By Zachary Gorchow
Executive Editor and Publisher
Posted: January 16, 2013 3:20 PM

Every year, the governor of Michigan delivers a State of the State address to a Joint Convention of the Legislature. Some years, but not every year, the governor puts in a last-minute surprise that generates huge news coverage and helps set the table for the year’s agenda.

Two come to mind right away. In 2011, Governor Rick Snyder shocked everyone when he declared his support for building the new bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, sometimes called the Detroit River International Crossing or the New International Trade Crossing. Even House Speaker Jase Bolger (R-Marshall) and Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville (R-Monroe) did not know Mr. Snyder’s declaration was coming.

And in 1999, Governor John Engler left out from the prepared text of his speech a proposal to direct the windfall from Michigan’s share of a settlement between state attorneys general and the tobacco companies toward a college scholarship program for students scoring well on standardized tests.

On that one, word started to slip out in the afternoon that Mr. Engler was planning a blockbuster surprise proposal. A few minutes before the speech started, my colleague, John Lindstrom, found out the details of the proposal and went over it with me on the House floor. Not that we could do much about it because in those days there were no Gongwer breaking news updates via email and most subscribers would have to wait until they received their paper copy of Gongwer the next morning, or if, they were lucky, via fax that evening.

The positive spin of a well-executed surprise is that it ensures huge news coverage since State of the State tends to be the one night of the year where residents’ eyes are on the governor and its state government. And in the case of Mr. Engler’s proposal, it put Democrats on the defensive about how to spend the many millions from the tobacco settlement although the scholarship program begun with that money is defunct after the revenue was redirected to other causes in subsequent years.

Mr. Snyder’s move did not work as well, as he has acknowledged. Not only did it blindside Republican legislative leaders, but it put the opponents of the bridge on notice and gave them some 10 months to build opposition against the legislation before it was ready for committee work.

If Mr. Snyder has a big surprise planned for the speech tonight, he has kept it well-guarded. Expectations are for a low-key address that mainly focuses on repackaging his previous sweeping proposal from 2011 on raising at least $1.4 billion in revenues for transportation.

Then again, that’s the best way to spring a surprise.