LANSING, Mich. -- Four Republican state lawmakers representing the Upper Peninsula issued statements this week urging their colleagues in the Michigan Legislature to move forward on bills that would allow Department of Corrections officers, conservation officers and other state workers to join the Department of State Police pension system.
Senate Bills 1133, 1134 and 1135, all authored by Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, were introduced in July and passed the Senate 27-8 last week. The bills are expected to stall in the House, where Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, has said he will not move the bills unless a deal is struck involving other major GOP priorities.
"This is a first step in helping address the high turnover and shortage of corrections officers working in Michigan prisons, which are being overworked and underpaid," said McBroom, who has introduced the bills in the last three legislative sessions. "I urge a quick vote to provide corrections officers with the support they need and bring relief to the staffing crisis."
The bills have an unusual legislative history. They originally passed last session but were among nine bills not presented to the governor before the session ended, nor presented at the start of the current session. That procedural failure led to a lawsuit between the Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-controlled Senate. A July Supreme Court ruling ordered the House to present the bills, but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer quickly vetoed them, citing concerns over implementation after they sat in limbo for so long.
The U.P. delegation is pushing for a compromise that would both improve retirement benefits for corrections officers and protect the financial integrity of the state police retirement fund.
Rep. Greg Markkanen, R-Hancock, said the state needs to take measured action. "We need to take measured and responsible action to provide better retirement benefits for corrections officers, protect the integrity of the state police retirement fund and bring relief to the crisis in our prisons," Markkanen said.
Rep. David Prestin, R-Cedar River, acknowledged the Senate's bills are flawed but called for decisive action. "The Senate's bills are flawed, but we have the opportunity to take decisive action that will help boost hiring, reduce turnover and end the incredibly burdensome Rule 32 overtime policies," Prestin said.
Rep. Karl Bohnak, R-Deerton, urged lawmakers to set aside partisan politics. "It's time for Lansing to set politics aside and reach a compromise that benefits the brave men and women who keep our communities safe," Bohnak said. "Corrections officers are counting on us, but they're losing faith that anything will ever change. It's time we show some courage."
Michigan's corrections system has faced a persistent staffing shortage in recent years, with attrition rates outpacing hiring. Advocates for corrections officers have long argued that the department's retirement benefits fall well short of the state police pension plan, making it difficult to recruit and retain experienced staff.
The bills now sit in the House, where their fate depends on whether Hall is willing to pair them with other GOP legislative priorities.