Latest news with #Cavitt
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Whitmer signs northern Michigan snow day forgiveness plan
An ice storm leaves a tree coated in Gaylord. March 30, 2025. Photo courtesy of NOAA's National Weather Service. Legislation to forgive ice-storm related school closures was signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday, protecting northern Michigan students and schools from mandatory summer school sessions. House Bill 4345, now Public Act 5 of 2025, passed with unanimous support in the Michigan House of Representatives and with near-unanimous support from the Michigan Senate. The plan addresses additional days in the 2024-25 school year, allowing local school boards to waive up to an additional 15 days of instruction. The school district must be located, at least partially, in a county covered by a state emergency declared by the governor. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Due to the recent spring ice storms that ravaged northern Michigan, those counties include Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Crawford, Emmet, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oscoda, Otsego, and Presque Isle counties. Bill sponsor Rep. Cam Cavitt (R-Cheboygan), said in a statement that he was grateful to Whitmer for signing the bill, and that schools should not be penalized for keeping kids safe during an ice storm. 'This is a smart, bipartisan win for students, teachers, and local communities,' Cavitt said. 'Now that our snow day forgiveness plan is law, school districts can end the school year when it makes the most sense for them. There will be no state mandate forcing districts to remain open for weeks into the summer and foot all the corresponding bills that would come along with the extended school year.' Cavitt said schools don't budget for facility costs in June, and that teachers and students line up summer work opportunities well before the school year ends. Districts also typically plan facility maintenance during that time due to the lack of students in the buildings. 'For all these reasons, it didn't make sense to force schools into hosting mandatory summer school,' Cavitt said. 'The ice storm threw everything out of whack. I'm glad we didn't let it ruin summertime too.'
CBS News
07-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Michigan House passes "snow day" bill for ice storm-affected districts
A request to allow some Northern Michigan schools additional days off this year has cleared the state House and is going to the state Senate. The bill was introduced April 17 by State Rep. Cam Cavitt, R-Cheboygan, whose district includes several of the school districts affected by a devastating ice storm March 28-30. Some schools were out of session for two weeks because of the power outages and storm damage. The bill passed the House with unanimous support. "While no one is happy that this ice storm took our kids out of the classroom, extending instruction past the 4th of July is not an appropriate remedy," Cavitt said. "I've spoken to teachers and administrators who say summertime instruction is challenging and ineffective. Students are checked out, and much of what teachers say will likely go in one ear and out the other." Michigan schools do have some leeway in setting their academic calendars, but the state requires at least 1,098 hours and 180 days of student instruction. There is some wiggle room built in for emergency days off. Michigan has allowed occasional allowances because of severe winters, but that is a case-by-case basis. House Bill 4345 is specific to the 2024-25 school year and to districts who are in counties covered by an already-issued emergency declaration from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Those counties include Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Crawford, Emmet, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oscoda, Otsego, and Presque Isle. "These kids sat at home for two weeks without power. They helped parents chop wood, clean up debris, keep pipes from freezing, and manage the overall disaster that was this ice storm. These kids did their part; they shouldn't lose a month of their summer break because of a situation entirely out of their control," Cavitt said. The plan now moves to the Senate for further consideration. The video above previously aired on April 11, 2025.
