Detroit: So, Governor Gretchen Whitmer just vetoed 13 bills that were passed by the Democratic-controlled Legislature last year. She signed a bunch of other bills but decided these ones weren’t the right fit.
One of the big ones she vetoed was about helping parolees get driver’s licenses and IDs. Whitmer said she supports the idea but didn’t want to mess with recent changes to voter registration laws. She called it a technical error that could be fixed later.

Then there were two bills about call centers. They wanted businesses to notify the state before moving call centers overseas. But Whitmer pointed out that federal law already covers that, so it seemed redundant.
She also vetoed a package of bills aimed at improving the signature verification process for election petitions. Whitmer mentioned that Michigan faced serious signature fraud issues in 2022, and these bills didn’t do enough to tackle that problem.
On the unemployment front, she vetoed a couple of bills that would have changed the unemployment system. One was similar to a bill she already signed, and the other raised concerns about legal access to sensitive information.
After the vetoes, some lawmakers reacted. House Democratic spokesperson Jess Travers joked about it, while Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks didn’t comment right away. It’s clear there’s a lot to unpack here!