by: WOOD TV8
LANSING, Mich. (WOOD TV8) — On Wednesday Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed bills meant to lengthen state unemployment benefits to 26 weeks, from 20 weeks, through the end of the year.
Whitmer said the laws signed and enacted Tuesday, largely codify changes the Democratic governor had ordered early in the coronavirus pandemic under her emergency authority. The Michigan Supreme Court recently struck down a law that was the underpinning of various orders, making the unemployment and other orders invalid.
During a Wednesday press briefing, Whitmer urged the Republican-led Legislature to next make the 26 weeks of benefits permanent, which is the case in 40 other states.
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