Michigan Legislature passes just seven bills in first quarter of 2026 as campaign season looms

Historically slow start to 2026 legislative session raises questions about Michigan's lawmaking pace

Michigan lawmakers sent Governor Gretchen Whitmer just seven bills in the first three months of 2026, marking the slowest pace in an even-numbered year this century, according to a review by Bridge Michigan.

The politically divided Legislature has finalized laws dealing with smartphone bans in schools, death certificate reforms, and renewal of an interstate medical compact, but experts warn the glacial pace could continue as legislators prepare to leave Lansing for fall campaign trails.

Seven bills in three months

The seven bills signed into law include:

• Two bills to ban smartphones from public school classrooms
• Two bills streamlining death certificate processes
• A bill renewing an interstate medical compact
• A measure allowing Harsens Island in St. Clair County to utilize tax incremental financing
• A bill designating the wood duck as Michigan's first official state duck

The second year of two-year terms are typically more productive than the first because lawmakers have learned to work together and already introduced many bills. But so far, 2026 is the slowest start to the second year of a term since at least 1998, which is as far back as legislative records are immediately available.

"We may, in fact, really not see much movement other than a budget all this year, unless we see a deal on property taxes," said Republican strategist John Sellek, founder and CEO of the Lansing-based Harbor Strategic communications firm.

Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks of Grand Rapids points to past Democratic victories

Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks of Grand Rapids pointed to laws Democrats passed in 2023 when they were still in charge, including elimination of the so-called retirement tax and expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit for lower-income residents.

But there is certainly more we can get done this year, Brinks said, telling Bridge that other top priorities for her caucus include lowering child care costs and prescription drug prices.

We certainly hope to have willing partners in the House on all of those things, she said in a statement.

House Speaker Matt Hall defends minimal lawmaking

Hall has defended the minimal lawmaking in Lansing, arguing quality matters more than quantity.

In a statement, he told Bridge he's optimistic the Legislature can get a property tax cut deal done this year. Hall has also personally blocked a top priority for Senate Democrats, who last year advanced a government transparency proposal to expand Michigans Freedom of Information Act by subjecting the governor and lawmakers to public records requests.

Budget deadline pressure looms

The budget process proved contentious last year, the first since Republicans won back the state House to end a short-lived Democratic trifecta. Lawmakers blew past a July 1 budget deadline written into state law and then missed an Oct. 1 deadline mandated by the state Constitution, passing a stopgap spending measure to avoid the first state government shutdown in 16 years.

Campaign season drives legislative spring break

Both chambers will be back in the Capitol on Tuesday. In the meantime, lawmakers are off on their legislative spring break this week.

Asked about the prospects for legislative action this year, both Hall and Brinks pointed to laws passed in previous years while emphasizing their respective priorities for 2026.

Hall has also claimed credit for having personally negotiated deals to ban cellphones in classrooms and for renewing Michigans participation in the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact which stopped an estimated 8,000 medical licenses from lapsing in late 2025.

Smartphone ban goes into effect August 2026

One of the seven bills signed this year bans smartphone use in Michigan schools. The law requires every public and charter K-12 district in Michigan to ban smartphones during instructional time beginning with the 2026-27 school year.

The law goes into effect in the school year that begins in August 2026, affecting schools across West Michigan including Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Holland, and Battle Creek.

Death certificate reforms streamline processes

Two bills deal with death certificates, streamlining the certification process and requiring certificates be filed within 48 hours of a death.

Medical compact renewal spares 8,000 doctors

A bill renewed an interstate medical compact Michigan participates in, keeping 8,000 doctors licenses from expiring in the process. Both chambers wanted to renew, but the legislation stalled for months amid a political debate over which lawmakers would get credit.

Harsens Island gets tax incremental financing

A measure allowed Harsens Island in St. Clair County to utilize tax incremental financing for downtown development purposes. It was approved as part of a deal on the medical compact bill.

Property tax reform remains uncertain

Amid high costs for housing and other living expenses, property tax reform has been high on the to-do list for several lawmakers, including House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township. But he has not yet introduced a plan, and his public comments suggest the forthcoming proposal will be complicated.

What has been signed into law so far this year

More than 2,600 bills have been introduced between the Republican-led House and Democratic-led Senate since the current, two-year term started on Jan. 1, 2025. Whitmer signed 76 of those bills into law in 2025, making it the lowest performing legislative year since 1842, according to the Michigan Information and Research Service Inc.

Nearly half of the new laws 36 were signed in December during a year-end flurry. As of 2026, five of the seven bills signed into law this year originated in the Republican-led House, where Hall has at times vocally opposed passing legislation from Senate Democrats.