LANSING (AP) -- The Republican-led Michigan Senate has approved a replacement for an emergency manager law struck down by voters in the November election.
The Senate on Thursday passed the legislation passed the day before by the House, and it now heads to the GOP Gov. Rick Snyder for his expected signature. The measure met with fierce opposition from Democrats.
The previous law empowered the governor to appoint managers with broad powers to overrule elected leaders of financially struggling cities and school districts and throw out contracts.
The new version proposed by Snyder and legislative leaders gives four choices to communities in financial trouble: accept an emergency manager; undergo bankruptcy; engage in mediation; or enter into a consent agreement similar to one between the state and Detroit.
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