Bill
SB 871
The bill creates the FY 2026-27 LARA budget, increasing gross spending by 8.37 million and altering General Fund/GP allocations to fund IT compliance, safety programs, and targeted
Purpose
- SB 871 proposes an annual appropriation act to fund the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2027, and to authorize the expenditure of those appropriations.
What the bill does
- Establishes the FY 2026-27 budget for LARA and related funding sources, with:
- Gross spending baseline and the breakdown by funding source (General Fund/General Purpose, Federal funds, Interdepartmental Grants, etc.).
- Adjusted gross amounts to reflect program changes, transfers, and interdepartmental grants.
- Provides a detailed schedule of changes from the FY 2025-26 year-to-date appropriations, including:
- Increases to support new or expanded programs and compliance activities.
- One-time and restricted funding adjustments (some one-time adjustments removed or shifted in the final package).
- Reorganization of line items (e.g., consolidation of certain budgets under a single program line).
- Includes targeted program and procurement funding actions, such as:
- IT and digital accessibility improvements.
- Funding for underground facilities safety education and training.
- Grants and reimbursements related to federal authorities and regulatory programs.
- Support for the Michigan Tax Tribunal backlog reduction.
- One-time funding for prosecuting attorneys coordinating council, cleanup grants, clean energy initiatives, and social equity programs (cannabis CRA, CRA Social Equity Program, etc.).
- Specific per-item funding actions (examples in the synopsis) include:
- IT – Federal Digital Accessibility compliance: +$167,400 restricted funds.
- Underground facilities safety education and training: +$500,000 restricted funds.
- MPSC software contracts and MIDC software contracts: increases to support grant management software and contract work.
- Economic adjustments: includes a broader package of adjustments totaling several million dollars.
- BFS – Firefighter training and storage tank inspections: +$346,000 restricted funds.
- Michigan Tax Tribunal backlog: +$359,300 restricted funds.
- One-time funding for various programs (e.g., urban search and rescue, smoke detectors, social equity initiatives, energy efficiency grants, and more) with stated one-time amounts.
- Net change from FY 2025-26 to FY 2026-27: an overall increase in gross spending of $8.371 million and a net GF/GP increase of $-1.097 million (the figure represents adjustments after consolidations and restricted funding shifts).
Schedule and timeline
- As of the document date (February 11, 2026 for some items), the bill reflects a Senate Appropriations process with a subcommittee recommendation (S-1) and a committee manner:
- The bill was introduced on March 18, 2026, with leadership and sponsor details.
- It progressed through committees (Appropriations; Committee of the Whole) with a later favorable report and recommendations.
- The enacted budget would cover FY 2026-27 (begins October 1, 2026) and ends September 30, 2027, with funds subject to annual audit and line-item adjustments as the state’s fiscal priorities and federal and interdepartmental funding dynamics evolve.
Who is affected
- Departments and programs under LARA (and related entities that receive funding through LARA appropriations) will implement the changes.
- Recipients of targeted grants and one-time funds (e.g., cannabis social equity initiatives, urban search and rescue, energy efficiency projects, smoke detector distribution, and criminal justice coordination programs) stand to benefit.
- State agencies involved in IT compliance, regulatory reporting, and consumer protections are affected by increased funding for IT contracts and compliance activities.
Key considerations
- The bill reallocates and supplements funding to address shortfalls and pending mandates (e.g., regulatory oversight enhancements, safety education, and compliance with federal accessibility standards).
- It includes both ongoing funding and targeted one-time appropriations, with some one-time appropriations removed or shifted in the S-1 rec. version.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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