MLC Insider Intelligence: December 19, 2025
Michigan Legislative Consultants
Weekly Recap: The House held session and committees from Tuesday – Thursday. The Senate held session on Tuesday and Thursday, and committees met on Tuesday.
Michigan’s Minimum Wage Increasing January 1: The next scheduled increase to the state’s minimum wage under Michigan’s Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act is set to occur on January 1, 2026. The Act covers all Michigan employers that have two or more employees, 16 years of age or older. The change comes after years of legal challenges following the Legislature’s 2018 vote to adopt and amend two citizen initiatives. Their move greatly reduced the impact of the increase to Michigan’s minimum wage and paid sick leave laws. In July 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled the Legislature’s actions unconstitutional and laid out a schedule to increase the rate similar to that within the citizens’ initiatives.
Effective January 1: The minimum hourly wage will increase from $12.48 to $13.73 per hour, and the tipped employee rate will increase to $5.49 per hour, which is 40% of the full minimum wage. The 85% rate for minors aged 16 and 17 will increase from $10.60 to $11.67 per hour, and the training wage of $4.25 per hour for newly hired employees under the age of 20 for their first 90 calendar days of employment remains unchanged.
Next Increase: The next scheduled increase will occur on January 1, 2027. On that date, the minimum hourly wage will increase to $15 per hour, the tipped employee rate will increase to $6.30 per hour, which is 42% of the full minimum wage, and the 85% rate for minors aged 16 and 17 will increase to $12.75 per hour.
Democratic Caucus Responds to Revoked Funding: Members of the Senate Democratic Caucus took action this week following last week’s surprising decision by the House Appropriations Committee to cancel almost $645 million in ongoing funding to work projects. The projects were all approved during the FY25 budget process and received appropriations.
Committee Action: On Tuesday, the Senate Appropriations Committee heard testimony from organizations that had their funding revoked, including Flint Community Schools, Kids Talk Children’s Advocacy Center, and Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids, among others. Later that day, Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing) submitted a letter to Attorney General Dana Nessel requesting her to issue an opinion on the actions taken by the House Appropriations Committee. She’s asking the Attorney General to review the legality of the committee’s application of the language in the Michigan and Budget Act of 1984.
Legislative Action: Also on Tuesday, the Senate voted 23-13 to pass a supplemental to restore the funding. Five Republicans voted with the Senate Democratic Caucus in favor: Senators Jon Bumstead (R-North Muskegon), John Damoose (R-Harbor Springs), Mark Huizenga (R-Walker), Ed McBroom (R-Vulcan), and Michael Webber (R-Rochester Hills). The Senate used a House-passed bill as a vehicle for the appropriations, ensuring it wouldn’t be subjected to the five-day rule. The bill was returned to the House for its consideration of the substituted version of House Bill 4576.
Unemployment Benefit Rate Increasing: On January 1, 2026, the maximum weekly rate for unemployment benefits is scheduled to increase from $446 to $530. The increase is part of bipartisan legislation that was signed into law in December 2024.
Key Points: The amount an unemployed worker receives for each dependent (up to five total) will also increase next month from $12.66 per dependent to $19.33. Claims filed before January 1 will not see a change in the approved weekly benefit rate. Under the 2024 law, the weekly benefit rate will continue to increase annually. The next scheduled increase is set for January 1, 2027, when the maximum weekly unemployment benefit rate will increase to $614, and the dependent rate will rise to $26.
Eligibility: To qualify for unemployment benefits, a worker must be unemployed and meet a number of requirements, including registering for work at MiTalent.organd visiting a Michigan Works! Association service center to begin the reemployment process. Additionally, they must be willing to accept any suitable full-time employment and physically and mentally capable of performing full-time work, as performed before losing a job, or have been trained to do. Starting in June 2026, unemployed workers must record three work search activities each week, up from one.
Michigan DOGE Task Force Announced: Michigan is launching its own version of the national DOGE effort, with the stated goal of improving accountability and efficiency within state government.
Key Points: According to a press release, the task force aims to make government more transparent and responsive to residents and ensure it operates efficiently, transparently, and in the best interest of the people it serves. Additionally, it will seek to restore trust in public institutions by identifying inefficiencies, reducing waste, and promoting responsible, taxpayer-first governance.
Senate Committee Reports Jobs Program: The Senate Regulatory Affairs Committee reported legislation creating the More Jobs for Michigan Program, aimed at incentivizing good-paying new or retained jobs in the state. The state previously operated a similar program that ended in 2019. Instead of extending the program, the Legislature created the Strategic Outreach and Attraction Reserve Fund.
Key Points: Introduced by Senator Sam Singh (D-East Lansing), businesses participating in the program could receive up to 100% of withholding tax capture revenues for certified new jobs for a period of time. To be eligible, a business must operate, or plan to be located, in Michigan and either propose to create new jobs or protect existing jobs. The proposal lays out specific requirements for the number of jobs and the minimum wages paid based on the prosperity region’s median wage. Housed within the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF), businesses could apply to participate and, if approved, enter into a written agreement with the MSF. The MSF would be prohibited from entering into new agreements after December 31, 2032.
Next Steps: The bills were referred to the Committee of the Whole for consideration.
Spotlight On Senator Darrin Camilleri: Senator Darrin Camilleri (D-Brownstown) is serving his first term in the Michigan Senate, and his colleagues elected him to serve as the Assistant Majority Leader. Prior to his election to the Senate, he served three terms in the Michigan House of Representatives. He has the distinction of being Michigan’s youngest Latino and first-ever Maltese-American state legislator. Before his election to the Legislature, Senator Camilleri was a teacher. He earned his degree from Kalamazoo College.
District: He represents the 4th Senate District, which includes seventeen communities across Downriver and Western Wayne County.
Committees: Senator Camilleri serves as majority vice chair of the Labor Committee and the chair of the Appropriations PreK-12 Subcommittee. Additionally, he’s a member of the following committees: Appropriations, Education, Energy and Environment, and Finance, Insurance, and Consumer Protection. He also serves on the Labor and Economic Opportunity/MEDC Appropriations Subcommittee and the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee.
We asked Senator Camilleri a few questions to learn more about him:
What’s your favorite travel destination outside of Michigan?
A – I love visiting Arizona, Malta, and Mexico.
What’s your favorite hobby other than politics?
A – Working out and cooking
What’s your favorite game to play or sport to watch and/or play?
A – Basketball
The Coming Weeks: Neither the House nor the Senate will hold session or committees for the next several weeks. The next scheduled session day is Wednesday, January 14, 2026. In observance of the holidays, MLC will be closed December 24, 2025 – January 1, 2026.