HB 4240 is on the short list of bills being championed by the Michigan Affiliate of Our America Initiative.  Their Michigan Director, Scotty Boman, is also the Webmaster of this site, and author of this post.

People interested in lobbying for HB 4240, need not lobby for any legislation that doesn’t interest them.

We will meet at 9:00 AM. At first we will be outside by the entrance, then we will be in the Cafeteria Lobby area to decide which offices to visit.  If you get lost, call Scotty Boman at (313) 247-2052, or email him at: scottyboman[AT]hotmail[DOT]com

HB 4240 to allow the placement of the Brass Roots plaque and a monument celebrating freedom of speech on capital grounds.  Expenses would be completely paid for by private sponsors:
http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2015-HB-4240

If you get lost, call (313) 247-2052. At first we will be outside by the entrance, then we will be in the Cafateria Lobby area to decide which offices to visit.

Location:
Anderson House Office Building

124 North Capitol Avenue, Lansing, MI 48933, USA

To RSVP and help promote this on Facebook, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1440243606293004/

Forty First District State Representative Martin Howrylak has introduced a new bill to get the Brass Roots Plaque displayed in it’s rightful home on the grounds of the State Capital Building. You may Contact your State Representative and ask him or her to cosponsor or support HB 4240 at: house.mi.gov … and you may also encourage your state senator to introduce or support a Senate version of HB 4240 at: senate.mi.gov However, the most immediate action that must be made is to move this bill out of committee.  To do that there needs to be a committee hearing.  Bradford Jacobsen is the Chair of the Government Operations Committee. So it is urgent that he schedules a hearing. Please contact anyone you know who may be in the 46th State Representative District, and ask them to call Representative Jacobsen at 517-373-1798 ( 855-737-2723 toll free) or email him using at: BradJacobsen@house.mi.gov

---

Other Committee Members Must Be Contacted Too! If you are in any of these districts please contact your representative and urge him or her to have a committee hearing for this bill.  If you know anyone in one of these districts, urge your friend to do likewise.

While Scotty Boman and Mary Buzuma were attending the legislative action day on December 10th, Committee Chairman Wayne Schmidt informed them that a vote on HB 5595 would not be on the Transportation and Infrastructure’s agenda this session.  That’s the bad news.

The good news is that State Representative Martin Howrylak and State Senator Mike Green have been reelected, so the plaque may still find it’s home in 2015.  Martin Howrylak was the author of HB 5595 and he expressed a willingness to introduce this legislation early in 2015 session.  Senator Mike Green remains ready to introduce identical legislation, or follow up on the house version in 2015.

Please remember to thank the office holders who have been supportive of our efforts.

Have a Happy New Year!

The administrator of this blog, Scotty Boman, will be holding a legislative action day Wednesday December 10th.  Tentatively, he should arrive by the capital between 10:30 AM and 11:00 AM.  The exact location will probably be infront of the legislative office building:

Anderson House Office Building
124 North Capitol , Lansing, MI

More details will be posted, but anyone who may be interested should call Scotty Boman at: (313) 247-2052 or email him at: scottyboman@hotmail.com

Lansing, MI – On Wednesday September 24th Wayne Schmidt, Chairman of the State House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, informed Brass Roots lobbyists (Kim Moore and Scotty Boman) that he would schedule a hearing for HB 5595 (A Bill to Allow Brass Roots to place their plaque on the capital grounds). A hearing is necessary to move a bill out of committee. This welcome news came on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the original “Brass Roots” gun rally. The hearing will be this Tuesday, September 30th at 10:30 AM in Room 521 of the House Office Building. Testimony on HB 5595 is at the end of the hearing agenda. The complete agenda is posted at the bottom of this page, and the official up-to-date version may be linked to here: http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(ehguag3xesunqjqrhj5hot45))/mileg.aspx?page=committeemeeting&objectName=24185

It remains important to…

• contact committee members (A list of Committee members and links to contact information is in the previous post) and urge them to support the bill, as the hearing date approaches.
• It is especially helpful for constituents of committee members to do this. Meanwhile, remember to contact your representative and urge him or her to support the bill when it comes to a vote.
• Anyone who is knowledgeable about the plaque should come to the hearing to testify in favor of it’s installation.
• Urge Speaker Jase Bolger to bring the bill to a vote.
• Thank Wayne Schmidt for putting this bill on the agenda.
• Thank Martin Howrylak and the cosponsors (Kevin Daley, Tom McMillin, Ken Goike, Tom Leonard, Bob Genetski, Ed McBroom, Joel Johnson, Tim Kelly, Ray Franz, Pat Somerville, Klint Kesto, Mike Callton, Ken Yonker, Jon Bumstead, Bruce R. Rendon).

People attending the hearing may have a special treat. Rumor has it (from a reliable source) that the plaque itself will be on display in the vicinity of the capital or the House Office Building. This event stands to be a reunion for veterans of the Brass Roots organization. Anyone who is unfamiliar with the plaque can find some information and a few useful links on this website.

---

Committee Meeting Meetings by bodies of elected members delegated by the House or Senate to consider and make recommendations concerning disposition of bills, resolutions, and other related matters referred to them. Committees are appointed by the Speaker of the House or the Senate Majority Leader and are organized according to subject matter.

Committee: Transportation and Infrastructu
Clerk Phone Number: Mary Lou Terrien 517-373-1260
Location: Room 521, House Office Building, Lansing, MI
Date: Tuesday, 9/30/2014
Time: 10:30 AM
Agenda:

HB 5117 (Rep. Victory) Counties; boards and commissions; transfer of functions of a county road commission to the county board of commissioners; eliminate sunset.

HB 5118 (Rep. Victory) Counties; boards and commissions; powers and duties of county road commissioners to be exercised by the county board of commissioners; eliminate sunset.

HB 5408 (Rep. Schmidt) Vehicles; other; commercial quadricycle; define and exclude from definition of motor vehicle.

HB 5409 (Rep. Irwin) Vehicles; other; commercial quadricycles; allow to serve alcohol under certain circumstances and make other revisions to Michigan vehicle code.

SB 903 (Sen. Hildenbrand) Vehicles; fund-raising registration plates; fund-raising registration plate recognizing Michigan Blood; create, and earmark to Michigan Blood.

SB 970 (Sen. Casperson) Vehicles; driver training; certain requirements applicable to commercial learner’s permit; amend to comply with federal regulations.

Testimony only:

HB 5595 (Rep. Howrylak) History and arts; historic sites; second amendment monument on the capitol grounds; provide for. Chair Representative Wayne Schmidt

---

In the spirit of compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), individuals with a disability should feel free to contact the Office of the Secretary of the Senate by phone [(517) 373-2400] or by TDD [(517) 373-0543] if requesting special services to effectively participate in the meeting

---

Testimony By Tim O’Brien of the Small Government Alliance