Pure Michigan Isn’t Quite Dead After Gov. Whitmer Veto… Yet

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has eliminated funding for Pure Michigan. It was one of 147 line-item vetoes Whitmer made before signing the new state budget.

Whitmer had proposed a decrease in funding for the state’s popular tourism campaign in her proposed budget earlier this year. She says she “loves” the program, but had to make tough decisions on that and many other budget items after the Republican-controlled Legislature sent her budgets that she called “a mess.”

It’s likely many of the line item vetoes, including Pure Michigan, are part of an effort to force Republican legislative leaders back to the negotiating table after talks broke down over the summer. The campaign has another two months before it actually runs out of funding, so it’s not quite dead yet.

Click on the player above to hear MichMash hosts Jake Neher and Cheyna Roth talk with Gongwer’s Alethia Kasben about Pure Michigan, budget talks in Lansing and road funding.