Gov. Whitmer Delivers 2026 State of the State: Building A Michigan for All

Challenge

In Michigan and across the country, too many students can't read at grade level. The causes behind literacy challenges are varied, but the data is clear: our kids need more help.

Plan

Governor Whitmer will advocate for her vision to help Every Child Read with a three-part plan that builds on years of record, bipartisan education investments in students and schools.

1. Early Starts: build on work parents already to do talk to, sing with, and read their babies stories with free, high-quality preK education. Continue delivering PreK for All to set every kid with a solid academic foundation, ensuring they arrive at kindergarten better prepared to learn.
2. Proven Methods: get evidence-based, proven literacy teaching practices into all Michigan classrooms. Fund additional professional learning for teachers, including LETRS training, so all educators use the most effective strategies to improve student outcomes.
3. Extra Help: provide every student more tutoring and small group support in class, over the summer, and in before- and after-school programs.

Action

• Signed "Science of Reading" legislation requiring schools to use proven methods like phonics to teach reading. Also requires all kindergarten through third grade students to be screened for dyslexia, identifying kids who need extra help.

• Made preK free for every four-year-old, saving parents $14,000 a year.

• Trained nearly 6,200 educators in LETRS, a proven, effective method to improve reading instruction, with a goal of training all reading teachers statewide.

• Signed new, bipartisan laws limiting phone use during class to reduce distractions and improve mental health.

• Tripled the number of literacy coaches, professionals who help teachers improve the way they teach kids how to read.

• Delivered free breakfast and lunch to all 1.4 million public school students, saving parents almost $1,000 per kid, per year and improving focus in class.

HOUSING

"It shouldn't be so hard to build the homes people need in the places where they want to live," said Governor Whitmer.

"Investing in housing today is critical to Michigan's tomorrow and we thank Governor Whitmer and the state legislature for their efforts to support the Michigan Housing and Community Development Fund and gap financing for affordable housing development," said Chris Potterpin, President of the Michigan Housing Council. "The Michigan Housing Council stands ready to work with state leaders on initiatives like the housing opportunity credit that will produce much needed affordable housing for our residents"

"Michigan is facing an undeniable housing crisis, and we know that we cannot solve this problem without building more homes" said Lauren Strickland, Executive Director of Abundant Housing Michigan. "We are thrilled to see the bipartisan Housing Readiness package introduced in the Legislature, and applaud Governor Whitmer for her focus on removing the barriers that make it so hard to build the homes that Michiganders need. We are excited for the opportunity ahead to reform our land use laws to make sure that our neighbors can find a safe, quality home right here in the Great Lakes State."

"Housing availability and affordability are fundamental to economic mobility and growth in Michigan," said Joshua Lunger, Senior Vice President of Advocacy at the Grand Rapids Chamber. "The Michigan Housing Readiness Package eliminates unnecessary code and regulatory obstacles so we can meet housing needs in Michigan. We greatly appreciate Governor Whitmer and bipartisan leaders for promoting these innovative solutions to modern housing challenges."

Challenge

Housing is out of reach for far too many Michiganders, especially young people. There is too much red tape to build new housing, especially in the places where people most want to live. Tariffs have made it even harder and more expensive to build the housing we need by raising material and construction costs and ultimately, sales prices too.

Plan

Governor Whitmer will propose commonsense actions and investments to "build, baby, build" more housing and give young people a chance to put down roots in Michigan.

1. Establish a new, state-level affordable housing tax credit: incentivize construction of thousands more homes every year for middle- and working-class Michiganders so they can live near where they work, start or raise their families, and build wealth.
2. Demolish nonsensical construction requirements: get rid of burdensome regulations that get in the way of people using their own property how they see fit, raise construction costs, and slow down projects. This includes making it easier to build in-law suites and duplexes and modernizing lot sizes, setback rules, and parking requirements.
3. Streamline zoning: make it easier to build more homes of all kinds, especially in our cities where young Americans most want to live and work. Incentivize development of exciting, safe, and affordable main streets and downtowns.

Action

• Invested more to build housing than any administration in state history.

• Released the first Statewide Housing Plan, hit target of building 75,000 homes a year ahead of schedule. Reduced the statewide housing shortage by 84,000.

• Lowered costs for first-time homebuyers with a program that lowers interest rates by one full percentage point, saving them thousands of dollars.

