CHICAGO - Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is making a three-city campaign swing Monday as part of a last-minute bus tour urging voters to approve a controversial sales tax increase on Tuesday's ballot.
Proposal One would amend Michigan's constitution to raise the sales tax to 7% from 6% and raise an estimated $1.7 billion in new money annually. About $1.2 billion would go to transportation projects, with another roughly $100 million set aside for local governments and $300 million for schools.
It's among the most high-profile referendums to appear on Michigan's ballot in recent years, alongside a 2012 question to repeal the state's emergency manager law.
Snyder has made new transportation funding one of his top priorities, saying it's crucial to Michigan's continued recovery. After years of failed efforts to address the issue, lawmakers last December approved a legislative package that requires voter approval.
Snyder and other supporters have spent months promoting Proposal One, appearing at the sites of deteriorating roads and bridges across the state, wearing hard hats and passing out crumbling concrete as souvenirs.
The governor is scheduled to appear in Detroit, Howell and Lansing on Monday to wind up the tour.
Other stops have been Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo.
Despite the efforts and local editorials urging voters to support the tax hike, recent polls suggest that a majority of voters are opposed to the amendment.
The 10-bill package would generate up to $1.7 billion in new annual funding. The legislation would also hike fuel taxes by about three cents per gallon while removing the sales tax from fuel sales and increasing fees on vehicle registration and heavy trucks.
