Copyright WDIV ClickOnDetroit
LANSING, Mich. – Michigan’s legislature has enacted 30 bills through October 20 this year, marking a dramatic decline in productivity compared to previous years’ legislative output. Over the last five years, the number of bills enacted into law has fluctuated significantly. In 2022, lawmakers passed 227 bills during the same period - the highest in five years. Even 2021’s total of 91 bills, the previous low, more than tripled this year’s total. “What we are seeing here are echoes of what you’re seeing in Washington, D.C., with Republicans choosing to obstruct,” Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) said, drawing parallels to federal-level dysfunction. House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) offers a different perspective while defending his caucus’s performance. “If you were grading the House Republicans and me, I would give myself an A+. You don’t know how difficult it is dealing with the extreme radical left people,” Hall said. The current legislative gridlock appears particularly stark when compared to the last split legislature in 2010, when lawmakers enacted 207 bills during the same period—nearly seven times this year’s total. “When you have such a low number accompanied by so much partisanship, you begin to wonder if something is wrong, if something is at work,” said former Democratic lawmaker John Cherry, who served in both the Michigan House and Senate and as lieutenant governor under Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Of the 30 bills enacted, the first pieces of legislation amended minimum wage and paid sick leave regulations as they were set to go into effect last February. Hall maintains that quantity isn’t the primary measure of success. “I look at what is impactful and meaningful to the people of Michigan,” Hall said. But Brinks said the legislature is far less productive than it should be, emphasizing that even smaller legislative actions matter. “There are little things that don’t make the big headlines that we do on a routine basis. We clear up regulatory issues. We help make it easier to interact with government,” Brinks said. The legislature’s failure to meet the July 1 statutory budget deadline left state agencies and programs in limbo. Tens of thousands of state workers faced potential layoffs, and school districts scrambled to plan for the new academic year, with some warning families about the possible end of free meal programs without a set budget. “That was a problem, and you can fault the legislature for creating this climate of uncertainty and lack of knowledge about what various local officials had to work with in the coming year,” said Bill Ballenger, a former Republican lawmaker who served in the Michigan House and Senate. The legislature eventually passed a temporary budget, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed on Oct. 1 -- the constitutional deadline for Michigan’s budget approval. “We agreed to keep the government open and then we worked on the final details, and that’s the way it should work,” Hall said of the temporary budget measure. A final fiscal year 2026 budget, totaling $81 billion, was signed on Oct. 7. “We did a damn good job getting it done, but it’s certainly not the perfect product,” Brinks said. Legislators not only failed to complete the budget on time, but negotiations also stalled other legislative priorities. “The legislature was particularly hung up on Matt Hall and Gretchen Whitmer getting a deal done on fixing the damn roads, which blocked everything else,” Ballenger said. “As a result, each chamber looked at the other and said ‘We’re not passing any bills that you send us.’” This dynamic is reflected in the breadth of bills enacted into law thus far. “More budget bills and budget-related bills have passed this legislative session than policy bills themselves, and that is a little unusual,” said Wendy Block, Senior Vice President of Business Advocacy at the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. The gridlock in Lansing threatens the state’s economic climate. “It’s very important for the business community to see that the legislature is functioning, that they’re working well with the executive office,” Block said. She argues compromise shouldn’t be a dirty word at the State Capitol, which has made advocating for certain policies more challenging for lobbying organizations like the chamber and residents alike. “What we maybe had to evolve on is just being able to find a way to get Republicans and Democrats to talk to each other and to say that just because someone is from a different party than you introduce a bill doesn’t mean it’s necessarily bad, or you should think it’s bad,” Block said. Cherry cautions how much blame should be placed on lawmakers for the current partisan climate. “I often believe that politics and politicians are just a reflection of who we are,” he said, referencing the divide between community members of different political persuasions. While political tension isn’t new to Lansing, Ballenger, who served in the state legislature from 1969 to 1974, notes that the nature of partisan division has evolved. “There’s always going to be tension and there’s always going to be disagreement, and sometimes it gets very bitter and boils over,” he said. Despite the contentious year, both legislative leaders say they see paths forward. “I’m optimistic about the future because of the good relationship that I built with Governor Whitmer,” Hall said. “The people of Michigan are counting on us,” Brinks said, “and I would add the states are even more important at a time when the federal government is failing us.” The 2026 midterm elections, with both chambers of the legislature on the ballot, could influence lawmakers’ policy priorities in the coming year. While year two of a legislative term typically sees less legislative activity, 2026 carries additional significance as Governor Whitmer’s final year in office. The governor’s office declined to comment on the legislature’s effectiveness this year.
