Highway cameras, Belle Isle fixes, and free school lunches - What's in the $81.7 billion Michigan budget?

(FOX 2) - Michigan's $81.7 billion budget includes large chunks of money for education, public safety, health, housing, the environment, and more. 

The budget passed the Senate Wednesday and will move to the governor's desk after House's approval earlier this week. Gretchen Whitmer praised the budget, which includes $15.2 billion for the general fund and $19.4 billion for the School Aid Fund.

Highlights of the K-12 education portion of the budget include $160 million to provide free school breakfasts and lunches to all public school students. The biggest portion of the education budget is the per-pupil funding, which adds up to $611 million. 

Schools make up the biggest piece of the budget pie, but there are billions also going to infrastructure, improving state parks, building affordable housing, as well as millions more for other pet projects around the state.

There money for electrifying school bus fleets, expanding the eligibility for tuition-free community college, implementing recommendations from the Racial Disparities Task Force, adding cameras to Metro Detroit highways, improving the Selfridge Air National Guard Base, and improvements to state parks like Belle Isle. 

$9,608 per pupil in schools

School districts are getting an additional $458 per-pupil funding, which is a 5% increase from the previous year. 

Hundreds of millions of dollars is also being sent to:

• Tuition-free college for future teachers
• Mental health and school safety
• Retaining academically at-risk, economically disadvantaged students

One of the newest additions to the school budget is money to make pre-K school free for all children as well as subsidizing school breakfast and lunches for public school students. 

In Detroit, nearly $95 million is being sent to improve literacy rates in the school district. 

Go deeper into Michigan's K-12 funding here

There's also $8 million allocated for two years to help establish a program that guarantees a free field trip to a state park for all fourth graders. 

$50 million to combat racial disparities

Public health is getting more than $400 million in funding with a majority going to wage increases for care workers that assist people with disabilities and reimbursing Medicaid services.

After its final report came out in 2022, the racial disparities task force convened by Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist issued several recommendations for boosting equity among minority groups and improving access to health care.

Neighborhood health grants, mobile health crants, and sickle cell support will all be a part of a $49.5 million investment.

New task force seeks to solve state's population problem

There's also $10 million being used to create a new foster care respite program for temporary relief for parents. 

$30 million for freeway cameras

The public safety realm is getting more than $200 million in grants, police training, and juvenile justice reform.

It also includes funding to build cameras along highways in Detroit. Dangerous driving practices and shooting instances on highways have increased in recent years, prompting more investment in camera technology.

Camera enforcement is already part of a growing area of policing. The legislature approved work zone cameras to crack down on speeding last week. There are also plans to implement cameras partly operated by artificial intelligence on Woodward Avenue. 

$50 million for public transit

Getting a sizable portion of the budget are roads and other public infrastructure projects - about $416 million.

There's also another $80 million to rehabilitate dozens of "structurally deficient bridges" around the state. Rounding out those costs is $50 million in investments for rail, marine, intercity, and local transit projects. The goal is they can also draw down federal funding.

The state is also starting to transition its fleet to electric vehicles and committing $5 million for a mineral recycling research hub.

State Park boosts

Replacing lead service lines and rebuilding old sewers has also secured nearly $600 million in funding, while another $150 million will go towards reopening the Palisades nuclear power plant. 

There's also more than $60 million going to state parks:

• $23 million to improve Belle Isle
• $23 million to create the new Flint State Park
• $20 million to clean up contaminated parks and property in historically disadvantaged communities

MichiganPolitics