Inside 208

On October 20th, the Local Community Stabilization Authority began distributing approximately $200 million to local units of government as reimbursement for their annual losses related to the new Personal Property Tax system.  The October payments represent the third year of reimbursements under the new system as eligible manufacturing personal property...

As communities prepare for the next round of personal property tax reimbursements later this month, the Legislature is continuing the discussion over how any dollars remaining after all losses are reimbursed at 100% are to be distributed to local governments.  House Bill 6348 was reported by the House Appropriations committee...

With the start of the state’s 2018-19 fiscal year last week, two grant opportunities within Treasury are again available to local units: The Financial Data Analytic Tool Reimbursement Program is intended to partially reimburse cities, villages, townships, counties, and regional councils of government, up to 50% of the costs, for financial forecasting...

Treasury’s Community Engagement & Finance Division published the following announcement earlier today for their upcoming Local Government Summit on October 10th at Livonia’s Laurel Manor conference facility.  League staff will be participating on the Legislative Panel scheduled that afternoon. The Michigan Department of Treasury’s Community Engagement and Finance Division would...

Late this afternoon, both chambers completed action on the state’s omnibus budget bill for the coming fiscal year.  Senate Bill 848 combined each of the departmental conference reports that had been approved over the course of the past week.  Included in this omnibus bill are numerous line items or programs...

The League, Treasury, and other local government organizations testified today in opposition to Senate Bill 1031.  As introduced, this bill would exempt all new electric, gas and water transmission and distribution system equipment from being subject to local taxation.  As drafted, the Senate Fiscal Agency estimates the total fiscal impact...

Late last week, the Governor and leaders in the House and Senate came to an agreement on spending targets for the upcoming budget year.  Now that these department-level spending targets have been set, conference committees have begun scheduling meetings to finalize their pieces of the overall budget.  With this being a...

The OPEB-pension “underfunded status” list is final and out and about. The large number of communities on the list representing all corners of the state, further demonstrates how Michigan’s system for funding municipalities is broken and needs fixing. Without meaningful municipal financial reform more and more Michigan communities will continue...

As the House and Senate continue to make progress on the 2018-19 state budget, they have also begun work on the related pieces of legislation necessary to implement some of the spending plans proposed by the Governor. One of those proposals deals with the Governor’s recommendation for changing the distribution of any...

The Senate Licensing & Regulatory Affairs subcommittee reported Senate Bill 860, the LARA Department budget last week.  This budget contains the funding for fire protection grants to local units hosting state buildings and the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission reimbursement grants for local governments that serve as their court funding units....