Governor Gretchen Whitmer unveiled her $2.1 billion MI New Economy plan at the Mackinac Policy Conference Tuesday.
The new plan aims to grow Michigan’s middle class, support small businesses and invest in communities.
“I am laser-focused on tackling these big, structural challenges by growing Michigan’s economy, creating good-paying jobs and building industries of the future,” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. “The MI New Economy plan is a good start, and I look forward to working with key partners, the legislature and anyone who wants to put Michigan’s families, communities and small businesses first as we make these investments.”
The three pillars of Governor Whitmer’s are:
Pillar 1: Grow the Middle Class – No economic vision for the state can be complete if it doesn’t focus on eliminating poverty and lifting families into the middle class.
- Goal: 60% of adults with a postsecondary credential by 2030
- Goal: Lift 100,000 families out of working poverty during the next five years (FY22-FY26)
- Goal: Provide access to low or no cost childcare for 150,000 more families by 2024
Pillar 2: Support Small Business – To supplement the great economic development work our state already does, Michigan needs a focus on creating and growing more Main Street businesses.
- Goal: Top 10 state for small business job growth and revenue growth from 2022 to 2026
- Goal: Top 10 state for household income growth during the next five years (FY22-FY26)
- Goal: Top 10 state for growth in venture capital funding over the next five years (2022-2026)
Pillar 3: Build Strong Communities – Michigan’s residents deserve to live in vibrant communities with the kinds of services and amenities associated with a high standard of living.
- Goal: 100% access to high-speed internet and 95% adoption by households during the next five years, while continually investing in higher quality access (FY22-FY26)
- Goal: 75,000 new or rehabilitated housing units in five years (FY22-FY26)
“This plan will result in better jobs, better skills, more people re-entering the labor force and more people staying – and moving to – Michigan,” Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II said. “It will result in a new economy, a better economy, one that expands economic opportunity and prosperity for all.”
According to the governor, the plan’s pillars address the following:
- There are too many jobs that don’t pay enough – over 1 million households are living in working poverty.
- Too many Michiganders are forced to delay life-saving medical procedures and car repairs, skip prescription refills and meals, and make incredibly difficult choices to meet their basic needs.
- In 2019 before the pandemic, 38% of households did not make enough to make ends meet, and an additional 10% are right on the edge.
- There aren’t enough workers to fill open jobs. Our unemployment rate is lower than the national average, but our labor force participation has been behind for a decade.
- Today, it stands at 59%, or 42nd in the nation. At the turn of the century, it was 68.8% and has fallen since then.
- There aren’t enough Michiganders with the skills necessary to fill high-skill jobs. We need to meet our Sixty by 30 goal to boost incomes and improve long-term outcomes for working families.
- There isn’t enough entrepreneurship in Michigan. For several years, we have been below average job growth for microbusinesses and second stage companies.
- Housing is unattainable or unaffordable in several communities. High-speed internet connection is lacking in certain areas and we face an above average shortage of renters and potential homeowners.
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