Smashed school bus returns in Michigan campaign

FLINT, Mich. — On Monday, a labor union that used a school bus with a windshield that was smashed with a prop piece of a broken bridge last year rehashed the controversial image for a state campaign event. 

The Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA) and other Proposal 1 supporters placed the bus on display in downtown Flint, the first stop on the statewide "Getting Schooled in Infrastructure" tour to advocate raising the state's sales tax from 6% to 7% to help fund road repairs, according to MLive.

The union used the bus last year as part of a publicity tour for its highway bill reauthorization campaign, drawing objections from three national pupil transportation associations who had previously asked LIUNA not to represent the yellow bus in a negative way. Mike Martin, executive director of the National Association for Pupil Transportation, told SBF last year that the crushed school bus prop was "bad for the school bus brand." 

In Flint, several local officials spoke in favor of the sales tax increase proposal. A county road commission official warned that five local bridges are in poor condition and in need of repair, according to MLive.
 
In addition to potentially generating $1.25 billion a year in new revenue for state and local road agencies, the May 5 ballot measure is projected to bring in another $600 million a year for schools, cities, public transit and the state general fund, the news source reports.