Legislator recaps governor’s State of the State address

State Rep. Rodney Wakeman, of Saginaw Township, today issued the following response to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s State of the State address by declaring her plan to bond roughly $3.5 billion for road funding over upcoming years as a “fiscally-irresponsible split decision” that falls short of fixing the roads dilemma.

“Yes, Michigan has a split government. But that doesn’t warrant a split decision on how to tackle our roads dilemma.

“Rather than using her State of the State address as an opportunity to unite state government, Gov. Whitmer instead designated a significant portion of her speech to justify circumventing the will of the people.

“Let’s face it, the governor’s massive 45-cent per gallon gas tax increase was hard to swallow. It was a huge swing and a miss – and rightfully so. But to even consider selling billions of dollars in bonds to fix the state’s roads – a move that does not require the approval of the Legislature, nor the taxpayers of Michigan – is even more concerning.

“While it may sound harmless up front, bonding is a term for borrowed money that is to be paid back. Make no mistake, bonding is a financing method and funding is using money already available. Financing is not funding.

“Michigan taxpayers are already paying down bonding debt created nearly two decades ago under previous administrations, and will not finish paying it off until 2037. Accruing additional bonding debt is a fiscally irresponsible idea, as it only can be used to repair state-owned roadways and unfairly forces our children and grandchildren to foot the bill down the road.

“There’s other, viable solutions to consider. My own legislation serves as a remedy for immediate needs by allowing local road agencies to prioritize fixing their worst roads first – regardless of whether they’re a highway or secondary road.

“The current road funding formula forces counties to spend 75-percent of their allotment on primary roads and 25-percent for secondary roads. This formula is heavily flawed, and puts the very roads many Michigan families reside on the back burner. My plan doesn’t change the amount of money allocated to local road agencies, but allows them to efficiently spend their money on the roads with the greatest need for repairs.

“I urge the governor to reconsider her bonding proposal, and actually engage with the Legislature to come up with a long-term solution that will doesn’t break the bank for Saginaw County families and those across Michigan.”