Sen. Dana Poehankie briefs Inkster on education, safety and labor bills

State Sen. Dana Poehankie visited the Inkster City Council on April 7 to outline recent and pending legislative actions affecting local schools, public safety and the workforce.

Poehankie, who said she represents Inkster along with parts of Livonia, Canton, Westland and Garden City, noted a pilot program that provided $250,000 to offer free driver’s education to students in Wayne Westland Community Schools. She said the pilot was successful and that she will press to continue the effort statewide.

“Free driver’s ed was part of school when I was 16,” Poehankie said, describing the pilot as a way to reduce cost barriers for young drivers.

The senator also outlined a proposal to cap class sizes in kindergarten through third grade in selected districts, saying the pilot would set smaller, more manageable classroom sizes so teachers can work one‑on‑one with students. The council discussion and Poehankie’s remarks presented the pilot as a multi‑district effort; Poehankie described the funding during her remarks but did not produce written budget documentation at the meeting.

Poehankie urged the continuation of universal free school meals and recommended making school safety and mental‑health funding permanent budget items rather than temporary pandemic-era allocations.

On public safety, she highlighted the child safe‑storage law that took effect Feb. 13 and said the legislature removed the statute of limitations for certain second‑ and third‑degree child sexual‑offense indictments. “There’s no statute of limitations anymore,” she told the council.

Addressing labor policy, Poehankie said lawmakers restored unemployment insurance eligibility to 26 weeks from a previous reduction and noted increases in weekly benefit amounts. She described newly enacted earned sick‑time protections — saying employees of larger employers (10 or more workers) qualify for 72 hours while employees at smaller employers receive 40 hours — and noted the minimum wage will rise to $15 by 2027.

Poehankie closed by announcing a joint town hall with U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell in Canton on April 21 at Summit on the Park and answered council members’ questions about possible federal Department of Education changes and how altered grant deadlines or distributions could affect local schools.

The council did not take formal action on the state proposals during the meeting; Poehankie encouraged residents to attend the April 21 town hall for more detail.