State Rep. Jack O’Malley, chair of the House Transportation Committee, today provided testimony for his proposal to update Michigan’s memorial roadway naming process.

House Bill 4784 clarifies that state highways can be named for members of the military, law enforcement, emergency service personnel or corrections officers who have died in the line of duty. Congressional Medal of Honor recipients are also included. Local governments would be able to name or rename their local roads without having to adhere to specific state highway naming stipulations or involvement in a time-consuming process at the state level.

O’Malley underscored the preservation of local control and common-sense framework within his plan.

“Since coming to the House of Representatives, I’ve heard the tussle back and forth about road naming and it became clear to me that there were thoughts on both sides on how to do this,” said O’Malley, of Lake Ann. “What I felt would make sense was the state can go ahead and name roads after a certain group of folks – the brave men and women of our military or our first responders who have given the ultimate sacrifice to help keep us safe – and if a local community has a favorite son or daughter and naming a street after them would resonate with that community, they should be given the green light to do that.”

O’Malley’s plan also requires $3,000 in one-time funding be set aside to keep up with maintenance costs for signage on both state and local memorial roadway sections.

The Michigan Memorial Highway Act was enacted in 2001 and outlines how sections of state road may be designated as a memorial highway. HB 4784, which amends the act, remains under consideration in the House Transportation Committee.