More state revenue expected, strict drinking water standards proposed, recreational pot use urged in May legislation

The Committee to Keep Pot out of Neighborhoods and Schools was fighting a ballot proposal to legalize marijuana. Now, it is urging the Legislature to take up the initiative, amend it and pass legislation for adult recreational use; Updated revenue estimates set by state economists indicate Gov. Snyder and legislators will have a combined $500 million more than expected for this fiscal year and next fiscal year; The strictest drinking water rules for lead in the country are about complete, according to Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration. The plan would eventually result in the replacement of all 500,000 lead service pipes in Michigan unless a legislative committee objects by June; Environmentalist billionaire Tom Steyer is dropping his effort to put before the voters in November a ballot proposal that would raise the state’s renewable portfolio standard to 30 percent by 2030; After the U.S. Supreme Court gave the state the ability to regulate the running of a sports book for gaming operations, the Michigan House Regulatory Reform Committee may schedule a hearing to permit casinos to offer sports team wagers; and Pancreatic cancer has taken the life of State Superintendent Brian Whiston. He was diagnosed with the disease in late 2017 and had officially gone on long-term disability just days before his passing. Click on the May 2018 Karoub Report for more information.

School safety, legalizing marijuana and unemployment lawsuit addressed in April Karoub Report

A package of gun control/safety legislation bills introduced by Senate Democrats would invest $100 million in schools, with half going for grants for more counselors, social workers and school resource officers, and half in grants for safety measures in schools; SB 897, which passed the Senate without any Democrat support, would require able-bodied Medicaid recipients between the ages of 19 and 64 to work, receive job training or education, or a combination of the three, for an average of 29 hours per week; the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has granted Nestle permission to increase its water withdrawals to 400 gallons per minute for its bottled water plant near Evart despite most public comments opposing increased usage; the Michigan Supreme Court ordered oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by unemployment insurance claimants who were falsely accused of fraud through the state’s controversial Michigan Integrated Data Automated System (MIDAS); As the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol pushes to get the legalization of marijuana on the Nov. 6 ballot, some Republican lawmakers are considering legalizing it through the Legislature rather than let the initiative make the ballot; and 5 p.m. April 26 is the deadline to challenge a sample of signatures submitted by the redistricting reform ballot committee, Voters Not Politicians (VNP). VNP said they submitted 425,000 signatures and have no doubt the proposal will be on the ballot Nov. 6. For more information on these and other legislative initiates, click here for the April 2018 Karoub Report.

School safety funding, more roads funds, free community college discussed in March 2018 Karoub Report

State legislators and Gov. Rick Snyder are working on measures to make schools safer following the most recent mass shooting at a school in Florida. Gov. Snyder advised Budget Director John Walsh to set aside some state funds for school safety as his office does an “extensive review” of what other states are proposing on the issue; Sen. Mike Shirkey (R-Clarklake) said he would like the state to spend as much as a “majority” of the projected $889 million in the state’s rainy day fund for a school safety initiative; Senate Democrats Spokesperson Rosie Jones said legislation will be coming soon on the topic of school safety; The Legislature sent the Governor $175 million in leftover General Fund money from last year in additional dollars for state and local transportation departments to fix roads; House Democrats are proposing community college be “tuition free” for all state residents; and House and Senate Election committees appear to be moving forward on legislation to create a system which would allow Michigan residents to register to vote online through the Secretary of State’s ExpressSOS.com. These and other legislative initiatives are featured in the March 2018 Karoub Report.

Senator Peters, colleagues introduce bill to prevent child identity theft

U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) and a bipartisan group of senators recently introduced legislation to help protect children’s identities from “synthetic ID fraud,” a form of identity theft in which stolen Social Security Numbers (SSN) are paired with fake names and birth dates. A recent study found that one in every 10 children had their SSN used by identity thieves to fraudulently open bank or credit card accounts, negatively impacting a child’s credit before they even become adults. Click here for more information on this bill to prevent chiild identity theft.

