The Michigan State Senate is the other half of the Legislative Branch of Michigan's government. While the House has 110 districts, the Senate only has 38, each representing approximately 212,400 to 263,500 residents. State Senators serve 4 year terms, compared to the House's 2 year terms.

Michigan Senate by Larry the Biker
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Find your senator according to the district map or look them up on the Senate Directory. You never know, you may find that your senator serves in the Leadership!

Each senator serves on several committees. Senate Leadership appoints senators to either standing committees, appropriations sub-committees, or both.

One of the unique privileges of serving in the Senate includes the power to Advise and Consent.

The Michigan Constitution grants the State Senate the power to reject various gubernatorial appointments. The Senate Government Operations Reform Committee is the committee that makes recommendations to the full senate on whether to confirm or deny any given appointment.

From the link above you can view appointee questionnaires and answers for some of the major offices like State Treasurer and the Department of State Police.

Like the House, the Senate helps decide how to divide up the State Budget, and they couldn't do it without the Senate Fiscal Agency. The SFA provides unbiased assistance in the matters of fiscal and legislative analysis.

Each senator is provided with assistance with press and outreach through either the Republican or Democratic Caucus, depending on their affiliation.

The Senate website is full of interactive trivia and games for the entire family. Click on Kids Page on the website (link not provided), and you can explore the Art of the Senate, print out pages to color, brush up on your trivia, or play puzzles and games.

Come back tomorrow as we delve into the third branch of Michigan's government, The Judicial Branch or head back to yesterday's article on the Michigan House of Representatives.