Granholm signs budget, wipes out Promise
By Marissa Cumbers (Last updated: 11/02/09 12:04am)Elimination of the Michigan Promise Scholarship and about 61 percent of financial aid funding was finalized Friday when Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed Michigan’s last six budget bills.
The Michigan Promise Scholarship provides grants between $1,000 and $4,000 to 96,000 students statewide. At MSU, about 8,200 students were authorized to receive the scholarship, said Val Meyers, associate director of the MSU Office of Financial Aid.
Granholm avoided the state’s second government shutdown by signing the bills one day before the state’s temporary budget expired. Michigan lawmakers passed a temporary budget Oct. 1 when they failed to settle the state’s $40 billion budget, which caused a two-hour government shutdown.
“I will not pretend that this is a good budget,” Granholm said in a statement. “This budget cuts, rather than supports, Michigan’s most pressing priorities — educating our children and helping them pay for a college education, maintaining health care for our most vulnerable citizens, and keeping police officers and fire fighters on the streets of our communities.”
Before finalizing the budget, Granholm announced $127 million in additional cuts through line-item vetoes. Items vetoed included earmarks and pilot programs built in by the Legislature, said Megan Brown, a spokeswoman for Granholm.
“If there was something in the budget that we didn’t have enough money to fund completely, I vetoed it,” Granholm said in the statement.
By signing all 15 budget bills, Granholm eliminated the state’s $2.8 billion deficit. In addition to the Michigan Promise Scholarship, financial aid cuts eliminate the Part-Time Independent Student Program, the Michigan Work-Study Program, the Michigan Education Opportunity Grants and state nursing scholarships. University operations funding was cut by 0.4 percent for 15 universities.
MSU will receive $29.1 million for university operations — a $1.2 million decrease from last year’s $29.3 million.
“It’s almost like they are pushing us out of the state,” construction management senior James Savage said. “They’re screwing the people they want to stay here.”
About $68 million of this year’s $1.6 billion higher education budget is funded with federal stimulus dollars.
And stimulus funds won’t be available next year, which will make the budget even harder to balance, said Alan Fox, a political consultant with East Lansing-based Practical Political Consulting Inc. He said without tax increases, the state never will have enough revenue.
“The state of Michigan is drowning in a bathtub,” he said. “It’s being held underwater and revenue is going to constantly be a problem.”
Granholm will fight for tax increases and revenue enhancements to restore the Michigan Promise Scholarship, Brown said. The House has proposed revenue enhancements such as reductions to business tax credits and noncigarette tobacco taxes.
But Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, has said the Republican-led Senate will not pass any tax increases to fund items eliminated to balance the budget.
Originally Published: 11/01/09 11:50pm
lisa
11/02/09 1:13amI am incredulous. The governor chose a new police station knowing that by doing this she would be taking away much needed funds for the kids to go to school It is not just the promise scholarship its need based grants that have been “chopped up.” This cut is worse than the promise because these need grants along with loans is the ONLY way low income kids can go to school. I guess this is one way of starting the elimination of the middle class. She not only lied and pretended ‘shock” at this she also was involved in quite a shady price hike concerning this new police station which I have read and heard was not needed but done to pay back a favor.
lisa gremore
11/02/09 1:18amGranholm traded off kids’ financial aid for a new police station. I believe she owed a couple of people pretty big favors. The elimination of the promise scholarship is totally unacceptable but please be aware ALL NEED financial aid has been chopped. I do not see how low income students can attend school without some financial aid to put with loans.
Lisa Simpson
11/02/09 1:55amJust raise taxes. God forbid everybody chip in a small amount so everyone else benefits.
Tony
11/02/09 3:55amlisa gremore>
Low income students get Pell Grants and SEOG’s. Back in the day, MSU would throw them a little love, with decent sized grants and non-cafe based student employement. (Once upon a time at MSU, every computer lab had someone working in it to help you. It’s true.)
At any rate, Uncle Sam will still help you out if you’re low income. Maybe not enough to fully cover MSU anymore, because MSU has priced itself out of the market for that kind of student to easily attend here. But you’ll be able to go somewhere.
