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His signature comes weeks after voters rejected the previous emergency manager law, Public Act 4.
Many critics of the emergency managers see the replacement emergency manager law as a regurgitation of the worst aspects of Public Act 4, and critics have dubbed it "local dictators" law.
"This one, in many aspects, is just as onerous and dictatorial as the last one," Greg Bowens, spokesman for Stand Up for Democracy, which campaigned for the repeal of Public Act 4, told the Detroit Free Press.
"The disrespect you have for voters is overwhelming," MLive reports Sen. Coleman Young III, D-Detroit, as saying. "The people already spoke. ... Why do we need this law then?"
Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer echoed Young's statement, saying Snyder had "chosen to ignore the will of the people."
"In choosing to sign the re-enactment of the emergency manager law -- a law that was defeated at the ballot box not even two months ago -- Governor Snyder has chosen to ignore the will of the people of Michigan," Brewer said in a statement. "This new version was crafted behind closed doors without bipartisan input, it fails to respect the authority of local elected officials, and an appropriation was added to prevent voters from having their say on the new law."
Explaining the bill, the Detroit Free Press continues:
The new proposed law gives financially distressed cities and school districts four options once a financial emergency is determined: a consent agreement, mediation, an emergency manager or Chapter 9 bankruptcy. In another change from PA 4, the state -- rather than the cash-strapped local city or school district -- will pay the salary of the emergency manager and other related costs.
But, as MLive points out, the replacement emergency manager law
[...] does not completely strip emergency managers of one of their most controversial powers: the ability to break union contracts.
The law would allow an emergency manager to propose rejecting, modifying or terminating one or more terms and conditions of a collective bargaining agreement after meeting with labor representatives.
Laura Conaway adds in The Maddow Blog:
What's more, even though the new law lets cities vote out an emergency manager, they can't do it for a year and a half. That means Detroit, along with towns already under emergency management, will be stuck without meaning local democracies for a long while more.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |

His signature comes weeks after voters rejected the previous emergency manager law, Public Act 4.
Many critics of the emergency managers see the replacement emergency manager law as a regurgitation of the worst aspects of Public Act 4, and critics have dubbed it "local dictators" law.
"This one, in many aspects, is just as onerous and dictatorial as the last one," Greg Bowens, spokesman for Stand Up for Democracy, which campaigned for the repeal of Public Act 4, told the Detroit Free Press.
"The disrespect you have for voters is overwhelming," MLive reports Sen. Coleman Young III, D-Detroit, as saying. "The people already spoke. ... Why do we need this law then?"
Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer echoed Young's statement, saying Snyder had "chosen to ignore the will of the people."
"In choosing to sign the re-enactment of the emergency manager law -- a law that was defeated at the ballot box not even two months ago -- Governor Snyder has chosen to ignore the will of the people of Michigan," Brewer said in a statement. "This new version was crafted behind closed doors without bipartisan input, it fails to respect the authority of local elected officials, and an appropriation was added to prevent voters from having their say on the new law."
Explaining the bill, the Detroit Free Press continues:
The new proposed law gives financially distressed cities and school districts four options once a financial emergency is determined: a consent agreement, mediation, an emergency manager or Chapter 9 bankruptcy. In another change from PA 4, the state -- rather than the cash-strapped local city or school district -- will pay the salary of the emergency manager and other related costs.
But, as MLive points out, the replacement emergency manager law
[...] does not completely strip emergency managers of one of their most controversial powers: the ability to break union contracts.
The law would allow an emergency manager to propose rejecting, modifying or terminating one or more terms and conditions of a collective bargaining agreement after meeting with labor representatives.
Laura Conaway adds in The Maddow Blog:
What's more, even though the new law lets cities vote out an emergency manager, they can't do it for a year and a half. That means Detroit, along with towns already under emergency management, will be stuck without meaning local democracies for a long while more.

His signature comes weeks after voters rejected the previous emergency manager law, Public Act 4.
Many critics of the emergency managers see the replacement emergency manager law as a regurgitation of the worst aspects of Public Act 4, and critics have dubbed it "local dictators" law.
"This one, in many aspects, is just as onerous and dictatorial as the last one," Greg Bowens, spokesman for Stand Up for Democracy, which campaigned for the repeal of Public Act 4, told the Detroit Free Press.
"The disrespect you have for voters is overwhelming," MLive reports Sen. Coleman Young III, D-Detroit, as saying. "The people already spoke. ... Why do we need this law then?"
Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer echoed Young's statement, saying Snyder had "chosen to ignore the will of the people."
"In choosing to sign the re-enactment of the emergency manager law -- a law that was defeated at the ballot box not even two months ago -- Governor Snyder has chosen to ignore the will of the people of Michigan," Brewer said in a statement. "This new version was crafted behind closed doors without bipartisan input, it fails to respect the authority of local elected officials, and an appropriation was added to prevent voters from having their say on the new law."
Explaining the bill, the Detroit Free Press continues:
The new proposed law gives financially distressed cities and school districts four options once a financial emergency is determined: a consent agreement, mediation, an emergency manager or Chapter 9 bankruptcy. In another change from PA 4, the state -- rather than the cash-strapped local city or school district -- will pay the salary of the emergency manager and other related costs.
But, as MLive points out, the replacement emergency manager law
[...] does not completely strip emergency managers of one of their most controversial powers: the ability to break union contracts.
The law would allow an emergency manager to propose rejecting, modifying or terminating one or more terms and conditions of a collective bargaining agreement after meeting with labor representatives.
Laura Conaway adds in The Maddow Blog:
What's more, even though the new law lets cities vote out an emergency manager, they can't do it for a year and a half. That means Detroit, along with towns already under emergency management, will be stuck without meaning local democracies for a long while more.