Michigan school board backs ‘Invest in MI Kids’ tax measure

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(The Center Square) – The Michigan State School Board of Education voted to endorse the Invest in MI Kids ballot measure.

It passed it by a vote of 5-2.

“Michigan schools have been underfunded for decades,” said Mitchell Robinson, a member of the board that voted to endorse it. “The ballot initiative Invest In MI Kids is a meaningful effort to provide secure, stable revenue for K12 funding. Just one small dollar invested in our kids’ education pays off tenfold down the line for the future of our communities.”

The ballot initiative, which is a constitutional amendment, is currently in the process of gathering signatures ahead of the 2026 Midterm Election.

It would add an additional 5% tax on all taxable income over $1 million for joint filers and $500,000 for single filers. This would be in addition to existing state income taxes.

Advocates have labeled the tax a “small, fair share surcharge.”

Many groups have already joined together to push back against the initiative, including Americans For Prosperity, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and the Small Business Association of Michigan.

Those organizations have labeled the initiative “dangerous.”

“Make no mistake that this proposal is a jobs killer. It would wreck Michigan small businesses, and that's the same thing as wrecking the Michigan economy,” said Brian Calley, president and CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan, as previously reported by The Center Square.

Advocates for the initiative argue against that claim, saying it will only tax the richest Michiganders, while raising much-needed money for Michigan public schools. It anticipates it could raise upwards of $1 billion in annual funding.

The Detroit Federation of Teachers, the Michigan PTA, and many Democrats have joined the Michigan State School Board of Education in endorsing the initiative. One of those is U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-MI.

“We can't get the years back for them when we don't invest in their education now,” Tlaib said. “They deserve to be a priority.”

Michigan would not be the first state to pass such a measure. For example, Massachusetts adopted a similar “millionaire’s tax” in 2022.