Shep
11/02/09 11:18am“MSU will receive $29.1 million for university operations — a $1.2 million decrease from last year’s $29.3 million.”
Was this a typo? How is this not a .2 million decrease?
Sam
11/02/09 11:48amGod forbid the low income students have to take out loans like the rest of us (middle class).
me
11/02/09 12:00pmShes a Whore…
Gov is to powerful…
The Illuminati and there goals of no middle class are happening all around America.
The Swine flu is man made, I knew about this 2 years ago and saw the plans myself.
Wake the fuk people! This is real.. or just go watch your tv and numb yourself to the world. As 99% people do
11/02/09 2:16pmI really dont see a need for so many police. Do we really need so many? I see them all the time and they generally look pretty bored. I think Granholm got a crap budget thrown in front of her a day before something had to be done. I honestly think shes handling her job as best as she knows how.
Incredulous
11/02/09 7:05pmPolice station??? Huh???
Do you mean the state police headquarters? That was a Republican scam and its been around a lot longer than this budget cycle.
Well, at least these comments are proving the need for education.
MotorCity007
11/02/09 10:48pmWhen I was in high school I thought the Promise Scholarship was too good to be true. I guess I was correct. Also my parents or I would just be paying for this scholarship through taxes. It’s really a no win situation for everyone.
MotorCity007
11/02/09 10:52pmLisa Simpson, how about you and the 43,000 other Michigan State students just give me $1 each. You will all be contributing to a better society.
BAD GOV
11/03/09 8:09amwhy does it take so many people in Michigan so long to figure out that this idiot Candian has done nothing but nuke our state. Carl Debbie Jenny Kwaime all deserve to be voted out but it takes terms to get rid of Jenny a run in with the law to dump kwaime and Carl and Debbie are about to really stick it to us. why would you give these idiots more stuff to screw up. people of michgian wake up. Please look out the window.
fools elect fools
BAD GOV
11/03/09 8:17amincredulas you are an idiot. Joel Ferguson (huge lib demtard)is the benifactor of the dirty Jenny police station deal. she traded the michigan promise becasue she owed him. we really dont need a new police station when we have a declining population. however we will need more cops soon after the candian idiot is done closing all the prisions. how you can say Republican deal is hillarious. look out the window and stop wasting my time with your low brain activity and comments
good economy means good jobs and people can pay thier own college idiot
stop with the handouts and finger pointing. Libtards always do that and they have 3 more fingers pointing back at them
incredulous
11/03/09 1:25pmI am writing in response to the person who said the police station issue has been around a long time. This “issue” involved both a democrat and republican, I wish I had the website I could probably find it but what is the use I read it, found it to be reliable, and it sickened me. This occured around October she also gave much more money to the “contractors” than it was worth.
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Samantha Nortrhup
11/03/09 2:03pmI am a current college freshman who has no idea how i am going to get this thousand dollars. i agree that she should have still given it for at least the first semester because many college student dont have a $1000 in there bank account. i have to pay for my college completely on my own because my parents refuse to help because they do not see it as there responsibility. So right now i might not be able to register for next semester because i do not have this money to give them.
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MotorCity007
11/03/09 4:46pmSamantha Nortrhup, have your parents at least fill out the FASA form. By filling this form out you can hopefully get zero percent loans until you graduate.
Link
11/04/09 3:44amAfter we graduate, most of us will leave the state anyways. There’s not place for us here, things like this damn the future of Michigan and further speed it’s fall. Ah well, time to suck it up and take the hit, but the main thing is to not forget past transgressions by those who are elected to represent the needs of the people.
lisa gremore
11/04/09 2:09pmSamantha you should write a short note to granholm saying what you just said. I can not believe she is so heartless. The financial aid department might help you at your school, if you get in there real fast. Good Luck.
Cody
11/04/09 3:00pmI like the what Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester had to say about how the republican controlled senate would be unwilling to reopen the Michigan Promise or any other program that was cut. It just goes to show how stubborn the elected officials in this state really are.