Michigan Governor Rick Snyder delivered his second State of the State address Wednesday evening before a joint session of the Michigan Legislature. The Governor’s 52-minute speech, delivered as it was in 2011 without prepared text, departed from that of some previous Governors’ addresses in that it provided significant commentary in the form of progress reports on those initiatives announced in 2011 and was brief in the area of new proposals.
The Governor stressed that 2012 was to be a year about completing the work that began in 2011, referencing specifics such as the New International Trade Crossing (NITC), insurance coverage for autism, the health insurance exchange, transportation funding reform, and regional transit in Southeast Michigan.
Among the few new announcements were the Governor’s plans to travel to Asia and Europe this year for trade missions, as well as a partnership with the Michigan Health and Hospital Association, Michigan Grocers Association and Gerber Food Inc. on the issue of childhood obesity called Pure Michigan Fit. The Governor also called on the Legislature to pass legislation to “lock-in” the Education Achievement Authority (EAA) into statute. The EAA was established to oversee the state’s poorest performing schools through an agreement with Eastern Michigan University and the Detroit Public Schools; however, the Governor’s advisors are reportedly concerned that the authority may not hold up in court without being established in statute.
In one of the more humorous moments, the Governor described the work of \reviewing and recommending elimination of unnecessary regulations. He used the example of the Department of Environmental Quality’s “28 separate requirements for outhouses, including one that the seat not be left up.” He reported that was not necessary at the Snyder home as he “reported to a higher authority.” The first Lady laughed at that line.
Addressing some of the Administration’s successes through measurements that are a part of the Governor’s “dashboard,” Mr. Snyder emphasized the reduction of Michigan’s unemployment rate to a 3-year low. An outline of Governor Snyder’s second State of the State address is available here, and at www.paaonline.com/resources