Rep. Timmy Beson

Maddy summaryHB 5991 primarily appropriates state funding for Michigan public schools for the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years, allocating money from various state funds to support education operations and federal compliance. The bill also mandates that districts administering the M-STEP or a new state-administered assessment system must provide detailed item analysis reports showing how individual test questions contribute to student scores. Additionally, it establishes a pilot program allowing districts to use an alternative state-administered assessment system instead of the standard M-STEP for certain high school students taking the Michigan merit examination. The legislation includes provisions for online reporting tools to share assessment data with educators and families while preventing the release of individually identifiable student information to the federal government.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates Michigan's Revised School Code to clarify how public school academies must report student test scores. It requires these academies to use either the standard M-STEP assessments or a state-administered assessment system if they are part of a specific pilot program. The changes apply to the legal sections governing academy organization, contracts, and application requirements. By modifying these statutes, the legislation ensures that academies operating under different testing systems are clearly defined in state law.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires Michigan school districts, intermediate school districts, and public school academies to post a link to a specific transparency dashboard on their public websites by July 1, 2025. Additionally, it mandates that these institutions provide an annual summary of school performance data to every student's parent or legal guardian starting in July 2026. The law also directs the Center for Educational Performance and Information to update its main data website to include information from the transparency dashboard and add a feature that allows users to compare data across public schools in the state.

Maddy summaryHB 5995 proposes to remove fees that schools charge for evaluating student applications for specific programs. This change would directly affect students and families who currently pay these costs to apply for services under the Revised School Code. The bill eliminates the financial barriers by amending existing state laws that authorized these charges. If passed, applicants would no longer need to pay evaluation fees to access the covered programs.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends Michigan's Postsecondary Enrollment Options Act to explicitly include trade schools as eligible institutions for high school students taking college-level courses. It updates the legal definition of "eligible postsecondary institution" to ensure that trade schools, alongside community colleges and universities, can participate in the program where students pay tuition and fees directly. The legislation does not alter existing rules regarding course limits, eligibility criteria, or tuition caps, focusing instead on clarifying which types of schools can offer these dual-enrollment opportunities. By making this change, the bill allows high schoolers to access vocational and technical training at trade schools through the same funding and enrollment framework currently used for traditional colleges.

Maddy summaryHB 5941 amends Michigan's income tax law to clarify how certain gratuities received by tipped employees are treated for tax purposes. The bill specifically addresses the exclusion of these tips from taxable income, ensuring that workers in the service industry are not taxed on amounts that are already exempt under federal rules. By updating the state tax code, the legislation aligns Michigan's treatment of tipped income with existing federal standards. This change directly affects employees who rely on tips as part of their compensation and the employers who report such earnings.

Maddy summaryThis bill modifies Michigan's pawnbroker regulations by increasing the maximum civil fine for charging excessive interest from an unspecified amount to $5,000. It also updates the criminal penalties for violating the act, allowing courts to impose fines ranging from $250 to $1,000 or imprisonment for up to three months. The legislation directly affects pawnbrokers and their employees by clarifying the consequences for non-compliance with state laws. Additionally, the bill includes a provision that prevents it from taking effect unless a companion bill, HB 5536, is also enacted into law.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes to increase the maximum monthly interest rate pawnbrokers in Michigan can charge from 3% to 5%, while also raising the minimum interest requirement to 50 cents per loan. It updates the mandatory text printed on loan receipts to reflect this new 5% cap and clarifies that loans exceeding this rate are automatically void. The legislation also maintains the existing fee for storing unencumbered property at $3.00 per month and prohibits charging interest on unpaid balances in advance. This measure directly affects licensed pawnbrokers and consumers who use their services for short-term loans.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes supervision requirements for individuals holding temporary licenses as emergency medical technicians, emergency medical technician specialists, or paramedics in Michigan. Under the new rules, these temporary license holders must practice only under the direct supervision of a similarly licensed professional who holds a permanent license rather than a temporary one. The legislation applies to all temporary license holders in these health occupations and does not alter the licensing standards for permanent practitioners. The act takes effect immediately upon approval and is tied to the passage of a companion bill, HB 4613.

Maddy summaryThis bill modifies Michigan's public health laws to allow the state health department to issue nonrenewable temporary licenses to individuals who have met all licensure requirements for emergency medical roles except for specific exams. These temporary licenses are valid for one year and permit the holder to practice only under direct supervision. The measure directly affects aspiring medical first responders, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics who need time to complete their required examinations. It also includes a provision stating that the law does not take effect unless a companion bill, HB 4614, is also enacted.