Dear Friend,

Yesterday, I signed my seventh balanced, bipartisan budget into law.

The fiscal year 2026 (FY26) budget delivers on the kitchen table issues that make a real difference in people's lives. It will lower costs, fix the damn roads, protect health care services, fund first responders, feed and support our students, and so much more. 

We brought legislators on both sides of the aisle together to get a budget done that:

• Cuts state taxes on tips, overtime, and Social Security for seniors and working families,
• Makes the largest investment ever to fix the damn state and local roads with long-term funding for both,
• Protects core Medicaid services so Michiganders can continue to access affordable health care,
• Feeds all 1.4 million public school students free breakfast and lunch at school, saving parents $1,000 a year and ensuring no student goes hungry,
• Makes a record per-pupil investment of more than $10,000 to improve every child’s classroom experience,
• Funds our first responders and public safety so they can do their jobs and keep us safe,
• Protects our air, lakes, and land so we can all breathe clean air and drink clean water,
• And improves government efficiency with common sense changes to save taxpayers time and money.

Click here to watch my budget video

Amidst so much uncertainty caused by a chaotic tariff strategy and a federal government shutdown, Michigan is showing everyone how to get things done. In the weeks and months ahead, we will build on this momentum and come together on commonsense tools to create and retain good-paying jobs.

Let’s keep moving Michigan forward. Check out more on the budget below.

Sincerely,

Gretchen Whitmer

Governor

Cutting Taxes for Seniors and Working Families

With rising costs and economic uncertainty driven by a chaotic national tariff strategy and Republicans in Washington, Michiganders need real relief to pay the bills and put food on the table.

This budget takes big steps to lower costs for Michiganders by:

• Continuing to roll back the retirement tax on seniors, saving 500,000 households an average of $1,000 a year.
• Continuing to deliver the Working Families Tax Credit, Michigan’s match of the federal Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), which puts an average combined refund of $3,800 in the pockets of 650,000 families.
• Eliminating state taxes on Social Security, so seniors who’ve worked and paid in their whole lives can keep more of their money amid inflation and higher costs. 
• Ending state taxes on overtime and tips, a well-deserved break for Michiganders in service jobs who work long, hard hours to support themselves and their families.

Fixing the Damn Roads – Biggest Roads Deal in Michigan History

I am proud that this budget includes the biggest roads deal in Michigan history to fix the damn roads, keep drivers safe, and create and protect thousands of good-paying construction jobs. It will continue fixing the damn roads by:

• Delivering a nearly $2 billion bipartisan roads deal which will allow Michigan to continue the job of fixing state and local roads for years to come. This new funding means that communities across our state can make long-needed repairs to local roads, making your entire drive–from your driveway to the freeway–faster, safer, and smoother.
• Finally making sure that every penny you pay at the pump goes towards fixing the roads. Since taking office, I have put more resources into roads than any governor in Michigan history. Over the last 5 years, my Rebuilding Michigan Plan has fixed the state’s busiest highways and bridges and a total of 24,500 lane miles and 1,900 bridges through this year’s construction season. With this budget and new funding strategy, we will keep thousands of workers on the job to keep fixing the damn roads.

Protecting Access to Affordable Health Care 

Everyone deserves access to quality, affordable health care. After Republicans in Washington enacted huge cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, this budget takes action to protect access to both the health care and food that people need to survive by:

• Modifying Michigan’s Insurance Provider Assessment, or IPA, so that the 2.6 million Michiganders who get their coverage through Medicaid can see a doctor when they get sick or hurt without going into medical debt. From prescriptions, vaccines, and preventative care to x-rays, surgeries, and chemo, this budget helps our neighbors, family, and friends stay healthy.
• This will also help keep hospitals in rural or underserved areas open, so people don’t have to travel far to get the care they need.

Record Education Investments – Feeding Kids Free School Meals

Over the last seven years, I have worked across the aisle to make record investments in students, schools, and educators, and this budget is no different because it:

• Makes the biggest investment in education in Michigan history, delivering record per-pupil funding of $10,050, to reduce class sizes, support teachers, and help kids stay safe and healthy while they learn.
• Continues feeding all 1.4 million public school students free breakfast and lunch at school, saving parents almost $1,000 a year, per kid.
• Doubles down on literacy, using proven science of reading literacy strategies and funds more screening for dyslexia so we can get our kids the help they need and get them on track.
• Supports our hardworking educators with attraction and retention bonuses and free training programs to prepare even more skilled, qualified teachers for the classroom.
• Funds free pre-K and community college for all to save Michiganders money.
• Invests in our schools, community college, and university campuses so they are even safer and better places for all our students.

Critical Investments for Public Safety and First Responders

Every Michigander deserves to live in a community where they can go to work, school, or the store without fearing for their safety. This budget builds on the record, bipartisan investments we have made in public safety since I took office by:

• Investing in additional resources for local law enforcement and other public safety related recruitment, retention, training, and firefighting equipment needs, so that we can help first responders keep our communities safe, saves lives, and prevent crime.

Protecting Michigan’s Air, Lakes, and Land

The new budget protects Michigan’s air, lakes, and land for current and future generations by:

• Investing in clean water, revitalized drinking water infrastructure, sustainable land use, and resilient ecosystems, so that we can protect Michigan's natural resources, keep people and the environment healthy, and build a cleaner, safer future for communities across Michigan.

Making Government Work Better

The new budget ensures state government is efficient, effective, and accountable by:

• Modernizing technology, maintaining facilities, and building long-term fiscal stability, so that Michigan can deliver better services, save taxpayer dollars, and better prepare for the future.