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Gilchrist becomes first black LG to sign a bill into law

His signature came during a bill-signing event in the rotunda of the Capitol building.
Credit: AP
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, right, and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II acknowledge applause before Whitmer delivers her State of the State address to a joint session of the House and Senate, Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019, at the state Capitol in Lansing, Mich. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)

LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist had made state history by becoming the first black lieutenant governor to sign a bill into law.

Gilchrist, who is Michigan’s first African American lieutenant governor, enacted legislation Thursday to end a lifetime ban on felons becoming licensed insurance agents. His signature came during a bill-signing event in the rotunda of the Capitol building.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is on a trade trip in Israel.

Gilchrist says the bill signing symbolizes the opportunity that exists when diversity is embraced. Then-Secretary of State Richard Austin was the first black statewide officeholder to sign a bill in 1988.

Starting in six months, the state will be able to issue licenses to certain people who have not been convicted of a felony in the previous ten years.

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