LANSING, Mich. — State Senate Appropriations Committee Minority Vice Chair Jon Bumstead, R-North Muskegon, released the following statement Tuesday after the “Ford Supplemental” House Bill 4016 was forced through committee and the Senate:
“Everybody wants to see good jobs created in Michigan but throwing endless amounts of taxpayer dollars at enormous companies is not the answer. Our priorities should be leveraging the state’s budget surplus to help our residents who continue to battle the high cost of inflation, invest in our aging infrastructure, enhance safety measures within our schools, pay down debts, and many other more important public needs before providing windfalls to global corporations.
“Legislation rushed through appropriations — that turns tax dollars into corporate handouts — without respect for proper transparency or scrutiny is beyond concerning. While this bill may prove to be a good deal for Ford, it smells like a bad deal for Michigan taxpayers.”
HB 4016 would allocate more than $1.3 billion in supplemental spending, earmarking $750 million for site development at Ford Motor Co.’s newly announced battery plant near Marshall.
The bill now returns to the House for further consideration.
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