Updates from the Capitol November 30 - December 11 State Leaders Ready a COVID Relief Package As we move closer to adjournment of the 100th Legislature, Governor Gretchen Whitmer and State Budget Office Director Chris Kolb have issued a supplemental request to both the Michigan Senate and House of Representatives Appropriations Committees primarily to support the state’s 1 ongoing pandemic response efforts. Supplemental Request 2021-2 recommends additional funding for the current fiscal year to the departments of Agriculture and Rural Development; Corrections; Education; Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy; Health and Human Services; Military and Veterans Affairs; and Technology, Management, and Budget. These adjustments are to be used to provide for coronavirus response activities that will no longer be funded with federal Coronavirus Relief Funds after December 30 due to federal law. The request included an approximately $617.3 million appropriation ($192.4 million General Fund) for Health and Human Services. This funding would go to support the following: • $419 million for pandemic food assistance benefits, specifically for children who, instead of receiving free or reduced-price meals at school, will be provided these meals throughout the pandemic • Approximately $5.9 million for immunization programs through local public health departments • Approximately $192 million for DHHS to continue its coronavirus response efforts, including testing and contact tracing of vulnerable populations, purchasing of supplies and equipment, supporting the expansion of health system capacity for distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as wage and other supports for health care providers, among other things. To offset the spending request, the Director discussed this week the use of lapsed funding, savings from a lower-than-projected Medicaid caseload and higher-than-anticipated revenues, as well as future federal stimulus. To view additional information on the request, click here. Legislative leaders have signaled they are open to the prospect of a supplemental appropriations measure before the end of the year and possible vehicle bills were moving through the legislative process this week. Late on December 10, the Senate passed a $250 million supplemental appropriations 2 bill to extend unemployment benefits. It will now go to the House for further consideration. Michigan Prepares for First Round of COVID-19 Vaccines The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is preparing for the first-ever COVID-19 vaccinations to be shipped to Michigan for distribution, with the first round of vaccinations to come in the next week or so, and the second round to arrive before the end of the year. While it seems that the beginning of the end of the pandemic is near, the first round of vaccinations will not be widely available to all Michiganders. MDHHS will be distributing vaccinations in two major phases, with the first phase having three parts. Phase 1a will prioritize vaccines for health care providers and long- term care facility residents. Phase 1b will be available for essential workers, including educators, food and agriculture, utilities, law enforcement, firefighters, and transportation. Phase 1c will be available for adults with high-risk medical conditions and those over the age of 65. In Phase 2, the remainder of the population will be able to get the vaccine, with MDHHS setting the goal of 70% of Michigan adults to be vaccinated by the end of 2021. MDHHS is also sharing detailed information about the vaccine. In a letter from Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, she encourages all Michiganders to trust the vaccine and the meticulous process it goes through in order to be approved. In press conferences, Dr. Khaldun has also called on all Michiganders to begin making a plan for getting the vaccine, as a second dose is required a specific amount of time after the first. There will also be webinars available for Health Care Workers and Vaccine Providers regarding the COVID- 19 vaccine. Three 30-minute presentations from 12:00p.m – 12:30p.m will 3 occur on: December 14 (the first vaccine to be released), December 21 (the second vaccine), and December 22 (talking points on common concerns around the vaccines). In additional news, on December 10, Governor Whitmer announced the creation of a bi-partisan commission – the Protect Michigan Commission – to educate Michiganders on the COVID-19 vaccine. The commission, which will be co-chaired by Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II, former Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley, and NBA player Blake Griffin, will help raise awareness of the safety and effectiveness of an approved COVID-19 vaccine, educate the people of this state, and help protect the health and safety of all residents. The commission is authorized under Executive Order 2020-193. If you have interest in serving on the commission, visit Michigan.gov/appointments and apply by December 28. A November Revenue