Inside 208

The Senate Energy and Technology Committee heard testimony this week on SB 493 (Sen Rick Jones), a bill prohibiting a local unit of government from adopting an ordinance that deals with amateur radios (called HAM radios) and prohibits locals from restricting antennas of amateur radios to heights below 90 feet [...]

With the passage of legislation earlier this year to allow for intrastate crowdfunding, comes the next step in helping crowdfunding take off: HB 5273, a bill to define and allow local stock exchanges.  We are very excited to see this idea to continue to move forward.  This would open the [...]

The Senate Local Government and Elections today unanimously passed SB 631, a bill that would give local communities the ability to regulate carrier pigeons (currently they are not allowed to so).  The local community cannot ban them but could regulate them.  A resident in Allen Park testified in support of [...]

This afternoon the Senate Finance Committee considered Senate Bills 754 and 755,  legislation that would accelerate the would amend the Use Tax Act and the General Sales Tax Act, respectively, to accelerate the schedule that excludes from taxation the value of a motor vehicle or recreational vehicle (RV) traded in [...]

This morning the House Tax Policy Committee heard testimony on House Bills 5265, 5266 and 5267, bills that would reduce the state income tax. House Bills 5265-6 would reduce the income tax from 4.25 percent to 4.05 percent. House Bill 5267 would allow additional reductions of 0.1 percent if general [...]

Earlier this week Suzanne Schulz, Director of Planning for the City of Grand Rapids, presented to the Senate Transportation Committee on complete streets.  The League worked several years ago to pass legislation for complete streets, and it is a vital part of our policy platform to creating vibrant communities. We [...]

This week the House passed Senate Bill 396, a bill that would amend the General Property Tax Act to provide that, after December 31, 2011, if a property is destroyed due to an accident or natural disaster, the taxable value of the replacement property would be the same as the [...]

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD), in reviewing their Right to Farm Generally Accepted Agriculture Management Practices (GAAMP), is recommending new language that will give more local control to communities that are exclusively zoned residential.  If a community is zoned primarily for residential purposes, then it will [...]

As reported in a previous post, the House Tax Policy committee took general testimony on TIFs and DDAs this week.  The committee was only about 35 minutes long because of caucus meetings and the Governor’s budget announcement, which didn’t give us a lot of time to present.  The Michigan Association [...]

Yesterday the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee heard testimony on House Bill 4624, a bill that would make a full-time firefighter’s ability to work as a firefighter in another community a prohibited subject of bargaining.The legislation is supported by the fire chiefs and the Michigan Townships Association. The League [...]