Epoch Times
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
About 20 Michigan Communities With Sanctuary Policies Could Lose Funding Under Proposed Bills
A package of bills that would eliminate the sanctuary policies of an estimated 20 communities across Michigan has cleared the Michigan House Oversight Committee and is headed for a vote in the Republican-controlled state House of Representatives. The bills are HB The 20 local governments have adopted, to some degree, policies of non-cooperation with federal immigration authorities when it comes to illegal immigration. Michigan is not a sanctuary state but has allowed individual municipalities to make their own decisions on the subject. A sanctuary community seeks to prevent harassment, discrimination, and deportation for illegal immigrants, while ensuring their access to health care, education, legal aid, and language classes, according to an online Under the proposed legislation, noncompliant communities could face the loss of statutory state revenue-sharing funds as a penalty. As of April 18, Muskegon County has been Related Stories 9/23/2024 4/1/2021 The Muskegon County administrator's office did not respond to a request for comment. The proposed new laws set forth a two-option enforcement mechanism. Option one says that 61 days after the laws are enacted, an individual may sue the alleged violating community in the local circuit court. The complainant may seek an injunction restraining the prohibited sanctuary actions and a court order to ensure the law is obeyed. The proposed statute requires the court to order the offending local government to amend or repeal its sanctuary policies. According to the proposed laws, the court must award actual damages, costs, and reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing individual challenging a municipality's sanctuary policies. The second enforcement option would also become active 61 days after the enactment date of the act. It says an individual may file a complaint form supplied by the state attorney general, who then must investigate the allegations against the alleged noncompliant unit of local government. The law, if enacted, would require the locality to cooperate with the attorney general's investigation. If a violation is confirmed, the attorney general must bring a legal action like the one described above in the locality's circuit court. If the attorney general prevails, the court is bound by law to follow the above-mentioned mandates to stop the practice. Michigan state Rep. Cam Cavitt. Courtesy of the Michigan House Republicans Republican state Rep. Cam Cavitt, the chief sponsor of the legislation, said in a Cavitt said that he somewhat understands the desire of some local officials to help people. 'But what they don't understand is that allowing people to live here illegally–putting up this false flag of protection–does nothing but keep people in the shadows and invite the worst criminals, gangbangers, and traffickers into our communities,' he said. Cavitt stated that despite the federal government's crackdown on illegal immigration, local law enforcement continues 'to have regular interactions with illegal immigrants.' 'It should be no surprise that we're seeing violent gangbangers, perverts, scammers, and all sorts of other criminals flocking to Michigan to hide from the feds. ... We should be doing everything we can to get these criminals out of our country. Instead, some radical Michigan communities are bending over backward to obstruct immigration officials at every turn,' Cavitt said. State Rep. Mike McFall, a Democrat who voted against advancing the bills out of committee, did not respond to a request for comment by publication time. State House Minority Leader Ranjeev Puri, a Democrat, also did not respond to a request for comment. Before the bills can become law, they must be passed by the Democrat-controlled Senate and survive a potential veto by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
New York Times
28-04-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Trading Mere Survival for a Chance at Stability
Da'Monya Cavitt tiptoes down the stairs of the house in Vallejo, Calif., that he shares with his father and two other refinery workers. He moves quietly — everyone else works night shifts, and he's careful not to wake them. The curtains stay drawn. The rooms stay dark. The creaky floors demand attention. There's no Wi-Fi, but there's space, a roof overhead, and — most important — possibilities. At 29, Mr. Cavitt is ready to trade survival for stability. After years of housing insecurity, a carousel of low-wage jobs, and a childhood marked by upheaval, he's been accepted into a competitive apprenticeship program with the Steamfitters Local 342 in Concord, Calif. It's a path to solid union wages, benefits, and a career he hopes will allow him to someday own a home — maybe even flip houses like his mother used to. 'You get to a point where you realize you don't just want to work — you need a career,' he said. 'I want to build something for myself.' For now, he lives in a small upstairs bedroom, just large enough for a bed and a dresser; a PlayStation 5 controller and iPad rest neatly on his quilted bedspread. There's a portable AC in one corner, a ceiling fan above, and a narrow path between furniture. 'It's pretty spartan,' Mr. Cavitt said of the furnished rental. But compared with the cramped motel room he and his father, Anthony Levi, 56, shared for nearly a year, this place is a breath of fresh air. Until recently, the two lived at a Budget Inn in Vallejo. They stayed for 10 months, packed into a kitchenette with two beds. Mr. Cavitt kept things quiet and dark there, too, while Mr. Levi slept off refinery shifts. At the new place, the silence is sometimes broken by the sound of barking — 'two huge beasts across the street and one next door,' Mr. Cavitt said of the neighbors' dogs, who launch into a frenzy whenever a delivery truck dares enter the cul-de-sac. 