Upper Peninsula schools win bipartisan vote to forgive snow days

A bill that would forgive extra snow days for Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula schools has passed both chambers of the Michigan Legislature and is now headed to the governor's desk.

The measure, introduced by Rep. Parker Fairbairn (R-Harbor Springs), passed the House 149-5 on May 14 and the Senate 33-2 on May 20. The vote margins reflect broad bipartisan support for relief from a particularly harsh winter.

What the bill does

Michigan requires public schools to hold at least 180 days of instruction, totaling 1,098 hours. Districts are currently allowed six forgiven days for weather-related cancellations and other emergencies outside their control.

Once a district uses all six days, officials must petition the state for more. If granted, three additional days are added. If the request is denied or those days are exhausted, the district must extend the school year to make up missed time.

Fairbairn's bill would add four extra forgiven days for districts in the entire Upper Peninsula and the northern Lower Peninsula. The relief applies to the current school year only, addressing the second consecutive year of severe weather.

Why it matters for Marquette

School districts across the Upper Peninsula have already exceeded their six-day limit. In mid-April, Cheboygan Area Schools had logged 17 canceled school days. Gaylord Community Schools had 12 cancellations. Charlevoix Public Schools had called 11 snow days, and the Public Schools of Petoskey was over the limit with at least eight.

"This was the second consecutive year of unusually severe weather, resulting in more days on which student instruction could not be provided in a great many school districts," Fairbairn wrote in a May 20 social media post.

"So, while I believe that, as a rule, missed days should be made up, for the benefit of students, I think that there needs to be some grace extended, under such exigent circumstances, and locally-elected school boards should be given leeway or flexibility to make scheduling decisions that best serve their students, families and communities."

Fairbairn called the bill a "necessity for nearly half the counties" in the state.

What happens next

The bill now sits on Governor Gretchen Whitmer's desk awaiting her signature. If signed, Upper Peninsula school districts that have exhausted their snow day allowances would not need to extend the school year into June or July to make up lost instructional time.

No date has been announced for the governor's action on the legislation.