LANSING, Mich. (Detroit Free Press) -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm put the 2009-10 budget to bed Friday, but vowed "the fight is not over" because cuts to priorities are "too painful."
The governor vetoed $128 million in spending, including $7 million for the Michigan State Fair, effectively shutting it down. Other highlights:
? The budget calls for spending $44 billion, including $1.4 billion in federal stimulus money.
? Michigan Promise scholarships to help 96,000 Michigan college students pay for school with grants of $1,000 to $4,000? Dead. The governor spared $31.7 million in need-based grants for 35,000 students at private colleges.
? Public school cuts of at least $292 per pupil and up to twice that in 39 districts, including 26 in suburban Detroit? A done deal. The shrunken state aid payment will arrive Nov. 20.
? Cuts of 8% for doctors, hospitals and nursing homes for treating poor and disabled patients? No relief.and more recently, closures..Eleven percent cuts in state aid to cities and townships? Yup. Granholm predicted layoffs of police and firefighters.
? Movie subsidies? Granholm and legislative leaders agree they should be cut, but haven't agreed how much. The refundable credits could cost the state $150 million at the current 42% of production costs. Granholm proposed 37%; A Senate-passed bill to cut the subsidy to 39% is pending in the House. The state's film office says the $150-million cost is inflated.
Governor signs $44.5-billion budget
Friday marked the formal end of Michigan's budget season, as Granholm reluctantly signed the last six bills enacting a $44.5-billion 2009-10 state spending plan.
But in a state plagued by seemingly endless financial crises, the new season was already well under way."The budget for 2010 is signed. There will not be a government shutdown. But the fight is not over," Granholm told journalists in a conference call Friday morning.
She said she still wants the Legislature to find more revenue to restore funding for college scholarships, local governments, health care for the poor and disabled and public schools.
Early indications suggest she isn't likely to get it or much of it, anyway. In either event, next year is likely to be worse. And with Michigan's economy in a sustained downturn, the gap between available tax revenues and spending needs has become unsustainable, and the need for reform of the state's public sector glaring.
By Dawson Bell and Chris Christoff, Detroit Free PressIn your voice
