A resolution of tribute offered as a memorial for George Alvin McManus Jr., former member of the Senate.
Summary
Senate Resolution 49 is a memorial tribute honoring George Alvin McManus Jr., a former Michigan senator who served from 1991 to 2002. The resolution recounts his life as a fourth-generation cherry farmer, his long career with the Michigan State University Extension Service, his service on local and state boards, and his many civic and church affiliations in the Traverse City area and northwestern Michigan.
The resolution also highlights McManus’s legislative career and his focus on agriculture, natural resources, higher education, and appropriations. It specifically notes his work on the Groundwater and Freshwater Protection Act, support for Project GREEEN at Michigan State University, legislation involving the former Traverse City Regional Psychiatric Hospital, and efforts to protect family farms and farmland preservation incentives after Proposal A tax changes. The measure concludes by expressing the Senate’s respect and directing that copies be sent to the McManus family.
Impact
This resolution does not change state law, create new policy, or appropriate funds. Its legal effect is limited to formally honoring a deceased former senator and preserving the chamber’s record of his service. The only practical impact is ceremonial, though the text serves as a public reminder of McManus’s influence on agricultural policy, land preservation, and redevelopment-related legislation in Michigan.
Sentiment
The sentiment around the resolution is uniformly positive and respectful. The language is commemorative and laudatory, emphasizing McManus’s humor, common sense, public service, agricultural expertise, and devotion to family and community. No votes, committee debate, or dissenting remarks are provided, and the resolution appears to have been offered as a bipartisan tribute by Senators Brinks and Nesbitt.
Contention
There is no apparent contention over SR0049 itself, since it is a memorial resolution. The only potentially contentious policy references are historical: McManus’s work on agricultural pesticide and fertilizer regulation, farmland tax treatment under Proposal A, and preservation program thresholds. Those issues are described as accomplishments rather than debated questions in this resolution, and no opposing views are included in the available record.