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Lansing — Gov. Rick Snyder called on the Legislature in Wednesday night's State of the State address to find a way to raise $1.2 billion in additional annual funding to fix the state's crumbling roads, allow no-reason absentee voting and reform no-fault auto insurance.
He renewed previous endorsements of hiking motor vehicle registration fees and changing the 19-cents-per-gallon gas tax to a percentage tax based on the wholesale rate that can grow with inflation and rising oil prices. That would make it easier for the revenue raised to keep up with rising costs for fixing roads, bridges and railroads. He also wants to change the state's 62-year-old road funding formula.
"We can decide how long we want to argue about it, how political we want to make it, or we can just use some common sense and get it done," Snyder said.
Michigan Department of Transportation Director Kirk Steudle said getting to $1.2 billion will mean motorists will have to pay roughly $120 per vehicle more each year — either through a higher gas tax or registration fees.
Snyder also called for:
A renewed effort by the Legislature overhaul governance of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.
Preventing "slumlords" who don't pay property taxes or let homes fall into disrepair from buying more tax-reverted properties.
Urging the Legislature to allow residents to register to vote online and vote absentee without a reason — such as disability or being out of town — up to 45 days before Election Day. Secretary of State Ruth Johnson says she supports the effort.
Reining in auto insurance rates through a reform of Michigan's no-fault law.
Reforming campaign finance reporting so that there's more transparency about donors and more frequent reporting.
Expanding the Education Achievement Authority from running 15 failing schools in Detroit to 50 schools statewide that persistently have low test scores. Legislation to do so stalled in the Legislature last year.
In a nod to Michigan's strong automobile heritage, Snyder also called for legislation allowing testing of Google's self-driving cars. California, Florida and Nevada have greenlighted "autonomous-vehicles" and an auto-centric state like Michigan should be next,Snyder said.
"We're the car state, we should catch up," the Republican governor said.
Snyder opened his nearly one-hour speech by touting data showing Michigan's economic fortunes are reversing after a decade of decline. Nearly 177,000 jobs have been created since August 2009, home sales were up 10 percent last year and the state population increased in 2012 for the first time since 2004, he said.
Before the address, a couple of hundred union members protested outside the Capitol over last month's passage of a controversial right-to-work law. In his address, Snyder hinted about the divisive issue, without mentioning the law by name.
"I wish it wouldn't have happened," Snyder said of the right-to-work division. "I hope we can work together, I hope we can work to avoid those kinds of situations."
Democrats said the governor's reference to speeding right-to-work legislation through the lame-duck session at the end of last year were insincere.
"The elephant in the room was right to work, and that wasn't addressed very well," Wayne County Executive Bob Ficano said after the speech.
Democrats panned Snyder's third annual address. State Sen. Coleman Young II, D-Detroit, said: "It's very rare. I'm at a loss of words. He meant well, but he was out of touch. There were no real specifics."
In calling for action on closing a road funding deficit estimated to grow to $1.6 billion next year, Snyder also proposed allowing counties to levy a separate vehicle registration fee to raise "an additional couple hundred million dollars" on top of the $1.2 billion in new state funds.
Ficano said county-by-county fees would lead to a "hodge podge" of road conditions.
"It pits counties against one another," he said.
Snyder emphasized the economic and safety benefits of having better roads — from fewer flat tires and vehicle repairs for motorists to 12,000 jobs for road construction firms and an estimated 100 fewer highway deaths annually.
"There's no price you can put on that," Snyder said.
Snyder's road funding plan lacked details on how much it would cost average drivers. Aides said he's deferring to the Legislature to formulate a plan.
"If we put a number out there, it's going to be immediately attacked," said Bill Rustem, the governor's director of strategy and policy, before the speech.
Sen. Roger Kahn, R-Saginaw, is leading efforts to draft funding proposals for raising new revenues. One proposal he has would ask voters to approve a 2-cent hike in the sales tax to raise an extra $1.5 billion for roads and eliminate gas taxes altogether.
Earlier in the day, Snyder met separately with House and Senate leaders from both parties — and the detail-less road funding pitch didn't go over well with Democrats.
"It was very vague in terms of how he wanted to raise the $1.2 billion," said House Minority Floor Leader Rudy Hobbs, D-Southfield. "On purpose, I'm sure."
Hobbs said Democrats have no appetite to raise taxes and fees on middle-class motorists at a time when taxpayers are starting absorb the GOP majority's elimination of numerous income tax breaks in 2011 to help pay for a $1.8 billion business tax cut.
"With the huge shift in taxes from corporations to the middle-class taxpayers, we're not looking to increase that burden," he said. "It's just not feasible right now."
Lawmakers will first comb the budget for places to cut before agreeing to raise taxes, said House Appropriations chairman Joe Haveman, R-Holland.
"Raising revenues isn't going to be the first thing we'll want to do out of the box," Haveman said.
Gasoline tax revenues have declined every year for a decade as motorists have switched to more fuel-efficient vehicles, hybrids or driving less because of the price of gas.
About 87 percent of state trunk line roads are rated good or fair, according to MDOT.
If no additional money is infused into the road system over the next decade, Steudle said, just 38 percent of main roads will be in good or fair condition.
Snyder now needs to sell the road funding plan to skeptical out-state legislators that better highways and byways won't just benefit urban areas, said Brad Williams, director of governmental relations for the Detroit Regional Chamber.
"It's hard to get cherries to the world if we're not keeping U.S. 31 in good condition," Williams said.
clivengood@detroitnews.com
(517) 371-3660
Detroit News Staff Writer Marisa Schultz contributed.
In a mostly upbeat speech, there were several major issues Gov. Rick Snyder did not address:
Reforming K-12 education funding
Battling crime in Detroit
Increasing natural gas exploration
Detroit's dire finances and possible appointment of an emergency financial manager
New abortion clinic regulations he approved last month
