Lawmakers return to the state Capitol Tuesday to begin the post-election “lame duck” session,” while Governor Gretchen Whitmer has asked for a $100-million-dollar COVID-19 package.
Governor Whitmer says a state-level relief package is needed absent more help from Washington and she has support from Democrats in the Legislature. State Representative Donna Lasinski says the money is needed to help prepare for the next wave of COVID-19 cases and the accompanying economic consequences. She says a critical element is making permanent the extension of jobless benefits that went from a 20-week cutoff to 26 weeks.
“This is about ensuring that Michiganders don’t fall into a spiral and a cycle of poverty that we can’t recover from.”Democrats also back the governor’s request for a statewide mask mandate to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
Republican leaders say they have their own plans for getting help to workers and businesses affected by COVID and the governor’s shutdown orders.