LANSING, Mich. — State Sen. Thomas Albert and his Senate Republican colleagues on Wednesday introduced a broad plan to improve Michigan’s economy, reinvest in infrastructure and support workers.
“In the past couple of years, Lansing politicians have moved our state backwards by returning to the failed policies of the past,” said Albert, R-Lowell. “We must reverse course before it’s too late and we are plunged back into the economic dark ages of the early 2000s. The alternative we propose today promises a brighter economic future by providing more opportunities for families and communities to succeed.”
Albert, who is the main sponsor of Senate Bill 846 to restore Right to Work, said the change is necessary to protect worker rights and encourage job providers to locate in Michigan. The Republican-backed plan also would make it easier to do business in Michigan, and help skilled laborers and professionals establish roots in the state.
The full “Grow MI State” economic development plan includes Senate Bills 845 through 855, in addition to Senate Joint Resolution C. The legislation would:
- Rein in corporate welfare and reinvest in the state by stopping cash payments to corporations through programs such as the Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve fund. The Republican plan would redirect $500 million from corporate slush funds to infrastructure repairs.
- Make it easier to do business in Michigan by ensuring state business regulations won’t be stricter than those imposed by the federal government. The plan would require an annual review of state agency rules to make sure they are still necessary and force bureaucrats to receive approval from the Legislature before imposing costly regulations.
- Protect worker freedom by restoring Right to Work laws, which were eliminated by Democrats last year. The new bills introduced by Republicans would again give workers the freedom to choose whether to join labor unions.
- Help build careers in Michigan by eliminating red tape. Doctors, nurses, accountants and many others could easily transfer their professional licenses when they move to the state. The plan also would invest more in apprenticeship scholarships to expand the skilled trades workforce.
These bills expand upon a proposal introduced by Albert in 2023 to eliminate SOAR. The new Senate plan also would help establish a multi-state compact to eliminate corporate slush funds so companies can no longer pit states against each other in the quest for huge taxpayer-funded handouts.
“Michigan’s ‘corporate welfare’ tactics have failed,” Albert said. “Taxpayers rarely, if ever, get the return on investment from these projects that they deserve. We should instead adopt an ‘economic gardening’ approach to help job providers, professionals and skilled workers thrive.”
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