The Michigan Martial Law Act of 2011

Though Gov. Rick Snyder says he is not interested in hurting unions, yesterday's Senate approval of a package that gives Emergency Managers complete power over financially troubled towns and school districts means he will soon be asked to sign off on measures that are expected to eliminate union jobs across the state.

In a party line vote, and despite impassioned speeches of protest by the body's Democratic minority, the Michigan Senate approved legislation that threatens to take over and even dissolve local governments that refuse to balance their budgets by breaking labor contracts.

According to the law, which has already been approved in the House, the governor will be able to declare "financial emergency" in towns or school districts and appoint someone to fire local elected officials, break contracts, seize and sell assets, and eliminate services.

Under the law whole cities or school districts could be eliminated without any public participation or oversight, and amendments designed to provide minimal safeguards and public involvement were voted down.

http://michiganmesse...rd-final-approval

This law will give this Republican administration in Michigan the right to overturn the will of the people by tossing their elected officials out and moving the "backboned ones" in.

What they mean are "RepubliCANT puppets".

http://www.legislatu...011-HEBS-4214.pdf

There's a least a provision for a court challenge:

24 (3) A local government for which a financial emergency
25 determination under this section has been confirmed to exist may,
26 by resolution adopted by a vote of 2/3 of the members of its
27 governing body elected and serving, appeal this determination
1 within 10 business days to the Ingham county circuit court. The
2 court shall not set aside a determination of financial emergency by
3 the governor unless it finds that the determination is either of
4 the following:
5 (a) Not supported by competent, material, and substantial
6 evidence on the whole record.
7 (b) Arbitrary, capricious, or clearly an abuse or unwarranted
8 exercise of discretion.

The big problem here is that it's a reaction to the poor performance of Act 72. Instead of fixing that Act, however, they've decided to give the state powers that the local governments don't even have: "here, locals, you can't do the things you need to do to fix your budget, so instead we're going to dissolve you and appoint someone from outside of your community to do the things you would do if you could, but without oversight and without input from the people the changes will directly affect".

Interesting side point: the guy who introduced this bill used to be the news director at my dad's radio station when I was in high school.

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