At the 2022 Michigan Counties Annual Conference (Sept. 18-21 in Port Huron), MAC members will vote on six seats on the MAC Board of Directors. Commissioners wishing to serve on the Board, whether incumbents or new candidates, have until Aug. 18 to file official notice of their intent to run. (The application form is found here.)

Seats representing regions are filled by a vote in regional caucuses at the conference. At-large seats are filled by the candidate that wins a majority of the six regional caucuses.

The MAC Board of Directors is the key body in guiding the legislative and organizational strategies of MAC. Board terms are three years in length and individuals may serve up to three terms.

2022 Board seats

• At-large Seat B – open
• Region 4 Seat A – open
• Region 4 Seat B – open (to fill 1 year of unexpired term; winner is still eligible to serve 3 full 3-year terms after first year)
• Region 5 Seat A – open (to fill 1 year of unexpired term; winner is still eligible to serve 3 full 3-year terms after first year)
• Region 6 Seat A – Vaughn Begick of Bay is the incumbent
• Region 6 Seat B – Scott Noesen of Midland is the incumbent

Any member wishing to run in the election must download the application form and return it by Aug. 18, 2022, at 5 p.m. to be eligible. Candidates are also encouraged to submit a statement of up to 400 words on why members should support them. These statements will be posted to the MAC website in late August.

If you have any questions about Board duties, please contact Executive Director Stephan W. Currie at 517-372-5374.

Registration opens for 2022 Annual Conference on Sunrise Side

Join us on the sunrise side of the state for the 2022 Michigan Counties Annual Conference, put on by the Michigan Association of Counties in coordination with the Michigan County Medical Care Facilities Council (MCMCFC).

This year, we are in Port Huron in St. Clair County. The venue is the Bluewater Convention Center, located along the St. Clair River, with views of freighter traffic entering and exiting Lake Huron and the Blue Water Bridge to Canada.

Running from the afternoon of Sept. 18 through the morning of Sept. 21, the 2022 Annual Conference will feature:

• Four plenary sessions featuring key issues now before Michigan and a MAC Legislative Update (Speakers will be announced soon.)
• 12 breakout sessions for MAC members and 6 workshops for MCMCFC members (Speakers will be announced soon.)
• A Welcome Reception and Strolling Dinner on the evening of Sunday, Sept. 18.
• A lavish President’s Banquet on the night of Tuesday, Sept. 20.
• Plenty of free time in the afternoons for attendees to enjoy sights and sounds of Port Huron, including the St. Clair River.

Members of MCMCFC will enjoy specialized breakouts designed for its members to earn Nursing and NAB Continuing Education credits.

MAC members attending the conference will receive credits in MAC’s County Commissioner Academy.

Conference Rates

The conference fee provides you access to all conference activities. (The spouse fee also provides access to any conference event, including the President’s Banquet on the evening of Sept 20.) This fee includes two dinners, two receptions, two breakfasts and two lunches.

		Early bird (register by Aug. 10)	Full rate (after Aug. 10)
Member	Full conference	$395	$425
	Single day	$275	$325
	Spouse/guest	$150	$175
Non-Member	Full conference	$525	$575

NOTE: The member rate is open to all county commissioners, administrators, countywide elected officials and county employees of MAC member counties, plus employees and board members of MCMCFC facilities.

Hotel Information

The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel is attached to the Blue Water Convention Center (conference headquarters). You can expect a DoubleTree famous chocolate chip/oatmeal cookie, served warm upon arrival. After you’ve settled in, take a stroll along the St. Clair River, view watercraft/freighter traffic on the river or see the big Blue Water Bridge to Canada!

To make your reservations, you can call the DoubleTree Hotel directly at 810/984.8000 or go online at www.porthuron.doubletree.com. 

As always, MAC and MCMCFC have secured highly competitive room rates that begin at $149 per night for single/double occupancy. Breakfast is not included with your hotel pricing. Join us in the conference center instead!  GROUP CODE: MIA

The room block deadline is Aug. 17, 2022.

In anticipation of another popular conference, we have also reserved a block of rooms at the Comfort Inn at $129 per night. The Comfort Inn is located at 1720 Hancock St., Port Huron, MI 48060. To book your room reservations, contact 810-987-5999. Group Name: Michigan Association of Counties.

