LANSING – Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed two bills on Monday that she said would help keep Michigan at the forefront of automotive development by helping ensure that the advanced battery development and manufacturing takes place in the state.

With the enactment of HB 4515 (PA 5, Immediate Effect) and SB 319 (PA 6, Immediate Effect), Michigan Economic Development Corporation President Greg Main said the state could see as many as 30,000 people employed by 2020 in the development and manufacture of the batteries that could be used not just for cars and trucks but also in smart grid development and defense purposes.

“This is not like the little car battery you have now,” said Sen. John Pappageorge (R-Tory), sponsor of SB 319, “This is the drivetrain.”

Flanked by U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Detroit) and U.S. Rep. Sander Levin (D-Royal Oak) as well as by HB 4515 sponsor Rep. Dian Slavens (D-Canton Twp.), Pappageorge and Main, Granholm said the measures mean Michigan will be the place to conduct battery cell research and development and manufacture the batteries.

Rep. Levin said the bills were important for Michigan because the United States is now behind on advanced battery manufacturing, but the Big Three manufacturers intend to be leaders in the development of electric cars. “Nothing could be more important for the state and the nation,” he said.

Sen. Levin said the advanced batteries are expected to have a huge effect not just on the state’s economy but also on the environment (by reducing the use of oil) and the nation’s security.

With advanced battery manufacture now in Asia, and with countries like South Korea subsidizing development of batteries in those countries, Sen. Levin also said the “federal government is finally fighting back. It’s taken it a long time for it to wake up.”

The bills offer another $220 million in tax breaks on top of the $335 in tax breaks that Granholm signed into law in January to help attract the advanced battery manufacturing companies.

The tax breaks will act as part of the state’s match to federal funds for the battery grants. Companies could begin applying for the grants last month and awards for the grants are expected by early summer.

Other states could and probably will try to attract companies to locate their battery systems in those locales, but Granholm said the state had one other huge advantage besides the $555 million in tax breaks it was offering: the fact the state had hundreds of automotive research companies and centers already located in Michigan.

Main said the state forecast as much as $18 billion in investment in research, development and manufacturing for the new batteries.

Granholm also signed the bills on the day that Chrysler announced it would buy batteries from A123 Systems, headquartered in Massachusetts but scheduled to build a production plant in Michigan, for its series of electric cars and gas/electric hybrids.

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