WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - The WRFH Interview: State Rep. Jennifer Wortz

Episode Date: January 30, 2026

State Rep. Jennifer Wortz joins Sophia Mandt on WRFH to discuss data centers in Michigan, banning cell phones in schools, and the possibility of a solar farm in Hillsdale County. From 01/28/26.

You're listening to Sophia Mant interview Michigan State Representative Jennifer Warts on Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. She represents the 35th District in Lansing covering most of Hillsdale and Branch counties. A bill is heading to the governor's desk that would ban cell phone use in public schools across the state of Michigan. If the governor signs, will this help improve student learning scores? It's a start. When we look at other states, and that have implemented banning cell phones during school learning time. We've seen an improvement. It was interesting.

I read an article last week that was done in a report put out that says that this next generation coming up is the first generation in 100 years since we've tracked data of one generation to the next. has improved cognitively and with job potential, job growth, business growth in our society and cognitive development. And this next generation, so the generation after me, is by comparison, the first generation that is going backwards in cognitive decline. and what has changed? The primary thing that's changed is cell phone technology. And, you know, we can look at the studies and the recommendation by pediatric doctors

and organizations that say it's just not healthy for kids. even some studies suggest kids under five should have no access to a smartphone or tablet device. It's not good for brain development. So getting cell phones out of the stream, I think, is a step in improving and working towards better educational outcomes, hopefully, in Michigan. Thank you. question is, why is this an issue that seems to be receiving bipartisan support? Well, I think we've all read the studies. We've seen the effects, whether that's personally, whether that's, you know, our education in Michigan, we continue to drop and decline. And so, comparatively, when we, again,

and look at some other states that have implemented some of these changes. Our state returned to a classical-based model of education as a homeschool parent. That's how I taught my kids until they entered high school and went to public school. And it's just a better overall model. It's worked for thousands of years. and we look even at schools where they do classical education, and usually education outcomes are better. So fundamentally, the things we need to teach the basics of reading, writing, and math have not changed.

The mode in which we've attempted teaching those have changed dramatically in Michigan in particular, in the last 20, 30 years, and we're not seeing that it's better. So I think this is an effort, and we all, you know, we want good education. We want our kids to do well. I think that's a commonality that we share no matter what side of the aisle you're on. Thank you. My next question is you've supported a call by former Michigan House Speaker Tom Leonard for a moratorium on new data centers across the state and an end to subsidies for their construction.

So I was wondering, should residents be concerned about data centers, what maybe is bad about data centers? Thank you. Yeah, you know, I am not, I think data centers are coming. I don't disagree with that at all. Again, you want to talk about bipartisanship. This is a issue that is all across the board. There are some people on my side of the aisle that are very pro-data centers, and let's get on this right now and get Michigan committed.

And then there's people on the other spectrum that have concerned. about how is this going to affect water? How is it going to affect electricity? And that's probably the biggest concern of mine as well, is who's going to foot the bill, because these take a huge amount of electricity. And then guarding our rural farm ground and ensuring that, you know,

I don't have a problem if we put data centers on brownfields. I think actually that makes a lot of sense. And there's a lot of cities near lakes in Michigan. Look at Detroit. Look at Port Huron. Look at Benton Harbor. Have really been decimated by industries pulling out over the last 30, 40 years in our state. Those places would be great locations for data centers.

if we can work the cost of energy out, and they've got brownfield space that could be used to do so. So I think we just need to pause and not be so knee-jerk in making decisions and approving these in places that they really have no business going. In your opinion, what do we maybe not yet know about the impact of these data centers? maybe what would you want to learn? There's a lot in the U.S. Have there been stories about bad effects that they've had in other communities? Well, I think the number one thing is, as I said, the cost of energy who's going to put the bill for the energy that they need.

Also, just ensuring I think I've heard some mention and concern of if they catch fire. They can be pretty toxic. I think that's somewhat, I mean, anything that burns can be toxic, so I'm not sure that holds a lot of credence as I think about them. But the other argument is, you know, it was before I came to the legislature, there was approval for some tax breaks for them and the attitude was, well, because it's job growth. Well, data centers really in all reality, once they're built, provide very few jobs in a community. I've heard at the most, maybe 100 jobs. Now, you know, that's better than nothing, but just making sure that we're being wise with taxpayer dollars. And if you looked at the revenue generating,

report that came out in the estimates, you know, our revenues down again, the projection for this next year and we're projected and need to cut about almost another billion dollars out of the state budget. So, you know, tax breaks may be something we need to pull back. So just looking at those things. And again, being wise before we just make knee-jerk reaction. here. Thank you. You're listening to Sophia Mant interview Michigan State Representative Jennifer Warts on Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. Some residents of Fayette Township and the city of Hillsdale recently spoke out against a project to turn over 1,000 acres of farmland into a solar farm as part of a project by Ranger Power, a Chicago-based solar energy company.

