Dear Friends,

Thank you for subscribing to my e-newsletter on what’s happening in the 30th Senate District and across our state. I have the honor of chairing the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee for this legislative session. Our first meeting is 8:30 a.m. on Thursday. If you want to watch the committee hearing, as well as Senate session and other committee hearings, visit https://misenate.viebit.com/index.php.

Serving the good people of Ottawa County is very important to me, and I encourage you to contact me with any state issue. You may email [email protected] or call (517) 373-6920. 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

The state budget director recently presented the governor’s fiscal year 2022 budget recommendation. As we begin the state budget process, we must focus on both helping our people stay safe during this health crisis and get back on their feet after it’s over.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating effect on our families, communities and economy. While we’ve proposed investing $2 billion more in the short term to protect our people and our livelihoods, we owe it to the hardworking folks of Ottawa County and across our state to enact a proactive 2022 budget that helps build a healthier and stronger Michigan.

We need a budget that will help address the needs of today — improving vaccine distribution, supporting small businesses, and addressing the education gap from remote learning — while starting to lay a strong foundation for Michigan’s future with increased workforce development and infrastructure investments.

We still face tough challenges ahead, and we cannot afford to let our differences prevent us from finding common ground. Last year, we came together on bipartisan solutions to balance historic budget deficits while protecting critical services and without raising taxes — and I know we can do it again. I look forward to working with my colleagues and the governor to get it done on behalf of the Michigan people.

Prior to the release of the governor’s recommendation, the Senate Republicans outlined our budget priorities, which are focused on healthy families and communities, a healthier economy, and pursuing a healthy future for our state. The graphic below outlines our budget priorities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected everyone in our state, and among the most effected have been our students. They have been missing out on some of the most formative events in their lives, opportunities that often present themselves once and never again.

Thankfully, at the end of last month, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Department of Health and Human Services listened to the Michigan people and allowed sports to resume.

Your voices matter, and they were heard. I was proud to fight for our student athletes and join the voices of thousands of Michigan parents, coaches, athletes and some of my fellow elected officials at a Let Them Play rally at the state Capitol. Despite the cold weather, there was a tremendous turnout on behalf of our student athletes.

When the governor said she was extending the sports shutdown, I heard from dozens of concerned families. In response, we approved a resolution urging the governor and the DHHS to lift the suspension on high school and youth sports and allow play to resume immediately.

School sports foster valuable life skills, promote healthy living and help kids build lifelong friendships. I’m glad the state acknowledged that our student athletes can compete safely and gave back these rewarding experiences to our children.

With the recent snowfall in most of the state, snowmobile trails are busy with riders. If you head out, please make sure you are familiar with snowmobiling rules and regulations and “ride right,” so you can get home safely to your family and friends.

Speed is the number one cause of serious snowmobile rider injury and death. Please stay on the right side of the trail, ride at a safe speed and ride sober.

Important safety tips to keep in mind are to anticipate and yield to groomers, don’t use modified exhausts, and when approaching an intersection, come to a complete stop, raise off the seat and look both ways for traffic.

As last week showed, winter storms in Michigan can be severe and can bring cold temperatures, icy roads, power failures, and loss of cell phone services. To keep you and your loved ones safe during a winter storm, make sure to have these on hand:

Students and families looking for help paying for college are encouraged to register for an upcoming Virtual College Financial Aid Night hosted by Michigan Department of Treasury’s MI Student Aid team.

Sessions are available from 6:30-8 p.m. this Tuesday and Thursday. All sessions are free and open to the public.

Participants will be able to gather information on several financial aid topics, including FAFSA application information, federal financial aid programs, state financial aid programs, scholarship searching and MiSSG Student Portal Accounts.

Due to limited space, participants are encouraged to sign up for one session only. Registration can be completed by visiting the MI Student Aid website at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid.

Career and Technical Education Month takes place each February to recognize the value of CTE classes and celebrate the achievements of students in CTE programs across the country. Senate Republicans continue to work to expand career and technical education opportunities across the state.

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.