On May 26, 2026, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed House Bill 5797 of 2026 into law with immediate effect, granting certain school districts primarily in Northern Michigan and Oakland County additional exemptions from the minimum days of pupil instruction required under the State School Aid Act. House Bill 5797 applies to this 2025-26 school year only and is in response to severe weather events, namely a winter storm and flooding, as well as a major watermain break.
State School Aid Act Section 101 generally requires schools to provide at least 1,098 hours and 180 days of pupil instruction each school year, but forgives the first 6 days (or the equivalent number of hours) for which pupil instruction is not provided because of conditions not within the control of school authorities. Qualifying conditions include severe storms, fires, epidemics, utility power unavailability, water or sewer failure, and health conditions, as defined by city, county, or state health authorities.
House Bill 5797 amends State School Aid Act Section 101 to provide that a district may count up to 4 additional days in which pupil instruction is not provided because of qualifying conditions as hours and days of pupil instruction if all of the following apply:
- The district is located, wholly or partially, either in the Upper Peninsula or specified counties in the northern Lower Peninsula (i.e., Alcona, Alger, Alpena, Antrim, Arenac, Baraga, Benzie, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Clare, Crawford, Delta, Dickinson, Emmet, Gladwin, Gogebic, Grand Traverse, Houghton, Iosco, Iron, Kalkaska, Keweenaw, Lake, Leelanau, Luce, Mackinac, Manistee, Marquette, Mason, Menominee, Missaukee, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Ontonagon, Osceola, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Roscommon, Schoolcraft, and Wexford), and
- The district was not able to provide pupil instruction on March 12, 13, 16, or 17 due to qualifying conditions, and the district counts only one or more of these specific dates (up to a maximum of 4) as exempt additional days beyond the presumptive limit of 6.
In addition, the new law allows certain districts affected by recent flooding in certain counties to count up to another 5 additional days in which pupil instruction was not provided because of conditions not within the control of school authorities, as described in Executive Orders No. 2026-7 or 2026-9, as hours and days of pupil instruction.
Executive Orders 2026-7 and 2026-9 were issued April 15 and April 20, respectively, in response to widespread flooding and other
severe weather, and declared a state of emergency in the following 34 counties: Alcona, Allegan, Alpena, Antrim, Arenac, Barry, Benzie, Charlevoix, Clare, Crawford, Emmet, Grand Traverse, Gratiot, Iosco, Iron, Kalkaska, Lake, Leelanau, Manistee, Marquette, Menominee, Missaukee, Montcalm, Montmorency, Newago, Oceana, Ogemaw, Osceola, Oscoda, Presque Isle, Roscommon, Saginaw, Shiawassee, and Wexford.
Finally, the new law also allows certain districts in Oakland County to count up to 4 additional days in which pupil instruction was not provided because of conditions not within the control of school authorities, as described in Executive Order No. 2026-11, as hours and days of pupil instruction. This Executive Order, issued May 10, declared a state of emergency in Oakland County due to a watermain break in the water system serving the communities of Auburn Hills, Pontiac, Rochester Hills, Orion Township, Lake Orion, and Oakland Township.