groups have expressed uncertainty and frustration.

Robert McCann, executive director of the K-12 Alliance of Michigan, called the education budget “deeply disappointing,” criticizing the lack of additional per-pupil funding, significant cuts in school safety and health spending, and the unique nature of the diversion of funds from MPSERS.

“The additional dollars they invest are spent one-time, making it difficult or impossible for districts to spend them,” McCann said.

When Senate Bill 911 and House Bill 5803 were introduced,a letter to the members of the Houseand called on them to support the bills. On 20 June sent another letter to the members of the House of Representativesand urged them to advance House Bill 5803, which was on the chamber’s agenda.

“We have made it very clear that the budget should never move forward until the policy side of MPSERS reform is finalized because the rate cut has to be enshrined in law or the money is not guaranteed to be paid out in the future. And that is the problem with this budget now,” McCann said.

Without that guarantee, schools would not be able to responsibly rely on those funds for things like staffing or ongoing programs for students, McCann said.

“We’re asking them to come back to town and pass House Bill 5803,” McCann said, noting that this version of the bill contains the language the K-12 Alliance agreed to with the House, including the 7 percent MPSERS cut supported by the other 12 education groups sponsoring the bills.

State budget of $83 billion lands on Whitmer’s desk after night session

House Bill 5803 is currently in the Senate Budget Committee, where it was referred after House of Representatives passes along party lines on TuesdayBoth the House of Representatives and the Senate have adjourned their sessions until July 30.

In a statementChandra Madafferi, president and CEO of the Michigan Education Association, welcomed the elimination of the 3 percent health insurance premium and the 5.75 percent payroll tax cut.

“These changes respect the financial sacrifices that both individuals and districts have made over a decade to fund robust retiree health insurance – and they keep Michigan on track to pay off its large, unfunded school employee pension obligations by 2038,” Madafferi said.

However, Madafferi raised similar concerns about cuts to school safety and student mental health and urged lawmakers to address those cuts with a supplemental budget after returning from recess.