State Rep. Brian BeGole today criticized House Democrats for not joining decisively with Republicans to vote through a measure that pushes for more accountable governing in Lansing and pushes back against tactics that have created budget uncertainties.

BeGole on Thursday supported House Joint Resolution M, which calls for a constitutional amendment to suspend pay for state legislators and the governor if the state’s annual statutory July 1 budget deadline is not met.

“This vote is the smoking gun that proves Democrats in Lansing were not committed to working with us to pass and finalize a budget,” said BeGole, of Antrim Township. “They have been stoking fears of a potential government shutdown for months and have obstructed and delayed this process several times.

“This plan took the extraordinary step of cutting off pay for legislators, including my own. If every Republican who voted on this in the House is willing to do that, including myself, it shows a commitment to being accountable to taxpayers and people throughout our state if a budget isn’t done by the July 1 deadline. It’s a shame many Democrats disagreed and voted no. They were more concerned about continuing to receive a paycheck than fulfilling their duty to people they serve, and that’s not right.”

Senate Appropriations Chair Sarah Anthony said that the Democrat-controlled Senate was willing to “blow through” the July 1 date and hold up a House K-12 budget plan that was passed in June and featured record per-pupil funding as well as more flexibility for school districts to spend on their needs. The Senate has also not acted on a government shutdown prevention plan advanced by BeGole and the House earlier this year, which would have ensured schools, public safety and other vital services were funded before the July 1 deadline if other unrelated budget particulars between the House and Senate still were not finalized.

“Our budget plan is committed to cutting waste, fraud and abuse. The Senate wants to spend money the state doesn’t have,” BeGole said. “This irresponsible push by the Senate has created impasse and uncertainty with the state budget and sent us past this deadline that was written into law years ago. We wanted to send a clear message by bringing this up for a vote. If state government is going to drag its feet with future budgets, hold the entire process up over unsustainable spending, and keep taxpayers hanging for weeks or months, then legislators and the governor aren’t going to paid until a budget gets passed and signed.”

HJR M failed to advance by two-thirds vote, which is required for constitutional amendments to move forward.