DETROIT — With the Michigan Legislature finalizing work on state departmental budgets just after its self-imposed June 1 deadline, the Michigan Catholic Conference has offered its assessment on funding for several state programs.

Earning the MCC’s support was a proposed $2 million in funding for the Department of Community Health to support alternatives to abortion for women with crisis pregnancies, new language that would require the Department of Corrections to accept services and donations from a religious network that “presently reaches the majority of households in the United States” — which includes the Catholic channel Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) — and additional funding for foster care, low-income heating assistance and some education funding.

The abortion alternative funding, part of the department’s conference report, would create a statewide hotline for pregnant women that would offer counseling and support, as well as connect women with approved local pregnancy resources.

“MCC has been the primary advocate for this program, and is very hopeful it will become law, as this budget awaits the governor’s signature,” a statement from the MCC’s Lansing Update read.

Other proposals would add $3 per child per day — $11.3 million statewide — for foster care families and $59.9 million for low-income heating assistance.

Education funding included an additional $1 million for before- and after-school programs — though the House-passed version included an additional $5 million for such programs. The MCC also expressed hope funding would be increased for the state’s need-based Tuition Grant Program, which Gov. Rick Snyder has proposed reducing by $1 million. The state House, however, has proposed increasing funding by $1 million, and the Senate has proposed retaining the current year’s funding levels. Another proposal would expand dual-enrollment opportunities for non-public school students.

The MCC also expressed hope that a proposed additional $36 million in “performance funding” for higher education would be contingent on university compliance with state law regulating reporting requirements for human embryo research and destruction. The MCC noted both the House and Senate version support the requirement.

Such language was included in last year’s budget, but without penalties for non-compliance. The state’s only institution performing such research, the University of Michigan, did not comply.

Not included in the finalized department budgets but approved in the House version included $20 million for a grant program to nonprofits for capital projects to improve the delivery of services to needy families, $3 million for a tuition incentive program, $2 million for homeless programs and $1 million in food bank funding.

The Michigan Catholic Conference is the official public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Michigan.