FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Lansing, MI – December 16, 2012

 

The dedicated efforts of People Against the NDAA (PANDA), the Tenth Amendment Center, and thousands of volunteers paid off in the Michigan Legislature on Friday. Senator Randy Richardville (R-Monroe) –  the Senate Majority Leader – told PANDA's Michigan team that the 2013 version of Rep. Tom McMillins' HB 5768 (non-compliance with the indefinite detention provisions of the 2012 NDAA) will be scheduled as the first item for consideration in the new legislative session beginning in January of next year.

 

The bill, originally introduced in June of this year, was passed unanimously (107-0) by the Michigan House earlier this month. On Tuesday the bill was referred to the full Senate by the Judiciary Committee chaired by Senator Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge) without a dissenting vote. The progress enjoyed by HB 5768 to this point was unusually quick and the unrelenting visits, calls, and emails from volunteers played a key role in this progress. This week, Senators and their offices were quite impressed by the large volume of calls and emails made by the energetic members of PANDA and coalition partners in support of the bill.  


We will be back in January with numbers, spirit and enthusiasm. Building on our success in 2012, we will focus the energies of our growing army of volunteers on getting the bill through the House and Senate and on to Governor Snyder's desk for his signature. We ask all those concerned about the NDAA to prepare to join us in January for our final push. In the meantime, we all should thank the following legislators for their assistance in 2012:

 

1. Rep. Tom McMillin (R-Auburn Hills), Chairman of the House Oversight Committee. Bill author and sponsor
    (517) 373-1773 ; TomMcMillin@house.mi.gov 

2. Sen. Rick Jones  (R-Grand Ledge), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee
     (517) 373-3447 ; SenRJones@senate.michigan.gov

3. Sen. Tonya Schuitmaker (R- Kalamazoo), Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee
     (517) 373-0793 ; Fax – (517) 373-5607

4. Sen. Tory Rocca (R- Sterling Heights), Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee
     (517) 373-7315 ; Fax – (517) 373-3126

5. Sen. John Pappageorge (R- Birmingham), 2013 Senate Sponsor
     (517) 373-2523 ; Fax – (517) 373-5669

6. Rep. Greg MacMaster (R-Kewadin), Co-sponsor
     (517) 373-0829 ; GregMacMaster@house.mi.gov

7. Rep. Jeff Irwin (D- Ann Arbor), Co-sponsor
     (517) 373-2577 ; jeffirwin@house.mi.gov


 

Dennis Marburger

PANDA Michigan

hadji1954@hotmail.com

Dan Johnson

Founder, PANDA

nullifyNDAA@gmail.com