The Michigan Senate voted overwhelmingly today to send a seven-bill package over to the House that would allow separate millages for library purposes to opt-out of tax capture situations.  Senate Bills 579 and 619-624 moved out of the Senate this morning despite strong opposition from local government groups, including the League.

A separate discussion has been underway in the House for the past year, that would look at TIF and DDA reform from a much broader perspective.  At the same time, the Snyder Administration has initiated a workgroup process on this issue.  The League and many individual League member communities have been invited to participate on those workgroups that have bee set up to examine this topic at a holistic level.  A different group of Senators have expressed an interest in talking about TIF/DDA reform along those broader lines, as well.  Any reform proposals in this area need to be viewed comprehensively and not approached in a piecemeal fashion and we will continue to advocate from that standpoint, looking to preserve these important local economic development tools.

These Senate bills are scheduled to be referred to the House Tax Policy committee where the League will be working to oppose them.  Please contact your State Representative and let them know that this is a complex, important issue for all local governments and that TIF districts are a critical tool for local economic development that should not be dismantled.

Chris Hackbarth is the League’s director of state affairs. He can be reached at 517-908-0304 and [email protected].