‘Pothole Payback’ contest pays Michigan drivers for car repairs

Have you ever banged up your car in an unfortunate run-in with a pothole on Michigan roads? Now, residents can get cash money for repairs through a new statewide contest.

Fix MI State, a branch of the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association, is hosting a “Pothole Payback” contest in which drivers can share the stories of how their vehicles were damaged after driving over roads in poor condition. Each month through June, judges will select the five entrants with the worst damage to receive up to $758 each for repairs. 

In addition to putting some money back into drivers’ pockets, the trade association intends to use the contest as a means to raise awareness about the state’s aging road infrastructure and its lack of infrastructure funding.

“Michigan is heading straight for a road funding cliff that threatens thousands of construction jobs, and our leaders must take action before it’s too late,” said Rob Coppersmith, executive vice president of the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association, in an April press release announcing the contest. “Our roads are crumbling, and Michiganders deserve real, lasting solutions. While the legislature fails to act, we’re shining a light on this crisis and helping families with car repairs.”

According to Fix MI State, the winners of the Pothole Payback contest have had their car rims damaged, ball joints busted, bumpers broken and tires ruined after unexpected encounters with potholes.

Transportation industry leaders have been pushing Michigan lawmakers to pass legislation that would create a sustainable fix to Michigan’s road funding woes for years. 

Michigan ranks 30th among all 50 U.S. states in road funding and 40th in the nation in overall road conditions, according to a Citizens Research Council of Michigan report released in March. The report revealed that state officials’ ability to maintain public roads in a cost-effective way with given funding declined between 2004 and 2024.

Michigan is approaching a $3.9 billion road funding shortfall as money for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Rebuilding Michigan bond program runs out next year.

In 2020, Whitmer announced the program to sell $3.5 billion in bonds over a five-year period to help tackle major road and bridge construction projects throughout the state. This was after her initial attempt to pass a 45-cent gas tax increase failed in the then-Republican-controlled Legislature the year prior.

With time running out, Whitmer and the Republican majority in the Michigan House of Representatives both put forth their own road funding plans this year.

Whitmer, who has been pledging to “fix the damn roads” since her 2018 gubernatorial campaign, unveiled her most recent proposal in February to raise $3 billion in additional infrastructure dollars each year by increasing the corporate income tax, reducing government spending, taxing wholesale marijuana sales, and using the state’s 6% gas sales tax entirely to fund road upkeep.

A Republican-sponsored road funding package passed in the Michigan House of Representatives in March. The $3 billion plan includes removing the 6% sales tax on gas and increasing the per gallon tax on gas by 20 cents. The money generated from the fuel tax would be completely used for road repairs.

The House legislation still has hurdles to overcome, as it would have to pass the Democratic-led Senate and receive Whitmer’s signature before becoming law. Senate Democrats have yet to propose their own road funding bills.

While the Legislature negotiates a path forward, Coppersmith said in a statement that the Pothole Payback contest will continue to highlight how broken Michigan’s infrastructure is: “We can’t patch our way out of this.”

The new winners will be announced next month. To enter, visit FixMIState.org/potholepayback.