New Michigan laws in 2023: Service dogs, school safety and crime victim compensation

Expanding educational opportunities and requirements, funding for a Detroit public transportation option and encouraging updated school safety procedures are among the many new Michigan laws that take effect in 2023.

While state lawmakers largely failed to enact sweeping tax cuts or systemic changes during the last two-year legislative session, they did approve more than 50 bills set to become law this year. Frequently, lawmakers ensure measures they approve become law as soon as they are signed by the governor. But that requires an additional legislative step that sometimes lawmakers skip.

When a bill doesn't become law immediately, it typically goes into effect 90 days after the Legislature formally wraps up. This time around, that's March 29.

So while there are a handful of laws officially in effect on New Year's Day and a couple of other times this year, many of the new laws go into effect in late March.

Here's a quick look at 11 new laws going into effect this year, citing language in the bills and research from both the House and Senate fiscal agencies.

Consumer protections for online purchases

A pair of new bills aimed at combating scam sales on places like Facebook Marketplace or Amazon took effect New Year's Day. The bipartisan measures require online marketplaces or third-party sites to collect specific information about sellers and mandate sellers provide this information.

"Far too many online consumers have fallen victim to scams from third-party sellers on platforms like Amazon or Facebook. While online marketplaces provide an easier way for small businesses to connect with consumers, there isn’t any established oversight to ensure people are protected from bad actors," said state Rep. Samantha Steckloff, D-Farmington Hills, one of the bill sponsors.

State Rep. Mark Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills, sponsored the second bill in the legislative package.

Sellers would need to provide some basic banking and tax information to the platforms, and the platforms must show potential customers that sellers successfully produced this information. Big box stores like Target, Walgreens, Meijer and others supported the legislation.

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New polling locations

After years of fighting, Republican and Democratic lawmakers came together to approve a series of voting-related measures before the midterm election. One of them, which took effect New Year's Day, allows communities to go beyond the schools and libraries typically used as polling places to consider some privately owned facilities.

Banquet halls, community centers, clubhouses and other comparable places can now be used as polling places, as long as the person who owns these sites is not a political candidate or someone who runs a political action committee.

“These are commonsense measures that are all broadly supported," said state Rep. Ann Bollin, R-Brighton, when the measures were approved in late September. "It’s unfortunate that improving election integrity was twisted into such a partisan and polarizing issue and that it took so long to get everyone to come together.”

'Parental rights' signs in schools

Michigan schools must prominently display portions of the state Constitution and law under a bill that goes into effect in March sponsored by state Rep. Annette Glenn, R-Midland.

The two sections that need to be posted say:

• "Religion, morality and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged."

• "It is the natural, fundamental right of parents and legal guardians to determine and direct the care, teaching, and education of their children. The public schools of this state serve the needs of the pupils by cooperating with the pupil's parents and legal guardians to develop the pupil's intellectual capabilities and vocational skills in a safe and positive environment."

The quotes need to be displayed in rooms where the local and state school boards meet, the office of the principal or school leader and every building operated by the Michigan Department of Education.

“This will serve as a visible and valuable reminder that parents have a fundamental right to direct the education of their children,” Glenn said in a statement when the bills were signed into law. “It isn’t debatable, and it shouldn’t be political. The law is clear, and it has been in statute in Michigan for many years.”

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Rules to help service animal trainers

Restaurants and other comparable sites can't discriminate against someone who legitimately needs and uses a leader dog or other similar service animal. But in the past, these locations could oust someone trying to train one of these animals.

Under a measure that goes into effect in March brought by state Rep. Tommy Brann, R-Wyoming, those legal protections must now also apply to people ensuring dogs, miniature horses and other creatures become effective service animals in the future.

“This training it just gives them real-life situations so it just gives them better training," Brann told Michigan Public Radio when the bill was approved earlier this year.

An establishment may ask a trainer and animal to leave if the animal is not housebroken or the animal is "out of control," according to the law.

'Critical incident mapping' for schools

If there's an active shooter or other similar threat, Michigan schools already need to provide law enforcement with blueprints and other building data. But under a new measure that takes effect in March, schools may instead choose to provide local police and sheriffs with comparable information called "critical incident mapping data."

State Rep. Mike Mueller, R- Linden, a retired sheriff's deputy, said the mapping provides a greater amount of detail that likely will make life easier for officers responding to an emergency at a school.

