(The Center Square) – Michigan lawmakers returned to Lansing today for a last-minute push to finalize the state’s fiscal year 2026-27 budget.
July 1 is the statutory deadline for the finalization of Michigan’s budget, including the separate School Aid budget.
Negotiations between the Republican-controlled House, Democrat-controlled Senate and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration continued Wednesday morning, with no final budget agreement announced.
Budget talks have stretched on for months, though House Republicans said last week a budget “framework” had been reached. That framework included no tax increases, no depletion of the state’s rainy-day fund, and a smaller budget than last year’s.
Wednesday morning, House Republicans said they are continuing to push for greater transparency and accountability in state spending.
“The people fund state government. They deserve to know where their tax dollars are going,” they posted on social media.
As of Wednesday morning, Whitmer and Senate Democrats had not publicly commented on the status of budget negotiations.
This comes as both sides of the aisle have proposed vastly different plans for the budget.
In April, House Republicans approved a $75.8 billion budget plan. The proposal reduced overall spending by $106 million and cut nearly $600 million from the state’s general fund, while avoiding new taxes and adding to the state’s rainy-day fund.
The Republican plan stood in sharp contrast to the Democrat plan and Whitmer’s executive budget proposal unveiled earlier this year.
Whitmer’s plan totaled $88.1 billion – about $10 billion higher than the House version – and includes record K-12 education spending, tax relief for seniors and additional investments across multiple state programs. Similarly, Senate Democrats approved a $88.1 billion budget plan in April.
In Michigan, the fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Last year, the legislature blew past both the July and October deadlines – not officially passing a budget until Oct. 8.
There are no penalties for the legislature to miss those deadlines, though it leaves financial uncertainty for schools, state agencies and employees, and other groups that receive taxpayer funding from the state.
