Brian Nelson Calley (born March 25, 1977) is an American politician who served as the 63rd
Lieutenant Governor of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. A member of the
Republican Party, he was previously elected to the
Michigan House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011.
Calley is known for his advocacy for people with
autism and their families; his daughter is autistic. Calley campaigned to require Michigan health insurance plans to include coverage for
autism therapies, signing into law a package providing for such reforms as acting governor.
Early life and political career
Calley was born in Dearborn, the third of six children. The family moved from Dearborn Heights to
Fort Riley, Kansas
Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Gea ...
, in 1982 where his father was stationed in the U.S. Army. Two years later, the family moved back to Michigan where Calley graduated from Ionia High School in 1994. After attending
Montcalm Community College while a student at Ionia High School, he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from
Michigan State University in 1998 and a Master's in Business Administration from
Grand Valley State University in 2000. In the 10 years preceding his election to the Michigan legislature, Calley held various positions within the banking industry, primarily making commercial loans. During this time he served two terms on Ionia County Board of Commissioners, both as Vice Chairperson.
Calley was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 2006 and re-elected in 2008. He served both terms in the minority, with the 2009–2010 term seeing the smallest Republican caucus in 40 years. In the House he gained a reputation as an expert on tax policy and served as minority vice chair of the House Tax Policy Committee. He was named the 2008 "Legislator of the Year” by the state's Small Business Association, the first time a freshman lawmaker has received that designation.
In 2010, despite securing the Republican nomination for state Senate days earlier, Calley was announced as gubernatorial candidate
Rick Snyder
Richard Dale Snyder (born August 19, 1958) is an American business executive, venture capitalist, attorney, accountant, and politician who served as the 48th governor of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Snyder previo ...
's running mate. Tea Party supporters from west Michigan momentarily contested Calley's nomination during the state Republican Convention at Michigan State University's Breslin Center in favor of Bill Cooper, a Norton Shores businessman and former candidate for Congress. Cooper withdrew his name from consideration and publicly threw his support behind Calley. In securing the nomination for lieutenant governor, the state Senate nomination was vacated and former state Representative
Judy Emmons
Judy K. Emmons is a former Michigan state senator who represented District 33. She is the former chair of the Families, Seniors and Human Services Committee, and former vice-chair of Education.
Michigan House of Representatives
Emmons' first c ...
was chosen to fill the spot.
Snyder and Calley went on to defeat Lansing Mayor
Virgil Bernero
Virgil Paul "Virg" Bernero (born March 31, 1964) is an American politician and former mayor of Lansing, Michigan, elected on November 8, 2005, and re-elected on November 3, 2009. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to serving as mayor ...
and his running mate, Southfield Mayor
Brenda Lawrence in the general election by 58% to 39%.
Lieutenant Governor (2011–2019)
![MILtGovCalleyOath2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/MILtGovCalleyOath2011.JPG)
Calley assumed office as the nation's youngest Lieutenant Governor and Michigan's youngest lieutenant governor since
John Swainson
John Burley Swainson (July 31, 1925 – May 13, 1994) was a Canadian-American politician and jurist who served as the 42nd governor of Michigan from 1961 to 1963.
Early life and education
Swainson was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. He mo ...
in 1959. Calley has undertaken an active role in the Snyder administration.
In early 2011, Calley broke a 19-19 deadlock in the Michigan Senate, voting in favor of a massive tax reform package that eliminated the Michigan Business Tax and replaced it with a flat, six-percent corporate income tax. The package, a major goal of the Snyder administration, also reduced the state's individual income tax rate from 4.35 percent to 4.25 percent starting on January 1, 2013, and eliminated most of the state's exemptions and deductions.
For two years, he attended weekly classes at the
John F. Kennedy School of Government
The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
before receiving his
Master of Public Administration in spring 2015.
In May 2017, Calley announced a campaign to make the legislature part-time.
Calley unsuccessfully ran to succeed Snyder in the
2018 Michigan gubernatorial election
Eighteen or 18 may refer to:
* 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19
* one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
Film, television and entertainment
* ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...
. On August 7, 2018, he lost the Republican primary, receiving 25% of the vote, placing second behind Michigan state Attorney General
Bill Schuette
William Duncan Schuette ( ; born October 13, 1953) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 53rd attorney general of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. He was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for Senate in 1990 and for Governor of Mi ...
.
Autism advocacy
Calley, whose daughter Reagan is
autistic
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
, is known for his outspoken advocacy for autism awareness. As a state lawmaker Calley served on the Health Policy Committee and supported autism insurance reform - unaware his own child actually had the disorder. He stated he first suspected his daughter's condition during a committee hearing as parents of autistic children shared their similar experiences.
As lieutenant governor, Calley is widely credited for leading a successful legislative push to require that insurance companies cover treatments for autism. He signed the bills into law as acting governor while Rick Snyder was on an unannounced trip to Afghanistan. Citing these efforts, Calley was named the 2011 "Executive Champion” by the national autism advocacy organization
Autism Speaks
Autism Speaks Inc. is a controversial autism advocacy organization and the largest autism research organization in the United States. It sponsors autism research and conducts awareness and outreach activities aimed at families, governments, an ...
.
Electoral history
2018 Michigan gubernatorial Republican primary
As Lt. Governor (with Governor)
33rd District State Senator Republican Primary
As State Representative
References
External links
Office of the Lieutenant GovernorVoting RecordCampaign Site*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calley, Brian
1977 births
21st-century American politicians
American bankers
Autism activists
Disability rights activists from the United States
Eli Broad College of Business alumni
Grand Valley State University alumni
Harvard Kennedy School alumni
Lieutenant Governors of Michigan
Living people
Republican Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives
People from Ionia County, Michigan
Politicians from Dearborn, Michigan
Baptists from Michigan