“Clear communication during an emergency saves lives,” Mueller said in a news release. “When first responders have access to a critical incident map as soon as they arrive on scene, they are able to share vital information with each other quickly and more efficiently.”

As defined in the law, "critical incident mapping data" includes:

• Accurate floor plans overlaid on or current aerial imagery of a school building or school plan;

• Site-specific labeling that matches the structure of the school building, including room labels, hallway names, external door or stairwell numbers, locations of hazards, key utility locations, key boxes, automated external defibrillators, and trauma kits;

• Site-specific labeling that matches the school grounds, including parking areas, athletic fields, surrounding roads, and neighboring properties;

• A gridded overlay with x/y coordinates.

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Assessing sign language skills in schools

There are clear and obvious standards for determining how well young children understand and use written or spoken English. But Michigan does not have comparable requirements to understand similar achievement by students who use American Sign Language.

A new bill that takes effect in March from state Rep. Ben Frederick, R-Owosso, establishes a commission to create these standards for young children who are deaf and others using ASL in the state. The new standards would be used to both track development and guide any specific Individual Education Plan for students using ASL, said Frederick.

“Children who are deaf or hard of hearing experience better outcomes when ASL is presented as an option at an early age,” Frederick said in a December news release. “By making more resources available to parents and ensuring that local school districts have the ability to help provide learning assessments using ASL, we can help children who use ASL thrive in the classroom.”

Once established, the assessment tools must be distributed to intermediate school districts — which frequently serve students who are deaf — other public schools and the Michigan School for the Deaf.

Personal finance in high school

Michigan students must successfully take a personal finance class in order to graduate in the future. Bill sponsor state Rep. Dianne Farrington, R-Utica, said the point of the newly required course is to instill lifelong skills at an early age.

“Personal finance education will serve as a launchpad for Michigan graduates lifting off into adulthood, so they won’t be caught off guard by the financial decisions that await them,” Farrington said when the bill was approved. “The course will teach students how to manage their finances. They’ll be prepared to make smart, everyday budget choices — and equipped to handle the challenges that come their way."

This will be a half-credit class; the Michigan Department of Education needs to create the curriculum for the course. While the class cannot count toward the half-credit economics class also required for graduation, local school boards can decide whether the class may count toward required credits in math, foreign language or the performing arts. Students may also complete the course through an approved career and technical education program.

The measure takes effect in March, but the new requirement applies to students entering eighth grade in 2023 and thereafter.

Money for QLINE, new rules for Huntington Place

In some of the last bills approved by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2022, two measures provide $85 million for the QLINE in Detroit. The rail system gets $5 million a year through 2039, expanding a subsidy first provided in 2020.

The 3.3-mile line, which operates along Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit, opened in 2017.

The bills also allow for the eventual expansion of Huntington Place, the Detroit convention center previously known as Cobo Center and the TCF Center. Previously, the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority could not spend more than $279 million on an expansion or renovation. The measures eliminate that cap, pave the way to creating new bike paths or green spaces at the convention center and also allow the authority to enter into a public-private partnership for anything from expanding to operating the facility.

Both bills formally take effect in March.

Crime victim compensation for emotional toll

People physically injured by a crime or relatives of people who died as a direct result of a crime are already eligible for money from the state.

However, a pair of bills from state Rep. Bronna Kahle, R-Adrian, and state Rep. Bradley Slagh, R-Zeeland, that take effect in August expand the law so that people who suffer a "psychological, mental, or emotional injury resulting from a reasonably perceived or actual threat of injury or death" are also eligible for financial compensation. The measures also extend the amount of time in which someone can file a claim, from within one year of reporting the crime to within five years.

“I’m pleased that state law now recognizes the emotional toll that a crime takes on a victim’s life long after physical wounds have healed,” Kahle said during her speech to her colleagues on the House floor. “We can’t undo the trauma that survivors have endured, but now we are ensuring that they have the support they need to heal.”

In addition to the victim of a crime, family members, romantic partners and those who intervened in an effort to prevent the crime may be eligible for compensation. Money can be used to reimburse medical bills, therapy or counseling and other qualified expenses.

Contact Dave Boucher: dboucher@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: New Michigan laws in 2023: Service animals, school change