We expect a large gathering this year, so members are strongly encouraged to book their rooms immediately to ensure access to the conference room block and best room rates.

Getting around: For those staying at the Comfort Inn, we will provide complimentary shuttle service via Blue Water Transit during the conference schedule. There also is plenty of free parking at the convention center.

Please direct any conference registration questions or issues to conference@micounties.org.

MAC will be releasing information on plenary sessions, speakers and breakout descriptions in coming weeks.

 

FY23 state budget includes 6% boost for county revenue sharing

In the wee hours on Friday, the Legislature finished the FY 2023 budget, which is set to begin on Oct. 1 of this year. Below are the major highlights, including a 6 percent (5% in the base and 1% one-time) increase in County Revenue Sharing. In addition, they passed a supplemental budget for FY22, included in which are items of importance to counties. 

FY22 Supplemental

• ARP – community policing grants for Wayne ($3M), Saginaw ($1M) and Genesee ($500,000) counties
• ARP – community policing competitive grants – $11 million
• Communication Radios and Tower – $1 million for radios in Midland County, $3 million for towers in Barry County and $4.8 million for towers in Isabella County
• Requires that grants be used for the construction of new towers or the augmentation of existing towers and associated equipment to support the integration of the county into the Michigan Public Safety Communication System (MPSCS) or to expand the interoperability of all local public safety entities within the county
• EMS scholarship and grant program – $30 million
• Raise the Age Fund Increase – $4 million
• Broadband equity, access and deployment – $5 million

FY23 Budget (by state department)

Agriculture

• Local conservation districts – $3 million
• Office of Rural Development Grants – $3 million for grants to rural communities, related to economic development, workforce development, affordable housing, infrastructure, education and high-speed internet access
• County fairs – $500,000 for fair capital grant program (a reduction of almost $2 million from current year)
• Economic development for food and agriculture industries – $50 million, of which $12 million is set aside for improvements to the Eastern Market in Detroit

Corrections

• Jail reimbursement – $1 million to reimburse counties who housed felons in their jails due to the department’s closed intake of prisoners during COVID. (rate is $80 per offender per day; inmates paid for through the county jail reimbursement program are not eligible for this payment)

Energy, Great Lakes and Environment

• Contaminated site cleanups – $10 million
• Watershed Council grants – $600,000
• Environmental health – $7.9 million for water supply oversight and support for local health departments in monitoring and testing drinking water
• Municipal Assistance for FTEs to increase loan processing staff and access to federal water infrastructure loans for local communities – $5.1 million
• Water State Revolving Funds – $120 million gross to continue funding the state’s water state revolving fund program
• Private well testing – $5 million in one-time funding for grants to local health departments to provide free or low-cost water testing to private well owners

Labor and Economic Development

• Michigan Infrastructure Grants – $212,800 for grants for infrastructure
• Economic Development and Workforce Grants – $251.5 million
• Blight Elimination Program – $75 million to address blighted properties across the State
• Going Pro – $15 million
• Pure Michigan – $40 million
• Nonprofit Relief Grants to nonprofit community service organizations – $50 million

Treasury (General Government)

• Revenue Sharing to Counties – $245.8 million, which is a 6 percent increase (1% is one-time increase, while 5 percent is designated as ongoing)
• Pensions – $750 million for grants for local retirement systems that are less than 60 percent funded
• ARP relief grants – $50 million 

Health and Human Services

• Medicaid primary care rates – $56.1 million to increase them
• Behavioral health capacity and access initiatives – $47.3 million
• Medicaid reimbursement for Community Health Workers – $28.3 million
• Child and adolescent health centers – $25 million to increase funding
• Child care – $10.5 million to provide a 5 percent reimbursement increase for residential child caring institutions and a 12 percent increase to private residential juvenile justice providers
• Guardian and conservator reimbursement rates – $5 million to increase them
• Medicaid Mental Health Local Match – $5.1 million to replace a like amount of local funding used for Medicaid mental health supports and services (amount would reflect the third year of phasing out the local match portion over a 5-year period)
• Behavioral Health Inpatient Capacity and Operations – $41 million and authorizes 87 FTE positions to increase capacity at Hawthorn and to reimburse private providers of intensive psychiatric treatments
• Jail Diversion Fund – $10 million
• Student loan repayment for behavioral health professionals – $10 million
• Non-State Behavioral Health Facility Capacity – $178.6 million
• Clinical and CMHSP Integration Readiness Initiatives – $50 million for grants to facilities and providers that wish to clinically integrate physical and behavioral health services and providers and to CMHSPs for system, IT, staffing, and administrative improvements for integration readiness (funds are not available for expenditure until legislatively transferred)
• State Nursing Home Surveyors – $1.6 million and 10 FTEs for education and consultation activities to improve care at skilled nursing facilities

