
- Did not vote on 2009 House Bill 4922 (Lower eligibility for certain MEGA tax breaks ). Passed in the Senate (30 to 4) on October 22, 2009, to concur with the House-passed version of the bill, which removed a special tax break eligibility exemption for the Federal Mogul company. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on a motion for 2009 Senate Bill 252 (Authorize one-month “continuation” school aid budget ). The motion failed in the Senate (21 to 15) on October 1, 2009, to give the bill immediate effect, without which the budget will not go into effect until around next spring, essentially killing the bill. A two-thirds majority is required. Witholding immediate effect votes is a tool of the Senate minority for stopping time-sensitive bills that have passed. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 Senate Bill 252 (Authorize one-month “continuation” school aid budget ). Passed in the Senate (21 to 15) on October 1, 2009, to make appropriations for a one-month “interim” school aid budget for the fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1, 2009. This rejects the higher spending level approved by the House, and restores the $218 per pupil cut spending rate previously passed by the Senate. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on an amendment for 2009 Senate Bill 252 (Authorize one-month “continuation” school aid budget ). The amendment passed in the Senate (21 to 15) on October 1, 2009, to replace the $218 per pupil school aid reduction spending level (around 3 percent) originally passed by the Senate, thereby rejecting the higher spending level originally passed by the House. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 House Bill 5055 (Mandate boat dock permitting ). Passed in the Senate (34 to 0) on October 22, 2009, to consolidate the current marina construction permit and operating permit requirements, instead mandating a constuction permit for any new or expanded marina or docking facility. The Department of Natural Resources would be required to grant a permit to any person who wanted to put a dock or mooring area that extends from riparian property owned by the person, if the project did not adversely affect the public trust or riparian rights of others. A $50 annual operating fee requirement would be eliminated. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 Senate Concurrent Resolution 21 (Require disclosure of tax hikes needed for spending beyond revenue ). Passed in the Senate (28 to 6) on September 16, 2009, to require the House and Senate to each adopt budget "targets" by June 1 based on revenue projections from the most recent revenue estimating conference, and if either body proposes spending more than can be paid for with expected revenues, to require it to specify details of the tax or fee hikes that would be needed to pay for the extra spending. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on a motion for 2009 House Bill 4922 (Lower eligibility for certain MEGA tax breaks ). The motion failed in the Senate (16 to 19) on August 27, 2009, to discharge the Finance Committee from further consideration of the bill, and bring it directly to the full Senate for a vote. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 Senate Bill 334 (Appropriations: Supplemental budget ). Passed in the Senate (33 to 2) on August 26, 2009. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 Senate Concurrent Resolution 18 (Deny closing Department of History, Arts and Libraries). Passed in the Senate (22 to 13) on August 27, 2009, to stop Gov. Granholm's Executive Order No. 2009-36, which eliminates the Department of History, Arts and Libraries and distributes most of its programs among other state departments. Unless the House also disapproves the executive order it will go into effect. [Vote Details and Comments]
- Did not vote on 2009 House Bill 5122 (Exempt small service club and religious signs from billboard laws ). Passed in the Senate (35 to 0) on August 26, 2009, to exempt service club and religious sign structures less than eight square feet in area from regulations and restrictions on highway billboards. The bill also bans animated signs, unless the signs change below a certain speed and have limited luminescence, revises renewal fees and penalties for late renewal, places caps on the aggregate revenue collected from these, and revises regulations on cutting down vegetation blocking signs. [Vote Details and Comments]