The House Commerce and Tourism Committee has posted for Tuesday, May 18, 2021 at 9:00 AM to hear testimony on House Bill 4722 in Room 327 of the House Office Building.
This legislation seeks to eliminate a municipality’s ability to regulate short-term vacation rentals. It mirrors several past pieces of legislation and does not include any compromises local government groups have put forth to address concerns voiced by the Michigan Realtors. More information on HB 4722 can be reviewed in the last blog HERE. Send a letter to the committee and your state legislators using our Action Center here. Also, please consider sending the video above (using this link) to your neighborhood associations and block clubs to have them oppose this bill as well.
We need members to contact the bill sponsors and committee members to voice opposition to this all out attack on local decision-making. Local government is best positioned to know the unique needs of their community when discussing zoning issues. The elected decision makers closest to the people are the most appropriate to determine if something needs to be acted upon to maintain the delicate balance between residential and commercial uses, between residents and investment property owners, and to protect the health, safety and welfare of residents, renters and vacation visitors.
Supporters argue this is a property rights issue, but they don’t include all property owners in that argument. Just those who own residential homes for the purpose of using them as vacation rentals to generate revenue. And, for individuals who want to rent out their second home a few times a year to cover property taxes and upkeep, there are examples of municipal regulations across the state allowing this. Are the ordinances all uniform, saying the same thing? No, but our communities are not cookie cutter places. They have different residential and business needs, different demands on services, etc. A one size, fits all solution does not work for this issue. Tell legislators to not support policy prioritizing profits over people!
Make sure to include the committee clerk on all messages, and if you’d like to provide written testimony for the hearing. State you’d like your correspondence included in the official committee record. This is an important step! Committee Clerk – Edward Sleeper
House Commerce & Tourism Committee:
- Steve Marino (R) Committee Chair, 24th District
- John Roth (R) Majority Vice-Chair, 104th District
- Diana Farrington (R), 30 District
- Rodney Wakeman (R), 94th District
- Pauline Wendzel (R), 79th District
- David Martin (R), 48th District
- Sara Cambensy (D) Minority Vice-Chair, 109th District
- John Cherry (D), 49th District
- Mari Manoogian (D), 40 District
- Karen Whitsett (D), 9th District
- Tullio Liberati (D), 13rd District
Bill Sponsors:
- Sarah Lightner (R), 65th District
- Doug Wozniak (R), 36th District
- Tommy Brann (R), 77th District
- Steve Johnson (R), 72nd District
- Robert Bezotte (R), 47th District
- Mike Mueller (R), 51st District
- Matt Hall (R), 63rd District
- Ken Borton (R), 105th District
- John Roth (R), 104th District – contact info above, committee member too
- Graham Filler (R), 93rd District
- Sara Cambensy (D), 109th District – contact info above, committee member too
- Phil Green (R), 84th District
- Brad Paquette (R), 78th District
- Andrew Beeler (R), 83rd District
- Tenisha Yancey (D), 1st District
Yesterday a twin bill to HB 4722 was introduced in the Senate, SB 446. It has been referred to the Senate Regulatory Reform committee, but doesn’t have a hearing scheduled as of this posting.
Jennifer Rigterink is a legislative associate for the League handling economic development, land use and municipal services issues. She can be reached at [email protected] or 517-908-0305.