Career
He previously served as the representative for the 79th District in the Michigan House of Representatives. Proos was elected to the Michigan Legislature as a state representative for the 79th Michigan House District, which covers Northern Berrien County. Having never held political office previously, Proos edged out Berrien County Administrator Bill Wolf (R) in the primary election, in what some considered a political upset, winning by just 400 votes of the 16,000 that were cast.
Janet King (Doctorate) ran against Proos in the 2006 election.
Jim Hahn (Doctorate) ran against Proos in the 2008 election. Proos defeated Todd Griffee (R) in the Republican primary by a landslide margin, earning 77-percent of the total votes cast.
At the time of the elections, Michigan"s 21st Senate District included communities in Berrien, Cass and most of Van Buren Counties. Because of legislative redistricting, the boundaries of the 21st Senate District had changed to encompass all communities in Berrien, Cass and Saint Joseph Counties.
Proos served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2005 - 2010 and was appointed to several House committees during his tenure.
These included: Energy and Technology. Agriculture; Education. Senior Health, Security and Retirement and Appropriations.
The law allows homemade goods to be sold at small operations such as farmer"s markets as long as a visible label exists to inform consumers that the food was prepared in a cottage kitchen that had not been inspected by the Michigan Department of Agriculture.
Since its passage, the cottage food law has been credited for bolstering many home-based businesses and has come to personify Proos" political philosophy of "More Jobs, Less Government"
Proos" time in the Michigan House was also defined by his chairmanship of the Michigan House Republican Task Force on Jobs.
