LANSING, MI -- A bill that would up the fees losing candidates pay for post-election recounts was approved 27-11 by the Michigan Senate on Tuesday along mostly party lines.

The bill, senate bill 290, specifically applies to candidates who come in more than 5 percent below the winning candidate (in a race where multiple candidates win spots, 5 percent below the lowest candidate.) Instead of a previously-prescribed $125 per precinct, such candidates would have to pay $250 per precinct for a recount.

Sponsor Rep. Dave Robertson, R-Grand Blanc, said the bill sprung out of the 2016 statewide recount initiated by former presidential candidate Jill Stein of the Green party.

Stein, who won 1.07 percent of Michigan's vote, initiated the recount. Though the recount was eventually halted, Stein was paying $125 per precinct and counties were on the hook for any additional cost associated with re-counting ballots.

"I think the changes in the bill more accurately reflect the cost associated with it," said Robertson, who said Stein's recount threatened to push costs onto taxpayers.

Voting against the bill were all the Democrats except Sen. Hoon-Yung Hopgood, D-Taylor. Sen. Joe Hune, R-Hamburg, joined Democrats in voting against the bill.

Sen. Steve Bieda, D-Warren, said during his dozen years in the legislature he hadn't seen a fee increase as large as the proposed 100 percent.

"I think this is a bad message to send at this time with this humongous fee increase," Bieda said.

He said past recounts have uncovered important issues that needed to be addressed, and the practice goes toward the sanctity of elections.

The bill passed the full Senate, but would need approval from the full House and a signature from Gov. Rick Snyder to become law.

Last year a similar bill -- one that would have required candidates more than 5 percent of the vote behind the winner to pay the full cost of any recount -- made it out of the House Elections Committee in December but never got a vote on the House floor.