Will Vetoes Bring Revenues or Overrides?

by Gongwer News Service
October 23, 2009

What is it about a veto override that makes it such a rare occurrence in Michigan politics? And could that history mean the incipient outrage over Governor Jennifer Granholm’s veto of $51 million to 39 school districts results in festering bluster and nothing else?

In the last 58 years, just three times has the legislature mustered the votes to override a gubernatorial veto. There have been at least three earthquakes in the state during that same time. Coming from a state known for temblors, Ms. Granholm certainly does not want to see veto overrides become a more earth-shaking event in terms of her line-item vetoes in HB 4447.

The rarity of a veto override is not the case everywhere. In South Carolina, virtually every time Governor Mark Sanford takes a break from walking the Appalachian Trail (or whatever state activity he claims to do) he vetoes a bill, and almost as frequently the Palmetto State’s legislature overrides the veto.

Not here. Out of the hundreds of vetoes the state’s governors have issued, just in the last 58 years, only three have been overridden. Of the governors serving since the 1950s, John Swainson, George Romney and James Blanchard never saw a veto overridden.

Oddly, there was a time and an issue when officials expected a veto to be overridden. The issue was Medicaid funding for abortion, and the governors were William Milliken and Mr. Blanchard. Repeatedly they vetoed lines the legislature added to social services budgets outlawing spending Medicaid funds on elective abortions and, repeatedly, brave pronouncements were made the legislature would override the veto (early in Mr. Blanchard’s first term, Social Services Director Agnes Mansour said flatly in a TV interview the veto would be overridden). But always the governor succeeded in holding enough members of his party’s legislative caucus to keep the veto intact.

And perhaps that loyalty, along with some arm-twisting, cajoling and who knows what else, is the main secret to governors having success in holding back overrides.

Indeed, in the last override, in 2002, when then-Governor John Engler vetoed all the discretionary revenue sharing funds, his efforts to forestall the override fizzled in the face of statewide outrage from local governments. Quickly his allies crossed over to the other side, and eventually he seemed to recognize the tide had gone against him. The vote to override finally was almost anti-climactic when it happened.

In contrast, when the legislature overrode Mr. Milliken on a bill dealing with legislative oversight of administrative rules, his outrage was palpable. He and his administration had worked feverishly to keep Republicans in line in the House against the override and one of what became known as the “Gang of Six” (Thom Sharpe, Quincy Hoffman, Edgar Fredricks, Kirby Holmes, Ray Mittan and Robert Welborn) said he had been threatened with losing some of his staff if he did not back up Mr. Milliken.

In the press conference following the override, the usually mellow Mr. Milliken was seething as he promised he would not forget those six. But while there was little retribution, what there was more of was even harder work on his administration’s part to ensure such an event never happened again.

So we come to the present day, and face the philosophical concept that if all objects are given, then all possible states of affairs are also given. Given, the governor has vetoed the $51 million going to the so-called 20j school districts, those districts that spend the highest amount per student. Given, the districts are screaming and screaming mostly into the ears of their legislators. Given, the governor has said there isn’t enough money to fund the school aid budget. Given, if that is the case (and if it isn’t specifically the case now, it certainly could be relatively soon given the economy) then the legislature has three options: override the veto, pass tax increases or accept the cut and let school administrators, teachers and parents scream.

Ironically, the potentially hardest thing to do — override the veto — is psychologically the easiest to meet. Override the veto, make the schools happy, make people opposed to taxes happy, and hope you don’t find yourself back still having to make more cuts or raise revenues.

There certainly is sentiment to override the veto, but as Rep. Mark Meadows (D-East Lansing) said, there are more districts unaffected than affected by the veto (and his home district of East Lansing Public Schools, where Ms. Granholm’s kids go to school, is affected).

If more districts had faced a broader knife, then maybe more public sentiment for an override would be evident.

Now, there is one factor not yet calculated into the equation: more vetoes. Presuming Ms. Granholm makes additional massive line-item vetoes, what then is the given state of affairs? Will it be enough to push legislators into approving revenue increases at this time, or will it be enough to drive public will and the legislature into overriding her vetoes?

However it goes in the next weeks, it is a rare opportunity for political students to watch the dynamics unfold.