• Offer down-payment assistance up to $10,000 for working and middle-class buyers statewide and $25,000 for first-generation buyers to start building wealth.

• Helped more than 6,000 Michiganders buy their first homes last year with record-setting mortgage and down payment assistance loans.

• Signed executive directive connecting more young people to housing programs.

• Closed Michigan's housing gap by 44% and maintained steady homeownership rate higher than the national average, at almost 75%.

• Made it easier and faster to redevelop vacant land or old, abandoned sites into new housing and commercial space with the Transformational Brownfield Fund and Tax Incremental Financing tools.

• Secured a sustainable source of funding for the first time for the Housing and Community Development Fund to build housing for working-class families.

• Directed state departments to review ways to speed up permitting.

• Enhanced protection for renters against discrimination based on their source of income.

• Aligned resources under the state's housing development authority to improve resource efficiency.

HEALTH CARE

"In Michigan, we believe that being sick or getting hurt shouldn't also mean going broke," said Governor Whitmer.

"Michigan's health centers wholeheartedly support efforts to ease the burden of medical debt, improve the affordability of health coverage, and ensure the stability of Michigan's Medicaid program for the 2.5 million Michigan residents who get their health insurance through Medicaid," said Phillip Bergquist, Chief Executive Officer of the Michigan Primary Care Association. "Addressing financial barriers is a critical part of ensuring the patients we serve and Michiganders across the state have access to the healthcare they need."

"It's clear that Governor Whitmer understands the dire need to mitigate the harm caused by reckless federal cuts to programs like Medicaid," said Monique Stanton, President and CEO of the Michigan League for Public Policy. "We applaud her leadership in making sure the 2.5 million residents who rely on Medicaid have access to the care they need. We're also glad to see the governor working to address the burden of medical debt. So many families are struggling right now, making crucial spending decisions like whether to buy groceries or pay their medical bills, and the governor's plan to ease that financial pressure is a promising one. We look forward to learning more about this strategy to protect the health and well-being of Michiganders."

"More than anything health care workers want everyone to have access to the quality, affordable health care they need," said Charlesetta Wilson, President, SEIU Healthcare Michigan. "We need to make healthcare better for everyone, not take it away. We need lower costs for families, not set them up for skyrocketing bills. We need to raise wages and make life more secure for working families, not pull the rug out from under them. SEIU Healthcare Michigan stands with Governor Whitmer as she calls on Congress to restore ACA subsides that so many Michiganders depend on to access the health care they need.

"Governor Whitmer is stepping up with a responsible, long-term funding solution to protect Michigan's Medicaid program after federal changes will shift hundreds of millions of dollars in new costs onto the state each year to preserve access to affordable health care for millions of Michiganders," said Dominick Pallone, Protect MI Care coalition. "Her proposal creates a stable, dedicated revenue source to safeguard coverage for families, seniors, and people with disabilities who rely on Medicaid for lifesaving care."

Challenge

Last year, Republicans in Washington, D.C. passed the largest cuts to Medicaid in US history, raising premiums, reducing services, and ripping coverage away from Michiganders. These cuts will impact everyone, no matter how they get their health care. They will also likely lead to more people accumulating medical debt, which already burdens hundreds of thousands of Michiganders a year.

Plan

Governor Whitmer will continue working to protect access to quality, affordable health care for every Michigander. She will:

1. Encourage Congress to extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies.
2. Propose commonsense action to ease the burden of medical debt as Michiganders deal with the largest cuts to health care in US history. These include capping interest rates on medical debt, preventing medical debt from showing up on credit reports, requiring hospitals to set up financial assistance programs, and banning liens or foreclosures because of medical debt.
3. Continue to protect Medicaid for the 2.5 million Michiganders who rely on it and stabilize the broader health care system with a state budget investment to ensure everyone can access the care they need.

Action

• Helped create Healthy Michigan, which covers 700,000+ people today with quality, affordable care.

• Signed laws putting key parts of the Affordable Care Act in state law, including protections for those with pre-existing conditions, ability to stay on a parent's insurance until age 26, and elimination of caps on annual or lifetime care.

• Erased $144 million of medical debt for 210,000 Michiganders.

• Negotiated and enacted a balanced, bipartisan budget to protect core health care services for 2.5 million Michiganders on Medicaid that will help hospitals in rural and underserved areas stay open.

• Became the first state in the nation to guarantee equal coverage for mental health and substance use disorder.

• Ended surprise medical billing.

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