Arguing that Governor Gretchen Whitmer “is not serious about the survival of small businesses” in the state, the Small Business Association of Michigan has slammed her veto of what would have been support for those same businesses when she signed a budget supplemental order today.
SBAM President Brian Calley issued the following statement in response to Governor Whitmer’s veto of support for small businesses within the budget supplemental signed today:
“Small businesses have taken an extraordinary toll because of this pandemic and the state’s response to it. The overwhelming majority of small business owners have sacrificed their economic health willingly with a high degree of fidelity to government rules and restrictions. They have faced a public health crisis and an economic crisis. The State of Michigan’s approach has been extraordinarily detrimental to small businesses, usually far exceeding national norms in pandemic responses.
“Governor Whitmer has vetoed small business support multiple times, even as the state has received a windfall of financial support from the federal government. Today’s veto sends a message that the state is not serious about the survival of small businesses. We worked hard to ensure that small business support was not tied to curtailment of any emergency powers because we didn’t want the Governor to have to pick between emergency powers and supporting small business. She could have done both because small business support was not tied to emergency power reductions.
We are asking for the Michigan Legislature to override the vetoes of small business support. Small businesses deserve better.”
