In 2019, I led a group of stakeholders on a mission to reach agreement on water infrastructure funding so we could jointly lobby the legislature and Governor’s office. We reached consensus on line items, amounts, and possible sources of funding in early 2021, about the time American Recovery Plan (ARPA) funding was being firmed up.
By summer of 2021, the MI Senate had passed a first draft of Senate Bill 565 (SB 565), which proposed substantial allocation of state ARPA funds to water infrastructure.
At the same time, the Michigan Municipal League (MML) took over management of the stakeholder group, greatly expanding the supporting organizations while also greatly expanding the scope of the ‘ask’ to include other ARPA eligible categories. While I would hope to see stormwater funding better addressed as legislative activity continues, like dozens of stakeholders I have endorsed the MML Coalition’s summary document, found here.
If you would like to know more about the Coalition proposal, current lobbying efforts, or ideas several early stakeholders are still pursuing for stormwater, feel free to contact me at: EPratt135@gmail.com