LANSING, Mich. — Senate Appropriations Minority Vice Chair Jon Bumstead, R-North Muskegon, on Thursday issued the following statement following the passage of the state’s 2025 fiscal year budget:
“It is unfortunate that Democrats moved forward with their plan to raid teachers’ retirement funds to foolishly subsidize unsustainable programs with no long-term plan or return on investment. Instead of addressing why Michigan students are underperforming by nearly every metric, this budget fails to increase the per-pupil foundation allowance for the first time in more than a decade and cuts 90% of funding for school safety and student mental health care. The School Aid budget should be a tool that helps our schools, teachers and students achieve success. It should not be irresponsibly squandered to prop up ill-advised projects by growing debt and risking the power and potential of future investment.
“I remain concerned that the General Fund budget was built on an income tax increase on struggling Michiganders. We know that people are paying more for less and struggling to pay bills as they work hard to overcome historically high inflation. We have a duty to taxpayers to spend their dollars responsibly, investing in our shared interests and common goals — critical improvements to our roads and water infrastructure, proper investments in public safety and our natural resources, and paying down our debts — for the future prosperity of our great state.
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