Lansing Update: MCC Urges Grassroots to Contact Lawmakers to Support Nonpublic Students
Posted June 27, 2025
Action Alert: Tell Your Lawmaker to Support Nonpublic Students in State Budget
Michigan Catholic Conference is calling on members of the Catholic Advocacy Network like you to contact your lawmakers and urge their support for nonpublic students in the next state budget.
The House, Senate, and Governor’s office have all put forth school spending plans for the budget year that begins October 1. Lawmakers are currently working toward a final compromise between the three proposals, and there remains a possibility that a final budget could be completed and passed by next Tuesday, July 1.
With that urgency in mind, as lawmakers continue their deliberations, it is important to remind them to support essential school services that benefit all students, including the 100,000 who attend nonpublic schools, including school safety and mental health grants and expanded access to school meals.
To support the case for continued state support of nonpublic schools, MCC and the Michigan Association of Nonpublic Schools teamed up to produce the following video that illustrates how Michigan’s nonpublic schools serve the common good.
Please feel free to share the video with anyone who may benefit from learning more about the public good that nonpublic schools provide in the state of Michigan.
Senate Approves Bill That Could Impact People Praying Outside Abortion Clinics
Legislation opposed by MCC that could subject individuals peacefully praying outside of abortion clinics to costly litigation passed the state Senate this week on a partisan party-line vote.
Senate Bills 154 and 155 would create a state-level version of the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACES). The FACES law had been used under the prior presidential administration to prosecute individuals who protest outside abortion clinics.
President Trump pardoned 23 pro-life activists who had been convicted under the federal FACES law, and his administration has said it will cease enforcement of the federal law barring “extraordinary circumstances” or in cases presenting “significant aggravating factors.”
MCC had previously shared its concerns regarding the legislation with a Senate committee, noting the legislation “offers a misrepresentation of those who peacefully pray outside of the clinics and are available to offer women alternatives to abortion or other resources,” and that those individuals “who peacefully pray or interact with women near abortion clinics could be forced into costly litigation to defend their Constitutional rights.”
The Senate legislation was sent to the House Government Operations Committee for further consideration, and legislation typically only advances from the committee with the House Speaker’s approval.
Policing Reform Legislation Receives MCC Support
MCC offered support of a bipartisan legislative package to improve policing practices, build community trust, and ensure individuals who interact with law enforcement are treated with dignity.
The Senate legislation offers several reforms meant to prevent the sometimes-hostile interactions between law enforcement officers and individuals that have led to the deaths of some individuals.
This is the third consecutive legislative session that MCC has offered support of similar legislation, as the policies align with ensuring healthy relationships between law enforcement and the people they are called to protect and serve.
Among the current legislative proposals include requiring all police agencies to establish use-of-force policies that include requirements that officers should only use physical force that is “objectively reasonable.”
Senate Bill 333 would also provide standards for, and alternatives to, using physical force—including de-escalation techniques—and would also classify the use of chokeholds as deadly force.
Other parts of the policing package include improving training to include de-escalation tactics, requiring police agencies to create duty-to-intervene policies to ensure officers act if they see a fellow officer using excessive force, and a limitation on the use of no-knock warrants.
The entire package—Senate Bills 333 through 343—received testimony only during the Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary and Public Safety Committee this week.
Religious Freedom Week: Pray for and Learn About Pressing Issues
This week, the Church in America observes Religious Freedom Week, which runs from June 22—the feast of martyrs St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More—to June 29, the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.
Each day, the U.S. bishops provide a particular prayer intention that pertains religious liberty, allowing Catholics to learn and reflect on pressing issues both here and across the globe.
In addition to praying for the Church in heavily persecuted areas like Nigeria and Nicaragua, the U.S. bishops also invite the faithful to pray for several public policy topics of interest to Catholics.
These include prayers for governments to strengthen the ability for parents to direct the education of their children, and for the protection of vulnerable migrants and refugees, as well as for the Church to enjoy the freedom to carry out the ministries Christ has handed to her.
To see the full list of daily reflections, click or tap here, and follow along with the daily prayer intentions on MCC’s social media channels.