Is Michigan the right place for solar power? And maybe what do you think about the proposed project? Well, part of the motivation here for solar power in Michigan is simply because of the energy mandate and law that was passed by the Public Act. 23 passed in 2003 and took effect in 2004 before I came into the legislature. And that is that by 2040, 50% of energy in Michigan has to come from what's considered green energy. And then by 2050, all of it has to come from green energy. And natural gas does not constitute, nuclear does not constitute as qualifiable green energy. So there's actually a bill that I'm going to be signing on today that's going to be introduced this week that reverses that course.

that Representative Wenzel on the chair of the Energy Committee is introducing. And, you know, I hope that we can make some headway on that. Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's going to take – it won't get taken up in the Senate. And I'm not sure our governor would reverse course on our law. She's already signed. But the point here is – and what we saw even over the weekend in the U.P. in Northern Michigan, And they were about ready to go to rolling blackouts because coal is another energy that is not considered green. And they want to shut down the MISO energy facility that is ran by coal and has to be run by coal in these very hard winter temperatures to be functional.

And so we already have a grid at capacity. so to think that we're going to cut natural gas and coal from our sources of generating energy and that we can switch to solar and wind, which takes far more infrastructure and capacity and the amount of solar we will need to equal what is needed in the winter in cold, like this, I don't see that it is being even possible. So again, it has a time and a place, but in Michigan where over half of our year is clouded and then we have large amounts like this in the winter that are cold. It's really not practical. So my concerns with the situation in the township is that, you know, you already have a large solar array that's been constructed,

continues to be to constructed there. If this proposal is approved, then that township alone will have over 20% of their farm ground covered in solar panels. And I think that's even against what the governor originally proposed. So that was if every township put about 10% of it into, solar or wind that we could get the green energy mandate in place. I don't actually think that's true, but my point is that this seems very excessive for one township. But unfortunately, the law is also on their side right now. It's on the side of private landowners to be able to contract,

with companies, which is okay. It's a private landowner's right to do so. But a township is very limited, unfortunately, and their sitbacks and things that they can require. And if they don't find agreement with that company, then that company can approve to the Michigan Public Service Commission. and they'll approve projects there. So there's a lot of unfortunate things that the law has been set up to be very favorable

towards solar and not so favorable towards protecting rural farm ground. Thank you. You called out the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services for allowing Michigan's most urban counties to qualify for federal rural health care grants intended to support struggling rural hospitals and providers. Can you provide some background information? What effect will this have on actual rural counties in the state? Just on the situation. Thank you. Yeah, this is quite frustrating. So after the one big beautiful bill was passed, part of the concession was that in rural communities like ours that there would be available funds to help offset the loss of revenue

that was projected and to help with some development of needed resources for rural health care. Michigan was awarded $173 million. We actually were towards the bottom of those awards when you look at our neighbor, Ohio, I believe they got $209 million, even though they have a smaller rural population. Part of that was because the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services submitted a plan that is junk. They didn't take any recommendations of the rural hospitals, and they implemented a plan that what we've heard is it was probably an old plan. that they had proposed at one point. But essentially, it's going to create 12 new jobs in that department.

Good paying jobs. It'll rob rural health hospitals. I think it takes away about 19 million of that pot that they were awarded for department positions in Lansing that won't even reach rural areas. And then I think the most offensive of all is they took the two largest populated counties in the state, Wayne and Oakland County, and they labeled them semi-rule because there were little pockets where there was a hundred or less people that lived in a township. So they qualified those counties, Wayne County, which has over a million people by comparison to the 35th district that I represent that only has about 90,000 people. and they have access to this pot of funds. They don't need it. They have many hospitals.

They have many resources in Detroit for health care. I mean, if someone needs cancer treatment in our area, where are they going? They're going to have to drive to Ann Arbor or Detroit to receive it. and so it's just another insult really, I think, to those of us that live in rural communities and that the department is completely biased towards large cities and population areas because that's the demographic that votes for them at the end of the day. I think that's why that decision was made. Thank you.

This has been Sophia Mant, interviewing Michigan. State Representative Jennifer Warts. She represents the 35th District in Lansing, covering most of Hillsdale and Branch counties. This is Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM.