Commentary: I’m Working Hard to Lower Costs for Michiganders

By Governor Gretchen Whitmer April is tax season and financial literacy month. As Michiganders wait for tax refunds to hit their bank accounts and assess family budgets ahead of summer vacation season, the rising costs of essentials like gas and groceries are at the forefront of their minds. For the Black community, like every community, every dollar counts. That’s why we are working hard to lower costs and put money back in your pocket, where it belongs. & Countless Michiganders had the rug pulled out from under them when the last administration slapped on the retirement tax, taking money our seniors had been promised after a lifetime of hard work. Understanding the disparate impact this tax would have on communities of color, I fought against it as a state representative. It was wrong. Last year, our new majority in the Michigan Legislature made it right. I was proud to sign legislation rolling back the retirement tax, which will save half a million households an average of $1,000 a year. Our repeal equalized public and private pensions and delivered immediate relief to first responders. & We also quintupled the state match for the Working Families Tax Credit, also known as the...