State Rep. James Lower, of Cedar Lake, reflected on comments made by the governor in Tuesday night’s State of the State address while underscoring his priorities as a member of the 100th Michigan Legislature.

Lower addressed a recent House Concurrent Resolution he sponsored that protects the fundamental division of powers within Michigan’s governmental system. The resolution came in response to a recent executive order that would have eliminated three important environmental commissions established by the Legislature last year.

“My fundamental duty as a state Representative is to the people I represent and to our state’s constitution,” Lower said. “As a body, our House chamber has the right to review the proposed order and make a judgment on it. The panels that were on the chopping block offered needed oversight of the Department of Environmental Quality and gave citizens a voice in the process. We all want clean water and a better Michigan both for ourselves and our children and grandchildren. These committees allow the citizens of our state to make that expectation loud and clear.”

Lower, who is in his second term representing citizens in Montcalm County and portions of Gratiot County, also stressed the need to keep property taxes low in order to remain attractive for current and prospective residents while continuing the state’s economic comeback.

“It’s taken a lot of hard work and many carefully crafted plans to get this state back on the right course,” Lower said. “In this address from the governor, I heard about a lot of areas which require improvement and where to go to work. We can agree and disagree in those areas, but what’s often overlooked is this promised wide-ranging improvement usually costs more money – and that additional money comes from the Michigan taxpayer. Attracting more talent and residents to Michigan will grow our state’s ability to create revenue, while chasing them off with more taxes will have a negative impact. We must continue to work meticulously to make Michigan a better place to live, work and raise a family.”