Michigan voters will have to make many decisions in the November election, including yes or no votes on six state proposals on issues that range from a new bridge to Canada to collective bargaining.
Here are the six state proposals on the Nov. 6 ballot in Michigan.
- Proposal 12-1: The Emergency Manager Law would expand the powers of emergency managers in municipalities and school districts and allow the governor to appoint emergency managers.
- Proposal 12-2: Right to Collective Bargaining is a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would make collective bargaining a right for public and private workers.
- Proposal 12-3: Renewable Energy Standard is a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would require 25 percent of the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy sources.
- Proposal 12-4: Quality Home Care is a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would give home health care workers limited collective bargaining rights.
- Proposal 12-5: Limit Enactment of New State Taxes is a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would require a two-thirds majority of the state legislature or a statewide vote to raise state taxes.
- Proposal 12-6: Require Vote on International Bridges is a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would require a statewide vote to build international bridges or tunnels. This would affect the New International Trade Crossing (or new bridge to Canada).
For more information on the state ballot proposals, go to Vote411.org and to Ballotpedia.
How would you vote on these proposals?
I’ll be voting No. It’s an obvious power play by the private owner of the bridge to override the Michigan legislature with a constitutional amendment. He doesn’t want competition for his bridge monopoly. Infrastructure like bridges and roads should be publicly owned, regardless of how it’s funded. I’ll be writing a series of articles on the ballot proposals in the next weeks comparing info we’ve received in the mail from various sources, so check my blog periodically. In the meantime, here’s my take on Proposal T (the Troy mayoral recall): http://troy.patch.com/blog_posts/mayoral-recall-a-referendum-on-american-democracy
http://troy.patch.com/blog_posts/a-guide-to-ballot-proposals-4-5-6 http://troy.patch.com/blog_posts/a-guide-to-ballot-proposals-part-1 http://troy.patch.com/blog_posts/a-guide-to-ballot-proposals-proposal-3 http://troy.patch.com/blog_posts/a-guide-to-ballot-proposals-proposal-2 I came to the same conclusions as Julie Lattimore and the Detroit Free Press, although for different reasons on some of the proposals as the Free Press: Yes on 1, No on the rest. Julie sums it up quite well.