Kathleen Gray

Detroit Free Press Lansing Bureau

LANSING – Lame duck, week two, is done except for continuing closed-door meetings to come up with a deal to fix roads.

And legislators spent last week tying up loose ends, deciding which bills can wait to be introduced again next year and putting the kibosh on other bills.

It was a week where waiting for action was the norm, and final votes were few.

This week we'll start with the fails because these are the bills that were either voted down or put off in the name of reaching a compromise on other, more important issues, like roads. If action isn't taken on bills this week, they die for the year and have to be reintroduced next year.

Failed by vote

SB 1026 and 1076: Allowing townships of 70,000 or more (there are only five that qualify in Michigan) to have more regulatory authority over oil and gas drilling in their communities.

Cities currently have the authority to impose rules on everything from how far wells can be from buildings to setting times for drilling to cut down on traffic and noise. A late-night drilling operation in Macomb County's Shelby Township caught residents by surprise and township officials were powerless to do anything about it.

The bills failed because Democrats said they didn't think it went far enough and should include townships with populations of at least 15,000, while some Republicans said they felt it was a violation of personal property rights.

HB 5951: Regulating popular ride-sharing services, like Uber and Lyft, was put up for a vote in the House, but couldn't get enough support before the board was cleared.

Failed by inaction

Since the Legislature is scheduled to end its session Thursday, all bills had to get through at least one chamber by Dec. 11 in order to be considered by the other chamber this week, under procedural rules that govern the Legislature.

A number of controversial bills didn't get taken up, rendering them essentially dead for the year, including:

HB 5974: Changing the way Michigan allocates its Electoral College votes in presidential elections where the winner would get at least 9 of the 16 Electoral College votes, with the remainder split between the winner and second-place finisher. Michigan, along with 47 other states in the nation, currently use a winner-take-all system.

SB 1155 and HB 5953: Moving the election for Oakland County executive from presidential years to midterm election years, when voter turnout is lower.

Supporters said it would sync Oakland's election with the races for Macomb and Wayne counties. But Democrats claim the bill, along with the Electoral College issue, was a way for Republicans to rig elections in order to maintain control of the county seat and get votes for a GOP presidential candidate in a county and state that is trending blue.

HB 5977: Prohibiting communities from dictating wage, work rules or community benefit agreements for developers who are getting tax breaks or incentives to build in the community.

Republicans said they want a level playing field for businesses, but Democrats and communities said the bill tied their hands in trying to work with developers in their towns.

SB 1138: The auto title loan bill would allow people to borrow money against their car titles, with the lenders able to charge fees of 20% a month.

Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville, R-Monroe, disputed claims that the bill amounted to predatory lending, saying it was an avenue for people who need a quick, and short infusion of cash. In the end, Richardville said the bill came up too late in the legislative session to pursue.

HB 5959 and 5804: Expanding the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to the LGBT community died after Democrats and Republicans couldn't reach a compromise on who would be included in the bill.

Democrats wanted the entire LGBT community, while Republicans would only put up votes for sexual orientation, but not gender identity.

HB 5144, 5111 and 5112: Bills that would have set minimum requirements for students as they reached the third grade, and creating a letter grading system for school districts, failed to get taken up in the full House.

HB 5276: Renaming the governor's ceremonial office in the Capitol after Gov. John Engler fizzled without a House vote.

HB 5928-5931: A package to set up a commission to review the state's sentencing guidelines and rework parole and probation policies in the state passed the House, but faced fierce resistance from law enforcement and Attorney General Bill Schuette. The package failed to get enough votes to get out of a Senate committee.

Pending

SB 658, 659: The Main Street Fariness acts, better known as the sales tax on Internet purchases, passed the Senate and is ready to be taken up in the House.

These bills, which could raise up to $50 million a year, may play a role in the roads debate. More revenue from sales tax could mean more money for roads. This is a tax that you're already supposed to pay by declaring your Internet purchases on your tax return.

The Michigan Treasury Department estimates that only 1.4% of the tax amount due from Internet sales made by Michigan taxpayers is actually paid.

SB 1156 and 1157: The abortion coercion bills would make forcing a woman to get an abortion a misdemeanor punishable by up to $10,000 in fines and an undetermined amount of jail time.

The measures passed the Senate and are widely expected to gain support in the House.

Some Democrats say the bill isn't needed because doctors already have to carefully screen pregnant women to ensure they're not being coerced to get an abortion, and represents another attack on women's access to health care.

HB 5958: The Religious Restoration Freedom Act would allow people to assert a "sincerely held religious belief" if faced with legal action for not providing services.

The example most frequently given is if a baker is sanctioned for refusing to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. The bill has passed the House, but the Senate hasn't taken it up yet.

HB 4186: Allowing convicts with one felony and two misdemeanors to apply to get either the felony or the misdemeanors expunged from their record.

This bill has been languishing in committee for 18 months, but got a unanimous vote by the House and is poised for a vote in the Senate.

HB 5205: A controversial bill that would expand the definition of items that could be used as renewable energy, including burning old tires, municipal trash and coal mining by-products, passed the House and could be taken up in the Senate this week.

Passed, awaiting Snyder's signature

SB 1103: Tax incentives for the film industry will continue for seven more years with a cap of 25%, with more available for Michigan-based post production facilities and companies that hire Michigan workers.

SB 275 and HB 4118: Setting up a pilot program in three counties for the Department of Human Services to do suspicion-based drug testing on public assistance recipients.

If the recipient fails or refuses to take the test, they will lose benefits for at least six months. Most Democrats opposed the bills because they didn't include a provision to protect benefits for the children of parents who test positive for drugs.

Gov. Rick Snyder's spokesman, Dave Murray, said he will review the bills, but noted that most of the problems Snyder had with the drug-testing bills had been addressed in the final version of the legislation.

As for the film credits, "The governor in general looks for ways other than tax incentives to attract and retain businesses in Michigan, but he is certainly open to working with the partners in the Legislature," Murray said.

The Senate is to meet at noon today. Both the House and Senate will finish the lame-duck session on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Contact Kathleen Gray: 517-372-8661 or kgray99@freepress.com