News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Alpena County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Mike Lash uses his radio while in his patrol car on Thursday. The Sheriff’s Office could lose its road patrol deputy because of a line-item veto by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer earlier this week.

ALPENA — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s 147 line-item vetos to state departments and programs could have serious impacts on law enforcement, courts, veterans, and economic development in Northeast Michigan.

Whitmer’s $947 million in vetoes this week followed a breakdown in talks with lawmakers who largely rejected her proposal for a 45-cents-per-gallon increase to the state gas tax. She called lawmakers’ budget “a mess” and said the $375 million in general fund money they wanted to spend on roads would hurt other programs.

Whitmer said she wants to continue to work with the Republican-led Legislature to iron out new spending deals, but both sides seemed locked into their positions when she and GOP leaders exited a meeting Thursday morning.

Whitmer told the Detroit Free Press it is a positive sign the two sides were able to come to the table, but she is unsure how much progress was made.

“I wouldn’t say we’re any closer to it, but we’re going to continue talking, and I think that’s good,” Whitmer said.

State Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jim Stamas, a Republican from Midland who represents all of Northeast Michigan, said in a press release Thursday the governor’s actions put public safety and health at risk.

“Although I’m happy the governor signed the budget with increased funding for K-12 education and drinking water protections, I am extremely disappointed with her nearly $1 billion in line-item vetoes,” Stamas said. “We delivered a responsible and balanced state budget on time that increased funding for roads and schools, and she virtually gutted it because it doesn’t include her massive $2.5 billion tax hike on Michigan families. The governor’s reckless, punitive and partisan actions jeopardize public safety and public health, especially in our rural communities.”

State Rep. Sue Allor, R-Wolverine, who also represents Northeast Michigan, said the Legislature did its job by getting the budget passed and presenting it to Whitmer. She said ramifications from the vetoes will fall on the governor, and she believed the cuts were directed to areas of the state that are rural and most supportive of Republicans. She said the cuts were motivated by the governor’s desire to get her tax hike.

“I do think she was motivated by the increase,” Allor told The News. “That would destroy Michigan’s economy, and it would be absolutely devastating to the people in the state. There is no rhyme or reason why she did what she did.”

Community leaders in the Alpena area still reeling from the news of cuts to what they said are critical services, and it is likely some counties will need to make up the cuts with their own general fund dollars, or make cuts of their own.

Here’s a look at some of the vetoes and impacts to Northeast Michigan counties:

COUNTY ROAD PATROL

Whitmer slashed all of the $13 million in funds used to help supplement road patrols in Michigan.

Counties rely on state grants to help cover the cost of secondary road patrol officers, who are 100 % dedicated to monitoring traffic and enforcing violations.

Alpena County Sheriff Steve Kieliszewski said his road patrol deputy costs $85,875, of which the state pays $49,130. Kieliszewski said the loss of revenue could lead to someone being laid off, unless the county Board of Commissioners can find the money somewhere.

“My main concern is, if the position is not being funded by the state, I’m going to lose a deputy,” Kieliszewski said. “He is really the only deputy that I have who is always on patrol. The others often are transporting inmates or taking complaints, so, to lose him, it would really hurt. That decision will be up to the board.”

GRANTS FOR COUNTY SERVICES TO VETERANS

Whitmer vetoed $4 million for the state’s County Veteran Services Fund, which Alcona County Veteran Affairs Director Tony Atkinson told The News eliminated funding on which the county relies to staff its Veteran Affairs Office. Funding from the state grant allowed the county to recently expand services from one day to five days a week.

Atkinson, who is a veteran, said the eliminated funding means the Alcona County Board of Commissioners — which already is struggling with the county budget after voters rejected a proposed tax increase — would have to fund his position to keep the doors open five days a week.

Atkinson said that, even if commissioners decide to fund the service part-time, the office wouldn’t be open long enough to meet the minimum requirements to remain accredited. He said state law says the office must operate a minimum of 20 hours a week for Atkinson to retain his license.

“This is just something else to add on to the burden of the commissioners and the county,” he said. “It’s not right that she takes it out on veterans. These are the people who fought for freedom and for their country … I don’t know if it’s a scare tactic or what, but it’s unnecessary.”

In Alpena County, a local property tax helps fund veterans services and pay for a counselor. Alpena County Veterans Affairs Director George Stevens said the loss of funding will be felt, however, as it could restrict staff additions and limit veterans education and efforts to reach out to veterans who may need help.

“I’m disappointed, because we could have used that money in 2020,” Stevens said. “Maybe the governor and Legislature can get together and come up with a supplemental appropriation bill, but, right now, I’m not holding my breath.”

CUTS TO REIMBURSEMENT FROM STATE CHILD CARE FUND

Counties rely on a 50% reimbursement from the state for the cost of placing a child in foster care or an institution.

Alpena County already struggles to pay its share of the costs, and at least once, the county has been forced to scramble to move funds to cover a shortfall in its Child Care budget.

Whitmer’s veto could cause future budgetary headaches.

Alpena County Treasurer Kim Ludlow said the county won’t know for a spell what the fallout from the cut will be, but, no matter how much revenue is lost, the county is on the hook for child placement.

“Right now, we are in a wait-and-see mode,” Ludlow said. “We have to cover the costs and we are legally responsible to pay the bills. That would not be fun if we had to pay the entire amount of them.”

Whitmer also trimmed the budget for reimbursements to court-appointed guardians. The cut is for $2.7 million and the loss of support may mean those guardians will have to pay more out of pocket or possibly seek support from the county.

MEDC BUSINESS ATTRACTION AND COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION

Cuts to the Michigan Economic Development Corp. have already led to a $300,000 grant for facade improvements in Alpena to be canceled. The grant to the Alpena Downtown Development Authority would have been used for improvements to places such as Thunder Bay Theatre and the old antique mall on 2nd Avenue.

“We recently had to make the tough decision to pull three Facade Restoration Initiative projects, one of which was Alpena, as it was the fiscally prudent response to the reduction in funding,” MEDC spokesperson Olie McKinley said in an email to The News. “However, we remain committed to working with businesses and communities alike to ensure that communities around the state are attractive places to live, work, and play.”

Whitmer and lawmakers agreed to several cuts to MEDC, though further cuts were made with the veto pen.

Alpena has been the beneficiary of such grants for years, and they have led to many facade and business projects becoming reality and spurred private investment, as well. Alpena is in line for a nearly $4 million grant to construct a park and sports complex near the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center. McKinley said the future of that grant is also clouded, for the moment.

“It would be premature for me to speculate on the other projects as they have not yet gone to the Michigan Strategic Fund for consideration,” McKinley said in his email. “These business expansion and community revitalization projects would have been in jeopardy of happening, had we been operating with the budget that was recently announced. The impact around the state will be noticed and tough decisions will have to be made.”

Whitmer vetoes also included funding for the Pure Michigan tourism campaign and funding to rural hospitals. A spokeswoman for MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena did not return a message seeking comment.

Counties will also lose their payments in lieu of taxes for tax-exempt state-owned property. The Secure Schools grant program, which helps schools make security upgrades, also was cut by $10 million, and many high school career and technical education programs will lose funding.

Allor said the cuts will only make things worse for most counties in Northeast Michigan, most of which are already operating on razor-thin margins in their budgets.

“This is unprecedented, what she did, and it is going to be painful for a lot of people,” Allor said. “I don’t know what she was thinking when she did what she did. The counties in Northeast Michigan are just getting by now, and this is going to really hurt them.”

News staff writer Crystal Nelson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.