Update The Michigan House Fiscal Agency (HFA) and Senate Fiscal Agency (SFA) released revenue projections for the month of November. In general, revenues are coming in higher than originally estimated at the August 2020 consensus revenue estimating conference (CREC). In the HFA’s report, the state’s General Fund tax revenue was reported to be $931.3 million, which is approximately $190.6 million above August projections. For the School Aid Fund revenue, major taxes were estimated to be $1,166.0 million, which is $112.6 million more than projections. In total, tax dollars came in at a combined $303.2 million over August 2020 CREC projections in the first official month of the fiscal year. 4 The SFA’s report found that Michigan’s major taxes and net lottery revenue totaled $2.3 billion, which is up 8.2% from November 2019. General Fund tax revenues came in at $151.4 million above the forecast and School Aid Fund revenues were $54.4 million above with $6.6 million below forecast collections from other funds for a total of $199.2 million above August projections. Executive Office Releases Board Vacancies Governor Whitmer’s Director of Appointments, Ghida Dagher, has released the list of board vacancies for Q1 and Q2 of 2021. The list at Michigan.gov/appointments is broken down by department and each board listed includes the number of total members, vacant seats, and specifications for each vacancy. It is also noted which seats are full time or part-time paid positions. Recommendations and the application deadline for Q1 boards (expiring between January 1, 2021, and March 31, 2021) is Wednesday, January 6, 2021, and the deadline for Q2 boards (expiring between April 1, 2021, and June 30, 2021) is Friday, March 5, 2021. All recommendations can be sent to [email protected]. Health Insurance Marketplace Enrollment Sees an Increase Compared to 2019 So far this year, enrollment continues to rise as 79,006 consumers have already signed up for Marketplace coverage. This is compared to 77,305 during the same period last year. 5 With the December 15 deadline for Michiganders to enroll in a Health Insurance Marketplace plan approaching, the Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) Director Anita Fox is calling for the thousands of uninsured residents to apply before it is too late. The Marketplace not only allows consumers to shop for health coverage, but it can aid consumers in finding out if they qualify for low or no-cost plans to make coverage more affordable. DIFS has reported that for the current plan year, approximately 80% of those who got coverage received federal tax subsidies to lower their premiums. Racial Disparities Task Force Releases Interim Report: Significant Progress Found in Protecting Communities of Color from COVID-19 Governor Whitmer and the Michigan COVID-19 Task Force on Racial Disparities, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II, released an interim report detailing the actions the state has taken to protect Michigan’s communities of color, frontline workers, and small businesses from COVID-19. Specifically, it was found that as of November 16, more than 24,000 tests had been administered in previously underserved communities in 21 Neighborhood Testing sites which offer free COVID-19 testing. It was also found that from March and April to September and October, the average cases per million per day for African American Michiganders decreased from 176 to 59. This same period saw the number of probable deaths per million per day drop from 21.7 to 1. 6 Going forward, the Task Force will pursue additional actions, including closing the digital divide in telehealth and virtual learning, increasing enrollment in health insurance plans, building mobile testing infrastructure that can also be utilized for vaccine services, and raising awareness of racial and ethnic disparities in medical care to ensure safe and quality care. Election Challenges in Michigan Hit Repeated Dead Ends As the legislature continues to hold hearings around the legitimacy of Michigan’s November 3 general election results, judges have repeatedly rejected lawsuits alleging voter fraud in the state. On Monday, December 7, Judge Linda Parker of the U.S District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan stated she would not be granting an emergency motion for a declaratory, emergency, and permanent injunctive relief to plaintiffs who asked her to bring to light the “massive election fraud, multiple violations of the Michigan Election Code … as set forth in the affidavits of dozens of eye witnesses and the statistical anomalies and mathematical impossibilities detailed in the affidavits of expert witnesses." Ms. Parker found the suit to be riddled with “theories, conjecture, and speculation” which would impact people’s faith in the democratic process, taking away the voice of millions of voters. In other news, on Monday, December 7, the reelection campaign of President Trump filed paperwork with the Michigan Supreme Court surrounding the absentee ballot-counting process in Wayne County.