Gov. Whitmer says she’ll sign Michigan COVID-19 relief bill ‘in very near future’
Updated Dec 28, 2020;
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LANSING, MI - The first week of December, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer requested $400 million from the state legislature to fight COVID-19.
One week ago on Dec. 21, the Michigan House and Senate approved a plan that surpassed that request, slating $465 million to cover unemployment benefits, small business loans, vaccine distribution and more.
After a week, Whitmer has yet to ink her signature on Senate Bill 748, which passed nearly unanimously in both Republican-controlled chambers.
Why the wait? Her office states the bill “was not fully negotiated” with the Whitmer administration prior to its approval in the Republican-led legislature.
Michigan House approves $465 million COVID-19 relief bill, sends it to Gov Whitmer - News - Holland Sentinel
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Michigan House approves $465M COVID-19 relief bill, sends to Whitmer - News - Holland Sentinel
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Read the $465M coronavirus response plan Michigan lawmakers are sending to Whitmer
Updated Dec 21, 2020;
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Michigan lawmakers finalized a $465 million plan to fund aid for workers and businesses, COVID-19 vaccine distribution and other pandemic response measures Monday, forwarding the plan to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for final review.
The Michigan House voted 97-5 to rubber-stamp the spending plan passed out of the Senate last Friday that uses a mix of state and federal dollars to provide direct aid to certain unemployed workers and hard-hit businesses, as well as pandemic response efforts in the state health department and health care industry.
December 21, 2020
The Michigan House has passed a COVID-19 relief bill. The House has approved a budget agreement that would extend unemployment benefits to thousands of laid off Michigan workers until the end of March. The bill includes: $64 million in small business survival relief, $220 million to extend unemployment benefits, $45 million in direct payments to workers who have been impacted by the virus, $75 million for hospitals and healthcare workers, $22 million for increased testing, and $57 million for vaccine distribution.
State Representative Tommy Brann of Wyoming is a restaurant owner who voted to approve the measure, but says restaurants need more help.
“The struggling restaurants will get $20,000 to $50,000, but that will not save our restaurant industry,” he says. “I know my fellow restaurant owners. They work Mother’s Day, New Year’s Eve, Christmas Eve, hardly any vacations, and do not leave normal lives. They pay their employees before themselves.”