Spearheading Legislative Solutions
to Safeguard Manufacturers
By Dave Greco, III • MMA
August 2020 MiMfg Magazine 17
From food to pharmaceuticals, chemicals to
transportation and even toilet paper, Michigan
manufacturers create the products that are essential to
our daily lives. Through the COVID-19 crisis, many
have stepped up to meet the need for vital personal
protective equipment (PPE) and disinfectants. To move
forward confidently in uncertain times, manufacturers
need assurances that their dedication and ingenuity
in the face of a global pandemic will not be rewarded
with unnecessary and punitive lawsuits.
As a leader in an expansive coalition comprised
of business trade associations, school groups and
health care providers, MMA has been proactively
working with the Legislature to pass legislation that
would protect businesses that have operated in good
faith, taking reasonable actions to follow public
health guidance, and producing vital products.
A pair of three-bill packages, House Bills 6030-
6032 and Senate Bills 1022-1024, were introduced in
both the House and Senate to shield employers from
frivolous and baseless lawsuits arising out of COVID-19
while also extending Good Samaritan safeguards.
Specifically, the legislation introduced by Senator
Lana Theis (R-Brighton), Senator Ken Horn (R-
Frankenmuth), Senator Wayne Schmidt (R-Traverse
City), Representative Thomas Albert (R-Lowell),
Representative Tommy Brann (R-Wyoming) and
Representative Graham Filler (R-Ovid) would:
• Provide a safe harbor for businesses that follow
public health guidance to minimize the risk of
exposure to COVID-19 for their employees,
customers and vendors.
• Prevent opportunistic lawyers from filing mass
tort, class action, or frivolous individual lawsuits
against a business by requiring proof of an actual
injury from COVID-19.
• Place a reasonable limit on the liability exposure
of anyone who makes, sells, distributes, or
donates certain needed products to government
Your Support is Critical
Contributing to the MMA-PAC is an investment in
Michigan’s future and one of the most affordable
and effective ways to support pro-manufacturing
legislators and candidates.
Donate at mimfg.org or contact Brianna Mills
at 517-487-8523 or [email protected].
entities, health care providers, first responders
or essential businesses during the pandemic.
To be clear, this legislation will not protect bad
actors who recklessly disregard a substantial risk or
intentionally expose a person to the virus. Those
who know about defects likely to cause injury yet
continue to make, sell or donate a product should be
liable. But this legislation will protect the good
actors from compounding today’s fragile economic
conditions with COVID-19-related lawsuits.
Efforts continue through the summer to build
support for these important employer protections in
advance of potential action when the legislative
session resumes in September.
Members may contact their legislators to let them
know that local employers support HB 6030-6032 and
SB 1022-1024. Contact me for help lending your voice to
this effort and to share your company’s experience. 6
Dave Greco, III, is MMA’s Director of Regulatory &
Environmental Affairs. He may be reached at
517-487-8543 or [email protected].
Get More!
Join us for a webinar with Representative Thomas
Albert, featuring an interactive update on the pending
legislative package that will protect employers from
frivolous COVID-19-related lawsuits. Get answers and
find out how you can help push this critical legislation
forward. See mimfg.org for details and to register.
Read a recent The Detroit News op-ed by MMA
President & CEO John Walsh at detroitnews.com.
“Our ability to support pro-manufacturing
candidates is imperative as antimanufacturing
voices are working
strategically against our industry.”
— Patrick Curry, MMA-PAC Chair
and President of Fullerton Tool
MMA-PAC can accept personal contributions or contributions from sole-proprietorships, partnerships or limited liability companies (LLCs). State Law prohibits acceptance of corporate checks.