LANSING, Mich. — A bill that would have brought in millions to better maintain and manage Michigan's state parks is dead at the end of the recent lame duck session.
While the Michigan State House is set reconvene on New Year's Eve, lawmakers say no bills will be passed, meaning the Democratic Party's two-year trifecta will come to a disappointing end for those looking to see last-second legislation get to the governor's desk.
"Everything that was on the agenda in the House is dead,” House Speaker Pro Tem Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia) told reporters last week when the house adjourned.
This includes a bill that would have changed the registration structure for Michigan's recreation passport, which allows vehicle access to state parks, recreation areas and boat access sites.
Currently, when a Michigander renews their license plate through the Secretary of State, they check a box to purchase the recreation passport — $14 for vehicles, $7 for mopeds and motorcycles. Around 38 percent of people in the state choose this option, providing the Michigan DNR with around $42 million in funding for park operations and maintenance, according to Michigan United Conservation Clubs (MUCC).
This year, House Bill 5428 proposed changing this 'opt-in' system to opt-out, meaning Michiganders would instead check a box to choose against paying for the passport.
Per MUCC, the bill likely would have increased registration and generated an additional $21million for the state parks system, which faces a yearly deficit.
"Unfortunate," said Kevin Walberg, a Grand Haven resident walking his dog at Grand Haven State Park on Thursday. "I think [recreation passports] benefit Michigan as whole."
Walberg would have welcomed an opt-out system, a proud owner of a recreation passport himself.
"Certainly anything they can do to keep the bathrooms a smidge cleaner would be greatly appreciated," he said with a chuckle.
READ MORE: The people's work not done near end of lame-duck session
At the end of this year's legislative session, a number of other environmental-related bills are dead in the water.
A statewide septic code proposed periodic inspections and fixes.
An affordable drinking water plan would have tacked two bucks onto Michiganders' monthly water bills, allowing those less fortunate to turn on the faucet at a discounted rate.
Fifteen words from the Michigan Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act would have been been written through with red pen, allowing lawmakers to better respond to PFAs and algal blooms.
"Michigan has become — or has long been — an environmental leader, partly because of bipartisanship. To see that all fall through was really frustrating," said Beau Brockett, communications manager for the Michigan Environmental Council. "There was a bit of a sense of betrayal."
Brockett believes revised versions of these bills are more likely to pass in the new legislative session after Republicans take control of the state house.
"Let's get something started," he said. "We know Republicans and Democrats are interested on the issue and when we can show that these things that we've enacted are working, we can work on expanding them to a bolder, better version of themselves."
If the 'opt-out' bill for Michigan's recreation passport is reintroduced, Brockett says he has "hope."
"Bipartisanship is totally there," he said.