'Haven't figured out how to keep them quiet yet,' he adds good-naturedly. Mr. Cavitt's journey to this moment has been long and unpredictable. Born in Watts, he spent his early childhood bouncing around Southern California. His mother, Nicole Cavitt, 48, bought and flipped houses, often living in them until they were sold. But when the dot-com bubble burst and the 9/11 attacks sent markets into a tailspin, her real estate business collapsed. They landed back in Watts, in an environment she had tried to shield him from. 'That's not where she wanted to raise me,' Mr. Cavitt said. 'There were gangs, there was violence, there were drugs. There were a lot of ways for an innocent person to get hurt for no reason.' When Ms. Cavitt moved to Georgia, Mr. Cavitt — then 14 — declined to follow. He stayed behind in L.A., moving in with a friend's family. Later, he joined his mother in Georgia for about a year, but came back again, once more living with the same friend. He got a job at a natural foods store and supported himself through high school. 'The healthiest I've ever been!' he said, laughing. Da'Monya Cavitt, 29 Job: Customer service at a cannabis dispensary On his residential dreams: 'In five years, I hope to be a homeowner — paid well enough to own multiple properties and flip houses like my mom used to.' On starting classes: 'Longevity and stability were — and still are — the end goal. So I'm sticking to my script because I know I have something going now.' That living arrangement lasted until a fire tore through the friend's house. 'After that, we stayed with about five or six people in someone's living room,' he recalls. 'If you counted the dogs, there were about nine of us sleeping on a couch and a chair. I had no idea where any of my stuff was.' Ms. Cavitt eventually moved to Arizona and then to Seattle, in 2016. She persuaded Mr. Cavitt to go with her. By then, he'd started making music under the name 'King Cavitt' and dreaming about starting a fashion line called Renaissance. In Seattle, he worked as a groundskeeper and moved into an apartment — a one-bedroom for $1,200 a month. 'It was my first apartment,' he said. 'But sometimes, when things come easy, you take them for granted. I was late with rent. I had to get real with myself.' He lost the apartment in 2022 and moved back in with his mother. That's when his father stepped in, encouraging him to return to California and look into union work. With dispensary experience from Seattle, Mr. Cavitt found a customer service job at a shop in Fairfield, about 20 miles from Vallejo. He has a driver's license but not a car, so he commutes by Uber or Lyft — 'up to $35 a ride,' he said. 'I know customer service and I know weed,' he adds. 'But this is just to tide me over until I get that apprenticeship. Right now, I'm working on my credit, building savings. I really want to create an even foundation.' That foundation starts with the Steamfitters program. Mr. Levi introduced him to the opportunity and encouraged him to apply. Mr. Cavitt got in. He's set to start classes in July. The five-year program isn't easy to crack. According to a Local 342 spokesperson, only about 100 of the 1,000 annual applicants are accepted. But those who make the cut have a good shot at being placed directly into jobs, with starting wages around $30 an hour, plus benefits. For Mr. Cavitt, that paycheck would be life-changing. In Vallejo, he pays $1,500 in rent — a leap from the motel, but still a stretch. 'It's not ideal,' he said. 'But it's progress.'
CBS News
18-04-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Northern Michigan lawmaker seeks forgiveness for ice storm-related school closings
A Michigan state representative has presented a bill seeking forgiveness of missed school days in a region that was hit hard by the March 28-30 ice storm . Some school districts in Northern Lower Michigan were out of session for two weeks in the aftermath because the resulting power outages were so widespread and extensive. Gaylord Community Schools, for example, posted on social media that it welcomed its students back on April 14. Cleanup and recovery efforts are still in progress. State Rep. Cam Cavitt, R-District 106, presented his plan Thursday via House Bill 4345 , which has been referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce. The bill would remove minimum school hours and day requirements during the current school year for any county included in a state of emergency declared by the governor. Without such relief, Cavitt said, some schools might have to stay in session until July. The list of counties, under a state declaration issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, is Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Crawford, Emmet, Mackinac, Montmorency, Oscoda, Otsego and Presque Isle. Cavitt's district includes parts of Cheboygan, Alpena, Oscoda, Montmorency and Presque Isle counties. Whitmer has requested , but not received a formal answer yet, on a federal declaration of emergency over the ice storm. Some of the school districts in Northern Michigan were out of session for two weeks in early April – and that's not counting any weather emergencies from earlier in the year. Michigan schools do have some leeway in setting their academic calendars, but the state requires at least 1,098 hours and 180 days of student instruction. There is some wiggle room built in for emergency days off. Extensions that Michigan allowed to the emergency day allowance during previous severe winters were granted for those years only. One such example involved the additional days that were allowed in 2018-19. "We had over 190 inches of snow this year. We've got days of school to make up already," Katy Xenakis-Makowski, Superintendent of the Johannesburg-Lewiston School District and President of the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators, said in her statement on the matter. "Adding additional days after assessments, after Memorial Day, going past Father's Day and towards the Fourth of July will not help instruction. We need to be focused on the basic needs of our community and helping build our kids back up."
