Latest news, weather, high school sports for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

MARQUETTE -- The protestors say Governor Rick Snyder is acting as a dictator.  They're frustrated with a bill that was signed into law Wednesday.  The bill gives enhanced powers to state appointed emergency financial managers, allowing them to eliminate collective bargaining.

"I’m just so outraged,” said Marquette resident Nancy Sullivan.  “It really lowers the bar by which the governor can come in and take over our city governments, our school boards, our elected county officials."

But the governor's office has an answer.  They say the goal is to allow the state to intervene at an earlier stage, when a local unit of government is in financial distress, so that the need for an emergency manager can be avoided altogether.  If, however, an emergency manager is needed, then they need the tools to properly address these challenges.

The protesters are also concerned about proposals to tax pensions, as well as proposals to cut education funding.

"If he has enough money from taxing pensions in order to pay for the business tax reduction, that's roughly the same amount of money you need to take care of the schools and the cities,” said Marquette resident James Greene.  “That is the trade off I would make."

But the governor's office says the exemption that keeps pensions tax-free will be removed so that everyone will pay the same:  4.25 percent.  Social security income will not be taxed.    

Regarding education cuts, the governor's office says with Snyder’s proposal, education would be experiencing approximately a five percent cut, one of the lowest in comparison to other areas of the budget.  If teachers agreed to pay 20 percent of their health insurance plans, the money saved would make up for half of the total cuts made.

Currently, no further demonstrations by the protestors in Marquette Saturday have been planned.

Many of the protestors here say they hope their demonstration in Marquette expresses their solidarity with the protestors in Lansing.