Republican leaders say they want some assurances from Governor Gretchen Whitmer before they will send her any more spending bills
Republicans say Governor Whitmer broke their trust when she rearranged millions of dollars in the spending plan they sent to her. Whitmer used the power of the State Administrative Board to transfer money within departments. This was after Republicans sent her a budget without her input.
Speaker of the House Lee Chatfield says he wants to be sure Whitmer won’t move more money around before they try to work with her on new spending plans.
He thinks maybe there should be a cap on how much money the governor can transfer using the Administrative Board.
“I think it’s important that we don’t allow a wholesale rewrite of a budget.”
Whitmer has said she’s open to negotiations, but she doesn’t want to reduce the power of the office for herself or future administrations.