LANSING, Mich.—In contempt for both democracy and the working class, Republican Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall on Monday appealed to the state’s Supreme Court after lower courts unanimously ruled his blatant obstruction of pro-worker legislation unconstitutional. According to the Michigan AFL-CIO, his action is a last-ditch effort to deny hundreds of thousands of Michigan workers life-affording improvements to their healthcare, pensions, and wallets.
The case stems from Speaker Hall’s refusal to perform his basic, constitutional duty of transmitting bills passed by both chambers of the legislature to Governor Gretchen Whitmer for her signature. These bills, passed in 2024 in the state’s legislature, have been held hostage by Hall in what the labor federation characterized as a political power play.
“The courts and Constitution of Michigan are clear: the Michigan House has an obligation to transmit bills that pass the legislature to the Governor,” said Ron Bieber, president of the Michigan AFL-CIO. “By defying the state Constitution, Speaker Hall is making life less affordable for hundreds of thousands of Michigan workers.”
The bills are substantive reforms fought for and won by Michigan’s labor movement, the federation said. They would reinstate the right of public sector workers to bargain over healthcare costs by shielding them from skyrocketing premiums. They would secure pension stability for public safety professionals. They would reform predatory debt collection practices that seize unemployment benefits and tax credits from families just trying to stay afloat.
“Speaker Matt Hall’s refusal to send these bills to the governor isn’t just a political stunt, it’s a violation of the Michigan Constitution and a direct attack on working people,” Bieber emphasized.
In October, a three-judge panel of the Michigan Court of Appeals—including appointees of former Republican Governors John Engler and Rick Snyder—ruled unanimously that Hall is “constitutionally required” to present the bills to the governor. The Court of Claims had previously ruled the same. Hall’s appeal hinges on arguments these courts have already rejected.
Understanding the stakes for working families, Michigan’s major unions—AFSCME Michigan, AFT Michigan, the Michigan Nurses Association, the UAW, SEIU Michigan, and the Michigan Education Association—filed a joint amicus brief supporting the lawsuit brought by Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) to force Hall’s hand.
“These bills are life-changing for our members,” said Gino Carbenia, Executive Director of AFSCME Michigan. “Public employees, whether they work in corrections, sanitation, transportation, or public health, deserve affordable healthcare coverage and secure retirements just like any other worker.”
For educators, the blocked legislation means continued struggle against for-profit healthcare greed. “The educators and school staff we represent are drowning under rising healthcare costs and shrinking coverage, and this legislation would provide real relief,” said Terrence Martin, President of AFT Michigan. “It is outrageous that Speaker Hall is unconstitutionally delaying it.”
What workers and their unions are struggling against is yet another concrete example of a Republican politician, bankrolled by capitalist and right-wing interests, weaponizing a procedural office to nullify democratic legislative victories that largely benefit Michigan’s working class.
According to the unions, Hall’s appeal to the Supreme Court is an admission that he has no legal leg to stand on. “It is a delay tactic, pure and simple, designed to run out the clock and deny relief to working families for as long as possible.”
“Every day of delay is another day of inflated healthcare profits, another day of pension insecurity, and another day that debt collectors can loot the assistance checks of struggling Michiganders.”
“No matter what, Michigan’s labor movement stands ready to continue the fight,” Bieber said.
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