State Rep. Kurt Heise Calls Budget Deal 'Historic'

The budget agreement reached Thursday by Gov. Rick Snyder and Republican legislative leaders was hailed Friday by state Rep. Kurt Heise (R-Plymouth) as "historic."

Heise met with constituents Friday morning at in Plymouth for a coffee hour, where he discussed the agreement and other issues facing the state.

One sticking point during the budget process was a $470 per-pupil cut. In the latest version of Snyder's budget proposal, the cuts have been reduced to $100 per student.

Heise, who noted that his children are in the Plymouth-Canton school district, said the newest version is "far more favorable than what they originally had on the table."

Heise had voted against the initial K-12 cuts in a House bill that narrowly passed.

"I paid a heavy political price for voting against the K-12 funding (bill) the first time around," he said. 

He trumpeted the importance of having reached an agreement before June 1. 

"Last year, it wasn't until late September (until a deal was reached)," he said. "The budget has always been done, in recent years, in the September time frame. It's a nightmare for local school districts. The certainty that provides for local governments, for school districts, is terrific."

He also said the early agreement allows legislators to work on other policy issues during the summer, including adding another bridge to Canada and addressing the quantity of judges in light of Michigan's recent .

Still, Heise said shortly after his coffee hour, work still remains in finalizing the budget, including K-12 funding. 

"As of (this morning), we're still going through the details," he said. "I am thrilled that we are able to have a balanced budget for the next two years without gimmicks, without any one-time fixes. We've implemented a structural reform on our tax policy; we've implemented real fiscal discipline."

Heise mostly spoke with two audience members, although a total of about five people stopped in at various times to speak briefly — and candidly — about a variety of policy issues.

Heise addressed the recent reductions in Michigan's , which awarded filmmakers and studios credits for up to 42 percent of a film's total production expenditures. 

"The whole patchwork of incentives and giveaways is over," he said. 

Elaine Miller of Livonia, a retired Michigan Education Association president for Wayne County, was in attendance and said the MEA also was against the film incentives.

"(Educators) could see how much was taken away from public schools," she said.

While Miller lives outside of Heise's district, she said she had a lot of acquaintances who are affected by decisions in his district. 

To help Michigan's rebirth, Heise, who said he is environmentally friendly, said the state needs to capitalize on environmental assets and improve foreign relations. 

"We need to reach out to foreign countries," he said, noting Snyder is planning a trip to China.

Heise also said the corridor between Interstate 275 and Ann Arbor is a "very exciting, high-tech corridor" that can draw business.

"We need to reach out more," he said. "Snyder can do that."