Judiciary

• Statewide Judicial Case Management System – $150 million for the cost of developing a single, statewide judicial case management system (Currently, there are 242 trial courts using and funding more than 16 case management systems and 150 computer systems. The Trial Court Funding Commission recommended that the state provide all court technology needs for trial courts, including case and document management services, and the Supreme Court recently ordered that local trial courts submit all case data in a uniform manner. Funding would support data management efforts and consistent implementation of newer technologies among trial courts; prohibits funds from being used to supplant the current user fee system and administrative purposes unrelated to the system; requires the system to comply with all security measures and restrictions and to be hosted in a secure cloud by an experienced vendor; requires implementation status report.)

Veterans Affairs

• Grand Rapids Home for Veterans – $6.5 million
• Veterans Suicide Prevention Outreach – $1.2 million for an outreach campaign targeting current and former servicemembers and their families on reducing suicide incidents

Natural Resources

• Off-road Vehicle Trail Improvement Grants – $6.4 million to increase funding for the off-road vehicle trail improvements initiative

State Police

• Secondary Road Patrol Grant Program – $15 million

Transportation

• County Road Commissions Restricted Fund – $56.3 million
• Airport Safety Improvement Program – $33.9 million
• Local Federal Aid Road and Bridge Construction – $15.2 million
• IIJA Airport Infrastructure Grants – $2.2 million
• Technical Assistance, Planning, and IIJA Match Grants – $25 million to help local units to plan and match resources for IIJA grants
• Electric Vehicle Study – requires the department to study the impact on revenue resulting from the integration of electric vehicles on Michigan roadways

For more information on the state budget, contact Deena Bosworth at bosworth@micounties.org.

 

Debate continues on legislation to weaken local control on gravel sites

Senate passes big supplemental bill tied to mental health privatization

The Senate passed a mental health supplemental budget this week, but tie-barred a portion of the funding to the passage of Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey’s mental health integration package.

Senate Bill 714, by Sen. Shirkey (R-Jackson), provides $565.5 million in funding for the current fiscal year to the behavioral health system. $548.7 million would come from what the state received from the American Rescue Plan Act and $17.5 million would be directed from the state’s General Fund.

However, the following line-item appropriations are conditional upon the passage of Senate Bill 597 and  Senate Bill 598, two bills that MAC and others strenuously oppose due to the loss of local control they would create:

• Requires Medicaid Mental Health Services be used to replace local match with GF/GP.
• Requires the Clinical Integration Fund be used to provide grants to facilities and providers that integrate their setting with physical and behavioral health services and providers.
• Requires the funding for Community Mental Health Services Program (CMHSP) Integration Readiness be used to support CMHSP efforts to make information technology, staff, and administrative improvements for integration.
• Requires the funding for DHHS integration readiness be used to make one-time investments to support implementation of SBs 597-98.
• Directs the Department of Health and Human Services to appropriate $15 million of part 1 funding for Integrated Care Center to the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network to implement a centrally located integrated service center to provide physical and mental health services.
• Directs the funding for Jail Diversion Fund be allocated to the Jail Diversion Fund, which would be administered by the Mental Health Diversion Council. Directs the Council to distribute grants to local entities to establish or expand jail diversion programs, with 50.0% going to community-based mobile crisis intervention services that include full integration with 911 dispatch centers, include both co-responder clinicians and peers, have access to residential treatment facilities, include telehealth response and follow-up services, and employ mental health professionals independent of law enforcement. Directs that the other 50.0% go to pre-arrest or post-arrest diversion programs for individuals with behavioral health needs, with priority given to nonurbanized areas.

MAC will continue to oppose any move to shift toward privatization of our local public mental health system. A total of 62 counties have voiced their opposition by passing resolutions in opposition to the mental health integration plan. We also encourage commissioners to use our Advocacy Tool to voice your opposition to your senator.

For more information on this issue, contact Deena Bosworth at bosworth@micounties.org.