Rep. Sam Singh Says He Opposes Corporate Giveaways; His Voting Record Says Otherwise

Out of dozens of votes, it’s hard to find the Democrat opposing favoritism for select companies

By Tom Gantert | October 20, 2017

Michigan House Democrat Sam Singh of East Lansing is not a fan of corporate welfare. At least, that’s what he said in an interview posted on a politics-oriented website.

Singh went along with an interviewer on the far-left site Eclectablog, who asked if he would consider repealing some of the corporate tax breaks that the “Snyder administration enacted” with the Republican-controlled Legislature.

Singh agreed and said he and Democrats would “take a look” at the state’s corporate welfare flagship, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.

In his voting record, however, Singh has been one of the strongest supporters of the MEDC’s tax breaks and cash handouts to corporations and developers.

Singh didn’t respond to an email seeking comment on his voting record on corporate welfare.

But his history of overwhelming support for corporate welfare bills speaks for itself.

In July, Singh voted to authorize giving up to $200 million to a Taiwanese company that makes iPhones in China and has been accused of exploiting workers there.

In May, Singh voted to give up to $1.8 billion in state tax dollars to big developers, including Detroit businessman Dan Gilbert, who was named by Forbes magazine as the richest man in Michigan. All but three House Democrats and every Senate Democrat voted in favor of the main bill authorizing these subsidies.

Singh voted twice against repealing cash subsidies to film producers in 2015. He was joined by 44 of 46 House Democrats and every Senate Democrat in voting to keep handing out the film subsidies.

Singh also supported dozens of other bills that expanded corporate welfare.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

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The False Claim That Won’t Die: School ‘Funding Cuts’ By The State

Ann Arbor and other school districts getting more from the state, not less

October 19, 2017

The news site MLive reported that some members of the Ann Arbor Parent-Teacher Organization have increased their volunteer fundraising activities for the local school district in recent years “due to cuts in state funding.”

The headline of the article makes the false claim that state funding for the Ann Arbor Public Schools district has dropped.

MLive reported, “Compared to 10 years ago, AAPS receives $430 less per pupil from the state, without taking into account the rate of inflation.”

ForTheRecord: By repeating the assertion that there have been cuts in state funding, MLive perpetuates a false claim that has been widely refuted since the last gubernatorial election campaign and even earlier. State of Michigan funding for K-12 education has risen every year, starting in 2011-12 and going into the current 2017-18 fiscal year.

In its discussion of school funding, MLive linked to a chart of the State Foundation Allowance. That refers to just one state revenue stream, money that is distributed to school districts for regular operations on a per-student basis.

But the foundation allowance represents only 80 percent of the state funding Ann Arbor Public Schools receives, and money from the state is just one of several major revenue sources that Michigan schools rely upon.

Looking at just state funding, the district received $5,672 per pupil in 2013-14, equivalent to $5,854 in 2017 dollars. That rose to $6,045 per pupil for the 2016-17 year, meaning that even after inflation, the Ann Arbor school district is getting more state dollars for each student.

The total amount of state dollars going to the Ann Arbor school district — not just the foundation allowance — rose from $92.7 million in 2013-14 to $103.5 million in 2016-17, according to the Michigan Department of Education. The 2013-14 figure would be $95.7 million in 2017 dollars, which means the district is getting more now from the state, even after inflation. It’s hard to see how this can be portrayed as a cut.

And again, state funding is just one of several revenue streams that flow into each school district’s general fund, which covers regular operational expenses. The other sources include federal money, local property tax millage receipts and more. Ann Arbor Public Schools collected $234.6 million in all revenues in 2009, which rose to $253.2 million in 2016 (not adjusted for inflation).

Meanwhile, the district’s annual contributions to the state pension system have increased from $12.1 million in 2009 to $30.0 million in 2016.

In effect, the parents are raising money to pay off teachers’ retirement benefits because the state consistently has failed to set aside enough money to pay for the benefits it promised.