The bill moves to the Senate after House approval

A Michigan House bill that would forgive up to four extra snow days for Upper Peninsula schools, including those in Marquette County, now moves to the state Senate for consideration.

The legislation, House Bill 5797, passed the House on May 14. It aims to give relief to school districts that closed during the mid-March winter storm that buried northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula in record-breaking snowfall.

State law currently allows schools to miss up to six days per year without making them up. Many Upper Peninsula districts exceeded that limit during the March storm and subsequent rapid snowmelt that left roads impassable.

Why this matters for Marquette families

Without the forgiveness, districts that used more than six snow days may be forced to extend their school year further into the summer. That extension impacts maintenance schedules, contracted work, and family planning for the summer months.

HB 5797 would forgive four excess non-instruction days specifically for the dates of March 12, 13, 16, or 17. The forgiveness applies only if instruction could not occur on those dates due to conditions outside the district's control.

The bill covers all Upper Peninsula counties, several Lower Michigan counties, and any county named in a state of emergency declared by the governor during the 2025-26 school year.

Who pushed the bill

The bill was sponsored by State Representative Parker Fairbairn (R-Harbor Springs). It is an expanded version of an earlier effort by State Representative Dave Prestin (R-Cedar River), who originally proposed HB 5800 to forgive excess school days specifically for Upper Peninsula districts.

"I began pushing my colleagues hard on getting relief for U.P. communities while snow was still falling during the blizzard," Prestin said. "It is no secret that we get a lot of snow in the U.P., but there are storms you just can not plan for. School districts are much larger than they were 50 years ago, as school districts have consolidated, forcing kids to spend longer on the bus. Schools should not be penalized when they make the right choice for student safety."

Fairbairn framed the bill as a matter of local flexibility during extreme circumstances.

"While I believe that, as a rule, schools should make up any missed days beyond the statutorily provided six, I think that there needs to be some grace extended under such exigent circumstances, and locally elected school boards should be given flexibility to make decisions that best serve their students, families and communities," Fairbairn said. "We are weeks away from the end of the school year, making it all the more important the Senate passes this bill and sends it to the governor for signature."

What happens next

The bill now sits in the Michigan Senate. If the Senate passes it, it will go to Governor Gretchen Whitmer for her signature. No Senate committee hearing date has been publicly scheduled as of the time of publication.

Marquette schools and other Upper Peninsula districts will watch closely. The outcome determines whether families face a shortened summer or whether the state grants relief for a weather event that was beyond anyone's control.