On Tuesday evening, following Governor Snyder’s State of the State address, the House and Senate Democratic caucuses came together to provide their response. House Democratic Leader Sam Singh (D-East Lansing) and Senate Democratic Leader Jim Ananich (D-Flint), flanked by their fellow caucus members, spoke to reporters on their views of the shortcomings of the address and the administration.

Senator Ananich called this past decade the “Decade of Missed Opportunities.” According to the Senator, students are falling further behind, road conditions are poor and are continuing to get worse, and residents don’t have access to the education and training necessary to fill the talent gap. He spoke about the need to protect the prevailing wage, something which he believes will help attract and retain talent in the state. Lastly, Senator Ananich spoke on the future of Michigan, saying the next decade should be the “Decade of Rebuilding.” He would like to see the state focus on rebuilding roads, bridges, and water infrastructure; investing in skilled trades and college prep; and finally, putting people first.

Next, Representative Singh spoke about what he sees is a disconnect between the Governor’s Michigan and what average residents feel about the state of our state. He touched on Governor Snyder’s lack of any mention on how the state will address the crisis at the Unemployment Insurance Agency and how the state will make whole those who were wrongly accused of fraud. Representative Singh stated he is willing to work across the aisle in this final year to ensure that areas that haven’t been addressed, get addressed. Those areas include better funding K-12 schools and a greater investment in infrastructure repair and improvement. Lastly, the Democratic caucuses will spend the next year focused on three key issues; jobs, education, and reinvestment in infrastructure.

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