By Zachary Gorchow
Executive Editor and Publisher
Posted: August 28, 2023 12:23 AM

Governor Gretchen Whitmer will call next week for enabling any employee who wishes to take paid family and medical leave to do so and multiple proposals regarding clean energy, Gongwer News Service has learned.

Whitmer will deliver a speech Wednesday in Lansing to outline her fall legislative priorities. She is calling it her "What's Next" address. Besides paid family and medical leave and energy, Whitmer also is expected, sources said, to offer proposals on reproductive health. Gongwer first reported in May that backers of the legal right to an abortion were preparing legislation to change or repeal several laws restricting abortions like the requirement for minors to obtain parental consent for an abortion.

Other topics expected to be in the speech are prescription drug costs and elections.

Multiple sources, speaking on condition they not be named, said the governor is eyeing a paid family and medical leave proposal similar to what Minnesota enacted in May.

Under that proposal, nearly all employees are eligible to take paid leave, capped at 20 weeks a year, for either their own serious health condition or to care for another family member. In Minnesota, an employee can take up to 12 weeks of paid leave for their own serious health condition and up to 12 weeks for parental leave, family care, safety or a qualifying exigency though in a single year the aggregate cannot exceed 20 weeks.

Under the Minnesota plan, employees do not receive their full wages. Instead, employees receive a percentage of their wages depending on how that compares to the state's average weekly wage with lower earners getting a larger percentage. Further, the wages are funded by employers and employees through a 0.7 percent premium, labeled a tax by critics, on income.

The Detroit News, citing unnamed sources, reported Thursday night the governor's plan to propose mandatory paid family and medical leave.

Whitmer Press Secretary Stacey LaRouche did not offer details on the specifics of what Whitmer would propose but shared a document that said surveys show paid family and medical leave is one of the top three policies people prioritize when considering where to relocate. Further the document said paid family and medical leave would particularly help women and potentially mean an additional 150,000 Michigan women entering the labor force.

"Getting this done" will help small businesses attract and retain workers, the document said, calling paid family and medical leave a "pro-family, pro-small business policy that will grow Michigan's population and economy."

LaRouche said the speech would build on work already done this year to "lower costs, make Michigan more competitive, improve energy efficiency, expand opportunity and protect people's fundamental rights. (The governor) looks forward to sharing more next week."

There are already bills in the Senate and the House to require paid family leave (SB 332, SB 333, HB 4574, HB 4575). These were introduced in May and have yet to receive a hearing. The bills, which appear similar in both houses, differ from the Minnesota law in some key ways. They allow for up to 15 weeks of leave and initially leave the size of the premium to the discretion of the state treasurer with the treasurer then setting a premium in 2027 sufficient to generate 135 percent of the benefits paid out in the preceding fiscal year.

There could be exemptions for those employers that already provide for paid family and medical leave. It's also unclear if it would cover all employers or if there would be an exemptions for small ones.

Minnesota used its general fund to get its program started. It's not yet clear if Whitmer's proposal would follow a similar track.

Business groups are voicing early alarm at the reports of Whitmer planning to offer a proposal on paid family and medical leave.

"We urge Governor Whitmer and legislative leaders to move cautiously on new tax burdens and regulatory mandates to consider the real-world impact on manufacturers, who continue to battle the headwinds of labor shortages, ongoing economic uncertainty and supply chain difficulties, and their workers who continue to struggle with persistent inflation," said Dave Worthams, director of employment policy for the Michigan Manufacturers Association. "Imposing new operational mandates and payroll taxes will destabilize our economy and reverse recent gains made in job creation and capital investment."

MAJOR PROPOSALS COMING ON ENERGY: The other proposals on which sources said Whitmer would seek legislative passage this year involve clean energy and climate issues. Senate Democrats have introduced and are planning action on a large package of bills that includes requiring utilities to generate all electricity from renewable sources compared to the current 15 percent standard.

Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist recently threw his support behind a 100 percent clean energy standard, so the governor's call for the same measure is not a big surprise. A document LaRouche shared regarding clean energy said the governor will back enacting a 100 percent standard.

The other major legislation Whitmer will back, sources said, is legislation moving siting decisions for wind and solar energy to the state Public Service Commission and away from local governments.

Battles over wind and solar energy facilities have raged in townships across the state for years, sometimes even going up for public votes for voters to decide.

The document from the Whitmer administration says the governor will support empowering the PSC with "more tools" and authorize it to incorporate climate and equity into regulatory decisions. Additionally, the document backs the streamlining of permitting for clean energy projects through the PSC "to move faster, create more jobs and get shovels into the ground."

House Majority Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash (D-Hamtramck) has been working with stakeholders to draft legislation that as currently drafted would call for moving siting decisions on facilities generating 100 or more megawatts from local governments to the Public Service Commission, putting siting decisions for large facilities in the hands of the state. Those facilities generating less than 100 megawatts would remain in the purview of local governments.

Aiyash said Friday he is still working with stakeholders, and the 100 megawatt threshold could change prior to introduction. The goal is to create a standard process but still give communities input, he said.

"If we are serious about meeting our clean energy goals and our climate resiliency standards, we need to think about the most efficient and equitable way to invest in these projects. There's a way to address these challenges where we are creating jobs and becoming the clean energy leader in the country as well as ensuring communities are not left behind or taken advantage of in the process," he said. "We just want to make sure what is the best approach that the process is not bogged down by unfounded claims about what a clean energy future would do."

Laura Sherman, president of the Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council, said the PSC has the needed expertise in the subject matter, Sherman said.

"That will make sure that the best projects move forward and benefit those local communities, benefit the entire state, make sure that we're able to meet our electricity needs in a cost effective manner while avoiding some of the really contentious local fights that end up pitting neighbors against neighbors and outside groups versus local officials," she said.

The proposal is drawing opposition, however, from the Michigan Townships Association.

Judy Allen of the Michigan Townships Association said township officials are not against renewables and many townships have multiple renewable facilities in their jurisdictions.

The question Allen asked is why it is necessary to preempt local governments on the issue. She said Aiyash reached out to the association, and they have had a couple conversations but more are needed.

A preemption would mean no role for local government in the decision-making process, Allen said.

"We'd like to know what the identified problem is. One size doesn't fit all," she said. "If there are some areas of the state that have said no, let's look at those and address those versus putting everybody under the same umbrella."