Dear Friends,

To better serve the people of the 30th Senate District, I am offering this “Week in Review.” I hope you will find it informative about what is happening in Lansing.

I encourage you to contact me with any state issue. You may call 517-373-6920 or email [email protected].  Also, please check out my Facebook page. Let me know if I can assist you in any way or if you have an idea to help move our state forward.

Working for you,
Roger Victory
State Senator

I wanted to remind all Ottawa County voters that there are several local races and issues on the ballot on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

The cities of Coopersville, Ferrysburg, Grand Haven, Holland, Hudsonville and Zeeland all have elections for local offices. Ferrysburg and Grand Haven also have proposals on the ballot as do Hamilton Community Schools, Ravenna Public Schools and Spring Lake Public Schools.

The polls will be open on Tuesday from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Click here for a website of the Ottawa County Clerk and Register of Deeds with a variety of information such as finding your polling place and how to contact the county clerk’s office or your local clerk’s office.

Last week, the state Senate approved my legislation to help clean up additional sites in our state.

Senate Bill 562 would allow certain landfills to once again be considered brownfield sites and be eligible for assistance in cleaning up contamination and developing the sites. This was allowed until changes to the law were made in 2016.

I sponsored this bill to help spur economic development, put these sites back to productive use, and protect our environment. Locally, this reform would help clean up an old landfill in Ottawa County that has been vacant for decades.

The bill has been sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.

The Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Committee last week approved my bill to reduce the fees for bulk records used for vehicle recall notifications.

The Michigan Department of State is allowed to sell limited customer data to reduce the need for tax revenue. These sales do not include customer phone numbers or email addresses but may include personal information. The information is sold in compliance with state and federal laws, including the Drivers Privacy Protection Act.

While many of these purchases are made for research purposes, it is also common for entities such as Experian to purchase data in order to send information regarding recall notices.

Prior to 2021, the data was sold for $16 per 1,000 records (or 1.6 cents per record). Starting April 1, 2021, the Secretary of State’s Office increased the price to $70 per 1,000 records (7 cents per record). That is a 337.5% increase and almost four times the regional average of 1.8 cents per record and over twice the national average (between 2.5 and 3 cents per record).

Senate Bill 452 would reduce the price to put it more in line with the regional average and ensure recall notification firms can continue to inform drivers of necessary recalls.

Click here to watch last week’s hearing on the bill.

Today is the anniversary of the opening of the Mackinac Bridge to traffic. For people born after 1957, it is hard to imagine a time without the Might Mac connecting the upper and lower peninsulas.

Below is a list of resources available to you if you need any type of assistance. Additionally, you can contact my office at any time for more information.