Slide 7 of 84

And the Legislature occupies the central role in the budget process. The laws of the State of Michigan place the power of the purse squarely in the hands of the Legislature. It is the Legislature that has the power to tax. It is the Legislature that has the power to borrow. And, it is the Legislature that has the power to make appropriations. In fact, the entire budget process can be viewed as those events involved in getting and executing an appropriation. So, when somebody says, "The governor raised this tax, or spent money on that program," there may be a grain of truth there, but he did it with at least 56 votes in the House and 20 in the Senate to back him up.