Heading Into Deeper Waters

The Legislature once again missed the July 1 deadline to present a full fiscal year budget to the Governor but, unlike last year, only by a couple of days. On the morning of July 3rd, the Legislature finally passed HB 5630 and SB 878, bringing to a conclusion the process of enacting a full state budget for the 2026-27 Fiscal Year (FY 27), which begins on October 1. This process started way back in February with Governor Whitmer presenting her budget proposal to the Legislature. The budget agreed to and passed by the Legislature notably does not include any of the revenue proposals the Governor proposed, or a withdrawal from the Budget Stabilization Fund (also called the ‘rainy day fund’).

With no new revenues and no withdrawal from the rainy day fund, the budget passed by the legislature largely seeks to maintain funding levels for critical state-run programs like Medicaid and SNAP. There are a few notable positives included in this budget, including but not limited to the implementation of a weighted funding formula for K-12 students and a significant increase in out-of-school time (OST) funding. Unfortunately, there are also several missed opportunities in this budget agreement. This analysis of the FY 27 state budget provides much greater detail on where state funding will or will not be prioritized on critical issue areas for Michigan children and families.

To download the entire Budget Basics, please click here.

Michigan’s Budget: Child Advocacy Starts Here

Both the federal and state budgets impact Michigan kids. Collectively, they determine how much funding child care and K-12 education gets, whether kids in your community have after-school programs, and so much more. For this reason, state and federal budget analysis and our Budget Basics are an important part of our work at Michigan’s Children. We want to equip advocates with the information (which isn’t always easy to find or understand) they need for talking to decision makers.

It’s anyone’s guess whether this budget season will be more typical with a finalized budget by June 30th, or if it will be a much longer debacle. Last year the Michigan House did not even release a full budget by June 30, and the state missed the drop-dead October 1 deadline as well. Missing the June deadline meant that schools started their fiscal year without knowing what their budgets would be. The delays were criticized all-around by fans of good government; we hope all parties got the message and will do their jobs in line with state law this year.

See our full Budget & Advocacy Timeline for more ideas on advocacy throughout the budget cycle.

Step 1: Governor’s Budget Proposal

The Michigan budget season officially starts with the release of the Governor’s FY27 budget proposal, which was released February 11 this year. To see the rest of the Governor’s budget information click here. Click on the box to see Our Analysis of the Governor’s FY27 budget. –>

Step 2: Advocacy!

It’s a great time to talk to your legislators in the House and Senate as they craft their budgets in response to the Governor’s budgets which are typically released in April or May. We suggest highlighting funding pieces for kids and families you support as well as talking about places where you want to see more investment for our kids.

This is going to be a tough budget year, as cuts from the federal government continue to trickle down and put pressure on state governments. Advocacy to maintain (flat) funding for crucial existing programs is needed, as well as educating and pushing for more investment. Don’t assume that a well-established program doesn’t need advocacy, but also don’t limit your goals. Kids and families need us to push for critical supports in child care, K-12 education and special education to name a few!

Step 3: Senate and House Budgets

It’s a great time to talk to your legislators in the House and Senate as they craft their budgets in response to the Governor’s budget. We suggest highlighting funding pieces for kids and families you support as well as talking about places where you want to see more investment for our kids. This is going to be a tough budget year, as cuts from the federal government continue to trickle down and put pressure on state governments. Advocacy to maintain (flat) funding for crucial existing programs is needed, as well as educating and pushing for more investment. All the budget proposals are out! Wondering how they differ? Check out our comparison edition of Budget Basics: In Rough Waters Kids Are First In Line For The Lifeboats. 

Step 4: Advocacy!

Still time to talk to all decision makers about what should be in the final version. Public pressure and advocacy campaigns can make a very real difference – they helped save Michigan’s free school meals program for FY26!

Step 5: The Actual Budget

Once the deals are made and the Governor signs the FY27 budget into law, it’s time to count up the wins and start planning new strategies for what we didn’t get this time around.

 

 

Click here to visit our Budget Basics Archive to compare approved state budget plans from previous years.