Career
He was then elected to the Michigan State Senate and served as Senator from 1999 through 2007. Being elected to the Michigan State Senate in 1998 in a heavily Democrat district, and winning reelection in 2002, it was in his second term that Goschka established himself as a strong proponent of Higher Education. As Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education, Goschka worked at reducing the funding gap between the lower-funded-per-student schools versus the higher-funded-per-student schools.
He successfully convinced his colleagues that a basic minimum funding floor should exist for every college student in the State of Michigan"s public universities, regardless of which school they attended.
As the author of 34 laws in the State of Michigan, Goschka was the primary sponsor of two major agricultural bills that are now law, providing a $5 million interest-free loan to a large sugar beet cooperative that was formed by growers, and ending the "popular-up tax" on agricultural land that remained in agricultural use. Goschka also was the recipient of the "Guardian of Small Business" by the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB), as well as the top honor given out the Michigan Chamber of Commerce.
Additionally, he was honored by Saginaw Valley State University in May 2006 with an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree.