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Dear Friend,
At the beginning of 2023, I laid out bold and ambitious plans for Michigan in my State of the State Address. ?
Over the course of the year, we have delivered on nearly everything I proposed thanks to one of the most productive legislative terms in our state?s history.
We rolled back the retirement tax, quintupled the Working Families Tax Credit, enacted commonsense gun legislation, enshrined protections for the LGBTQ+ community, expanded voting rights, tackled climate change, and much more. I?m proud to work with a legislature that is dedicated to building a better Michigan and I look forward to the work ahead.
Let?s keep our foot on the accelerator and make Michigan the best place to live, work, and raise a family.
Check out some of our recent progress below!
Sincerely,
 Gretchen Whitmer
Governor
We cannot afford to turn a blind eye to the facts when it comes to the links between domestic violence and gun violence. By taking measures to help protect people from convicted abusers, we?re prioritizing the safety and well-being of all Michiganders.
In November, I signed bipartisan legislation to protect survivors of domestic violence and their families, and to make our communities safer. These laws are based on a simple idea: if you?ve been found guilty in court for violent acts against a family member, you shouldn?t be able to access a deadly weapon that you could use to further threaten, harm, or kill them.
 Keeping Michiganders ? especially young women ? safe and healthy is a top priority, and these bills will take long overdue steps to protect individuals from abuse. As a former prosecutor and as governor, I am proud to sign this bipartisan legislation.
I want to thank our legislators for prioritizing this issue and to recognize survivors for courageously speaking up to get this done. Because of their courage and dedication, Michigan will be a safer place.
Last November, Michiganders spoke with a clear, united voice and voted overwhelmingly to expand voting rights, make it easier to vote in a secure way, and ensure everyone can make their voices heard in every election. Michiganders must be able to exercise their constitutional right to vote in our elections. As governor, I am focused on protecting and expanding voting rights. The bills I signed in early November and yesterday take commonsense action to make it easier for people to get to the polls and for Michiganders serving in uniform to vote.
 These bills:
- Remove rules that impose automatic challenges on certain ballots.
- Eliminate a law that prohibits ordering an Uber or Lyft to get to a polling place.
- Support the Secretary of State in establishing a system so Michigan?s active-duty service members can electronically return their absentee ballots.
- Allow 16-year-olds to pre-register to vote.
- Improve and expand our automatic voter-registration process.
- Protect election workers and officials from intimidation.
Let?s keep working together so every citizen can make their voice heard.
This week, I signed a clean energy and climate action package that is a huge win for Michigan and will help us become a national leader in clean energy. We?ll protect our air, water, and land while facing climate change head-on and lowering costs.
We have been working towards this day for a long time ? since I released the MI Healthy Climate Plan in 2021. Our plans were ambitious, but we knew the clock was ticking for our planet. And look at us now. We got it done!
 The clean energy package:
- Establishes a 100% clean energy standard and gives the Michigan Public Service Commission more tools to fight climate change.
- Lowers utility costs and increases energy efficiency.
- Makes it easier to produce more clean energy right here in Michigan.
With these bills, we define the future. As Michiganders, we know we have a responsibility to face climate change head-on not only to make lives better today, but to make sure we build a sustainable and healthy future for our state.
Let?s keep fighting for future generations and working to build a better, more sustainable Michigan.
This week, I signed 16 bills that support our working families, teachers, service members, tribal communities, and more. I also signed legislation promoting good government, to continue making Michigan the best place to live, work, invest, and raise a family.
These bills take important steps to cut unnecessary red tape, help teachers and workers save money and advocate for better working conditions, fix our infrastructure, and make government easier to navigate for Michiganders with limited English proficiency, among other things. I will continue working hard to help more people envision a bright future for themselves in Michigan.
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