House Republican Leader Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, on Wednesday issued the following statement after the governor made her annual budget recommendation:

“Budgets are about priorities, but Gov. Whitmer’s disappointing budget proposal shows her priorities are out of step with the people of Michigan. Taxpayers want a high return on their investment. They don’t want new fool’s gold programs that feel good but don’t provide real value for their tax dollars. They want government to do the basics efficiently and effectively.

“The governor wants to help rich people buy new electric vehicles, while yet again ignoring the crumbling county roads and city streets that she has neglected for the past five years. Thanks to responsible, dedicated practices Republicans put in place, our state has shored up health care funding for retired teachers, but Gov. Whitmer is robbing from our teachers and future generations of taxpayers by refusing to invest our savings in the debt we owe to our teachers’ pensions. At the same time, the governor is asking for working families to pay for free college for rich kids. And in our K-12 schools, while spending keeps increasing, Michiganders want real solutions; the seven out of 10 fourth-graders who can’t read proficiently deserve better.

“With total control of state government over the last year, Democrats have spent enormous sums of taxpayer dollars on unsustainable programs and pet projects for politically favored areas. They even raised the income tax on every Michigander and small business in January to pay for more wasteful spending. But they couldn’t blow through the money fast enough, and now they’re planning to use the interest and their tax hike to pay for more spending while ignoring some of the biggest needs of Michiganders. The people of Michigan deserve a government that works for them and delivers value for their dollars. The governor’s budget of misplaced priorities doesn’t cut it.”