No-fault insurance repeal, personal tax exemption increase among issues in February Karoub Report

As the reforming of no-fault auto insurance continues to linger in the Legislature, some have now moved to repeal it in completely; The State House and Senate reached a compromise with Gov. Rick Snyder that will give Michiganders a tax break and speed-up elimination of costly driver responsibility fees. The current $4,000 personal tax exemption will increase to $4,900 per person by 2021. Gov. Snyder had proposed an increase in the exemption to $4,500 over three years; House Speaker Tom Leonard (R-DeWitt) wants to accelerate Gov. Snyder’s FY 2019 road funding proposal into this year’s budget; With the recent conviction of MSU Dr. Larry Nassar, members of the Progressive Women’s Caucus (PWC) will be introducing legislation in the coming weeks or month that will reflect its principles – prevention, protection and accountability – to address the problem of sexual assault on college campuses; Democrats in the Senate have introduced a 22-bill package of legislation they say is designed to prepare the best, attract the brightest and retain the finest Michigan educators. Click here for the February 2018 Karoub Report which highlights these and other legislative issues.

National Criminal Justice Commission provision approved by Judiciary Committee

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a provision based on bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) that would create a National Criminal Justice Commission.

The provision creates the bipartisan commission to conduct an 18-month, comprehensive review of America’s criminal justice system, proposing recommendations to address the most pressing issues facing our nation’s criminal justice system. The provision passed as part of broader sentencing reform legislation.

“It’s been more than 50 years since we last conducted a comprehensive review of our criminal justice system, and this commission is long overdue,” said Senator Peters. “Every American should trust that they will be treated equally under the law, but numerous incidents in cities across the country have eroded faith in America’s in the system. It’s clear we need to address these serious concerns, including police and community relationships, our growing prison population and the cycle of recidivism. I’m pleased the Judiciary Committee approved this bipartisan provision that will help us identify solutions to ensure we are administering justice in a fair, equitable and effective way for every American.”

Click here for more information on the National Criminal Justice Commission provision.

Exercise caution when posting, texting & chatting online

By Jennifer Gomori, MAP Editor

While some people are concerned about what they post, text and otherwise share online, just as many view this as their First Amendment right to freedom of speech. No matter your view on the subject, legal advisors for MAP are urging members to think twice before posting or texting anything sexual, racial or even political.

“You have a First Amendment right to say whatever you want to, but you don’t have a constitutional right to your job,” said MAP Legal Counsel Catherine Farrell.

Public Employees should understand specific restrictions detailed in their contracts. “Look to the CBA to make sure you don’t violate it,” said Farmington Hills Attorney Arthur J. Weiss, who joined Farrell in a Social Media discussion with Union members during the MAP Annual Open House in December.

Read more: Exercise caution when posting, texting & chatting online

McLaren Macomb Hospital Security

CONTRACT

“The increase in shift premiums for them was huge. They had been at the same shift premiums for years and they were actually paid less than the sitters for mental health patients,” said MAP Labor Relations Specialist Jerald James. “Prior to this contract you had certain individuals who would work every holiday for that year. We got the Employer to agree to rotate holidays so no one individual is stuck working every holiday. We had some guys that worked every Christmas, every Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, the way they scheduled it was just based on seniority. The tuition reimbursement went up $500 annually. It went up to $2,000. They agreed to insert a meditation component (into the contract). Prior to that we didn’t have language that afforded mediation. You could just file a grievance and you went to arbitration or you didn’t. This is a step prior to arbitration. I haven’t had an Employer turn it down yet.”

“Everybody was happy with what we got because we didn’t think we were going to get what we got. They were pleased with the signing bonuses and shift premiums,” said Bill Harris, McLaren Macomb Hospital Security Chief Steward. “You can sell 80 hours of PTO and get that money back and they changed it to twice a year for (up to) 40 hours. There’s always give and take and we did pretty good. We had 17 members who all voted and we had no no votes.”

Contract Duration: 3-year agreement ratified Dec. 15, 2017 and effective Jan. 1, 2018 to Dec. 31, 2020.
Wage Increases: Each Full-time Employee received a $1,200 signing bonus upon ratification of the contract and part-time Employees each received $600 signing bonuses.
2% increase at the top rate of pay effective Jan. 1, 2019.
$.75 to $1 afternoon shift premium increase effective Jan. 1, 2018.
$.80 to $1.25 midnight shift premium increase effective Jan. 1, 2018.
$1 to $1.25 afternoon shift premium increase effective Jan. 1, 2019.
$1.25 to $1.45 midnight shift premium increase effective Jan. 1, 2019.

Read more: McLaren Macomb Hospital Security