MEMBERS:
SEN. DAN LAUWERS, MAJORITY VICE CHAIR
SEN. ARIC NESBITT
SEN. JIM ANANICH, MINORITY VICE CHAIR
SEN. STEPHANIE CHANG
THE SENATE
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT
OPERATIONS
SENATOR MIKE SHIRKEY
CHAIR
S-106 CAPITOL BUILDING
P.O. BOX 30036
LANSING, MICHIGAN 48909-7536
PHONE: (517) 373-5932
FAX: (517) 373-5944
COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
September 28, 2021
A meeting of the Senate Committee on Government Operations was scheduled for Tuesday, September 28,
2021, at 1:00 p.m., in room 403 of the Capitol Building.
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The agenda summary is as follows:
1. Testimony regarding SB 597 (Shirkey) and SB 598 (Sen. Bizon).
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At 1:15 p.m., the Chairman called the meeting to order He instructed the Clerk to call the roll. At that time,
the following members were present; Chairman Shirkey, Sen.(s) Lauwers, Nesbitt, Ananich and Chang a
quorum was present.
The Chairman entertained a motion by Sen. Lauwers to adopt the committee meeting minutes from the
September 21, 2021 meeting. Without objection, the minutes were adopted.
Next, the Chairman summarized SB 597 & SB 598 for the committee and introduced the (S-1) versions to
the committee.
The Chairman entertained a motion by Sen. Lauwers to adopt the (S-1) version of SB 597. The vote was as
follows:
Yeas: Chairman Shirkey, Sen.(s) Lauwers, Nesbitt, and Ananich
Nays: Sen. Chang
The substitute was adopted.
The Chairman entertained a motion by Sen. Nesbitt to adopt the (S-1) version of SB 598. The vote was as
follows:
Yeas: Chairman Shirkey, Sen.(s) Lauwers, Nesbitt, Ananich, and Chang
Nays: None
The substitute was adopted.
The Chairman invited the following individuals to present testimony regarding SB 597 and SB 598:
Paul Palmer, Citizen – Oppose
Dr. Farhan Bhatti, Care Free Medical – Support
Marianne Huff, , Mental Health Association – Neutral
Deb Johnson, St. Clair County CMH Authority – Oppose
Sheriff Mat King, St. Clair County Sheriff – Oppose
Rick Murdock, Citizen – Support
Mark Cook & Paul Loffreda, Blue Cross Blue Shield – Support
The Chairman read the cards of those individuals that did not wish to testify regarding SB 597 and SB 598:
Paul Tarr, Citizen – Support
Due to time constraints, the following individuals were unable to present testimony:
Barb Valliere, Self Advocates of Michigan – Support
Glenn Ashley, Retire Disability Advocates – Oppose
Chris Pinter, Bay Area Behavioral Health – Oppose
There being no further business before the committee, the Chairman adjourned the committee at 3:10p.m.
Date Adopted by Committee: 10-26-21