The Three Legged Stool: Roads, Schools, and Communities

As you read this blog, lawmakers in Lansing continue to debate funding priorities. And while, as of today, it might seem like budget negotiations are at an impasse, we all know that come early October, the state of Michigan will again have a budget.

Hopefully, Democrats and Republicans will then come together and develop a long-term solution to fixing our state’s crumbling roads – taking that important step will go a long way toward making Michigan a place where future generations want to live, work, and raise a family.

Citizens get Michigan’s dilemma – and while many disagree on a funding source, everyone at least comes together to agree that our roads must be addressed if we expect to thrive.

But what else should be addressed in Michigan besides roads? There are many holes we must plug from a budget perspective to ensure our state stays on the right track annually, and there’s only so many resources to fill those gaps.

So how do we choose and how do we make sure municipalities remain near the top of the list? 

The good news – from a long-term perspective – is that elected officials are beginning to speak of three important infrastructure issues for the state of Michigan in the same breath. Fixing the damn roads – a electoral centerpiece for Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s 2018  – is generally first on the minds of most Michigan voters.

Our state’s public schools continue to remain a critical funding priority for lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, although their approaches to curriculum, instruction, and assessment are at times miles apart from each other.

The state Department of Education, education advocacy groups, and associations are focused on changing the way fund schools in Michigan, with the long term goal of changing the state’s revenue structure so at-risk schools are funded first, much like more educationally successful states currently do.

But the third leg of that stool is how we fund local communities. Lansing is finally beginning to recognize that for decades, state revenues that is owed our cities, villages, and townships by state statute has been redirected to plug other holes and meet separate demands in the state budget.

While SaveMiCity has been focused like a laser on this important issue, our work together has made others notice. Lawmakers, municipal officials, members of media, community leaders, and even the general public now understand that the success of our state is dependent upon the success of our cities and villages.

Unfortunately in Michigan, the state has diverted dollars away from local services to shore up the state’s bureaucracy. Since 2002, that diversion has equated in more than $8.6 billion for our communities. This challenge has directly affected the ability of local governments to create great places for all of us to live and work.

We encourage you to ask your legislator to rethink budget priorities and stay engaged on the broader issue of reforming our system. We need to fund what matters most. Our system is horribly broken and, left unchanged, will prevent us from having the Michigan we all want and deserve.

This way, when lawmakers are making decisions about our communities, they will work to ensure Michigan’s three-legged budget stool stays balanced.