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LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) - Gov. Gretchen Whitmer took some flack last night for not laying out her plan to fix the roads, including an expected revenue increase.
The House GOP speaker called it.:
"Missed opportunities to talk about several issues that we in the House and the Senate have identified as large challenges that are facing our state," State Rep. Lee Chatfield said.
But the governor has a new opportunity. if she wants to raise new revenue, the senate GOP leader, for the first time, says he is in.
"There is no way that we're going to fix this problem that's been 50 years in the making without coming up with new revenue for infrastructure," said State Senate Leader Mike Shirkey (R).
However, Shirkey says that is the last option.
"The first step is agreeing on what the goal is," he said. "The second step is making sure that there's not some prioritization that we can do with our current spending. And then the third step is to fill in and start talking about new revenue."
And more good news for the governor:
"I think everyone has identified our roads need new revenue," Chatfield said. "But I think before we simply say we're just going to go back to the pockets of our taxpayers and raise revenue without cutting anywhere else, I think that's irresponsible."