Below you will find legislative updates from the state Capitol and information about important events within Oakland County and the 15th Senate District. Thank you for taking the time to read my latest newsletter!

Senator Jim Runestad
Serving the 15th State Senate District

As gas prices rose dramatically and inflation hit historic highs, families across the state struggled just to fill up their cars. That is why I supported House Bill 5570, which would have suspended the state’s excise tax on gasoline and diesel fuel.

It is puzzling that the governor vetoed a temporary pause in Michigan’s gas tax just weeks after she lobbied Congress to authorize a federal gas tax holiday. The bill the governor vetoed would have saved Michiganders 27 cents per gallon at the pump, or $750 million over six months.

Sadly, this is the second effort to provide tax relief to struggling families that the governor has vetoed in the past month. The governor also vetoed a bipartisan plan, which I helped negotiate as chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, to cut income taxes for everyone in Michigan, provide families with a $500 per child tax credit, and protect more income for our seniors.

Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature are finding ways to work together to help Michigan families; I hope the governor will join us in our efforts.

My legislation to curb fraudulent process servers and restore integrity in the judicial system was signed into law on March 23 by Gov. Gretchen Witmer.

Public Act 36 of 2022 now requires process servers to sign a declaration that the proof of service has been examined and that its contents are true under penalty of perjury. This signed statement will replace the current notary requirement, which only verifies the identity of the process server and provides no real deterrent to falsification of service.


I’m very pleased — after years of working on this endeavor — to finally fix a huge hole in our legal system. Fraudulent process servers have negatively impacted thousands of citizens in Michigan, costing them millions of dollars and irreparable harm to their constitutional rights.

The judicial system, above any other branch of government, has direct power over your life, and falsification of documents by corrupt process servers has the potential to utterly ruin the lives of vulnerable victims forever. Now that process servers must sign under penalty that they made service legitimately, they will think twice before falsifying a report.

A bill package I sponsored with Sen. Michael D. MacDonald to save local communities from increased road repair costs associated with the use of federal funding was signed into law on March 29 by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

My bill, now Public Act 49 of 2022, will allow local road agencies to elect to participate in a federal aid swap with the state in an effort to reduce overall repair costs. PA 50 of 2022, sponsored by MacDonald, permits for the use of state funds to replace the federal dollars as outlined in SB 465.

By giving our local transportation agencies more flexibility to cut their costs, we can help them fix more of our local roads and make a real difference in the lives of our hardworking taxpayers and families.

Last month, the Senate Committee on Education and Career Readiness unanimously endorsed a bipartisan package of bills that I helped author to provide critical help for students with dyslexia, clearing the way for the legislation to be considered by the full Senate.

My measure, Senate Bill 383, would establish a resource advisory committee of experts to help our public schools make sure no students fall through the cracks. Other bills in the package would require school districts to screen students in grades K-3 (and certain students in grades 4-12) for reading difficulties using a universal screening assessment, require teacher preparation institutions to offer instruction on the characteristics of dyslexia, and require that “professional” level teaching certificates are only issued after an individual has received instruction on six specified areas.

This help is long overdue as Michigan has had no statewide strategy to help students with dyslexia. We have worked hard to put these bipartisan bills together with top experts on dyslexia and advice from many key stakeholders, including testimony from parents and students. By directly addressing dyslexia within our education policies, we can make a meaningful difference for some of our most vulnerable students and their families.

I will host an office hour with constituents from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Friday, April 22 at the White Lake Township Library, 11005 Elizabeth Lake Road in White Lake. During the session, I will provide a brief policy update on what has been happening at the Capitol and be available to answer questions and address concerns. All residents of the 15th Senate District are welcome to attend. Please register to attend at https://senrunestad.eventbrite.com.

I was pleased to have recently met with a wonderful group of students from my hometown school district in Goodrich. The students are part of ASSE International Student Exchange Programs and represented a dozen separate nations from Central Asia and Europe. Thank you for taking the time to stop by the Senate floor and meet up with me prior to your tour!

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. This April marks the 12th anniversary of the passage of Michigan’s laws banning texting while driving. Public Acts 58, 59 and 60 of 2010 prohibit any activity that distracts a driver while operating a vehicle.

According to the Michigan State Police, distracting activities could include texting or messaging, checking social media, watching videos, talking on the phone (even hands-free), eating, drinking, smoking, chatting with passengers, searching or reaching for an item. looking at crashes or roadside sights, checking a navigation system, adjusting climate or music controls, or listening to loud music.

Drivers charged with distracted driving will be fined $100 for a first offense and $200 for subsequent offenses. Be safe and don’t drive distracted!

The Michigan Department of Education has developed a series of videos for anyone interested in learning about bringing fresh local foods to schools and early childcare centers. The video series is available free of charge on YouTube and covers a wide range of topics including local sourcing, school gardens, food safety and more.

For more information about the Michigan Farm to School program, or to view the videos please click here.

The Michigan Department of Education has announced three upcoming statewide job fairs. Each job fair is free of charge for traditional local school districts, intermediate school districts, public school academies, educator staffing agencies, as well as all job-seeking candidates.

The fairs will take place on:

For more information or to register, please visit the MDE Education Workforce Job Fairs website.

Senate Resolution 120 was approved unanimously by the Michigan Senate to designate April as Donate Life Month to raise awareness about donation, encourage residents to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors, and honors those who have saved lives through the gift of donation.

Michigan residents can register as organ donors online or by visiting their local secretary of state’s office. One donor can save up to eight lives, restore sight to two people through cornea donation, and heal more than 75 others through tissue donation.

Today is Tax Day! The annual deadline for filing individual income tax returns and making any necessary payments has arrived again. The state of Michigan’s Treasury eServices has helpful information about state income tax-related questions.