The Michigan Association of Counties (MAC)

Legislative Update 3-10-23

Blog, Events, Legislative, MAC news, MACSC, Marketing, NACo

Registration opens for 2023 Legislative Conference

Registration opened today (March 10) for the 2023 Michigan Counties Legislative Conference, the first of MAC’s two signature events for our 125th Anniversary year.

This year’s event will be April 24-26 in Lansing, with sessions at both the Radisson Hotel and the Lansing Center. The event is co-hosted by the Michigan County Medical Care Facilities Council (MCMFC).

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has been invited to keynote the conference, with her remarks currently scheduled for Tuesday, April 25.

Click here to register.

Additional plenary sessions will feature:

  • A discussion with the Legislative “Quadrant” (the four senior officials in the House and Senate) led by MAC’s director of governmental affairs, Deena Bosworth
  • “A National Perspective on the County Landscape and Priorities” by Matt Chase, executive director of the National Association of Counties
  • A MAC Legislative Update from MAC’s Governmental Affairs staff
  • A State of MAC report from MAC Executive Director Stephan Currie
  • Remarks from MAC President Stan Ponstein of Kent County

Breakout sessions on current challenges for county leaders will include the impact of electric vehicles on road funding, trial court funding, running effective meetings with Robert’s Rules of Order, property tax limitations and litigation and maintenance on dams.

A Legislative Reception will be held on the evening of Tuesday, April 25, during which MAC will present its County Advocate Awards for legislative service in 2022.

See draft agenda (subject to change).

MCMCFC members may attend special sessions for them on human trafficking, the state’s Freedom of Information Act, the opioid settlement funding and survey readiness. These sessions have been submitted to WNA CEAP for approval to award contact hours. Wisconsin Nurses Association is an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. These sessions also have been submitted to NAB for Nursing Home Administrator credits.

The conference will be an in-person event.

Your member registration fee of $405 provides access to all conference events, snacks at the Radisson Hotel on Monday afternoon, the Legislative Reception with appetizers and beverages, two breakfasts at the Lansing Center (Tues-Wed), lunch on Tuesday at the Lansing Center and a boxed lunch on Wednesday you can take with you on your journey home.

Those eligible for the member rate include county commissioners, county administrators, county clerks, county treasurers, county registers, county prosecutors, county sheriffs, county drain commissioners, county department heads and employees and staff of MCMCFC member facilities.

  • Early-bird Member Rate $405 ends April 3
  • Early-bird Non-member Rate $480 ends April 3
  • Member Regular Rate $475
  • Non-member Regular Rate $550
  • Please note that single-day rates will NOT be offered
  • Last day to cancel is April 14

Hotel information

The Radisson Hotel Lansing at the Capitol is again providing a special group rate for the event and is connected via the newly renovated pedestrian bridge to the Lansing Center itself. The bridge now offers improved lighting, new security systems, ventilation system and carpet.

The cutoff date to reserve your room in the conference block is April 3. There is no guarantee that rooms will be available until April 3, so you are encouraged to reserve early.

Call 1-800-333-3333 or click HERE to make your reservation.

Radisson Hotel Lansing | 111 N. Grand Ave. | Lansing, MI 48933

Room rate: $142.95* | Event code: MAC423

Check-in is 4 p.m.; check-out is 12PM

Valet parking is $20 per vehicle per night

*Rate does not include 13% tax

Tax-exempt status: For any Radisson Hotel overnight guest(s) to be eligible for tax-exempt status, (1) the room must be paid for directly by the guest’s government agency, either with a check or credit card, and (2) the guest must provide a copy of the agency’s tax-exempt form. Tax-exempt status is not granted for rooms paid for by the individual, even if getting reimbursed.

Hotel Cancellation Policy: You may cancel with a full refund up to 72 hours prior to arrival. Cancellations received within 72 hours or arrival will forfeit one (1) night room and tax.

 

Podcast 83 team reviews legislative action on state spending, NACo activities

In their regular weekly episode, MAC’s Podcast 83 team discussed the following news involving county governments in Michigan:

  • Legislative passage of a billion-dollar spending plan for economic development
  • Activity from the 2023 National Association of Counties conference in Washington, D.C., in February
  • Litigation involving fees charged by Michigan trial courts
  • Podcast host Stephan Currie’s visit to the Upper Peninsula for the 2023 Continental Cup ski jump competition in Dickinson County

See the full video, recorded on March 6.

Previous episodes can be seen at MAC’s YouTube Channel.

And you always can find details about Podcast 83 on the MAC website.

Audio versions of Podcast 83 also are now available via the Spotify app.

 

Participation forms for opioid settlements coming soon

Local governments will be given an opportunity to participate in national Opioid Settlements with Teva, Allergan, CVS and Walmart. Collectively, these settlements are expected to bring in around $450 million to Michigan and will have the same allowable uses of funds as the J&J and Distributors settlements.

To participate in these settlements, counties must complete a participation form and return the form by April 18. County governments should expect to receive the participation email no later than Tuesday, March 14. The participation forms will be sent in a single email and will use Docusign. The form can be signed electronically or signed physically, scanned and emailed back. 

We encourage all counties to participate in these additional settlements.

For more information on this issue, contact Amy Dolinky at dolinky@micounties.org.

 

MAC releases templates to assist with opioid settlement planning

MAC has created supplemental documents to the Michigan Opioid Settlements Funds Toolkit: A Guide for Local Spending. The new templates being released include:

  • Spending Plan Template (PDF) (Excel)
    • Excel file that outlines what information should be captured for each strategy being funded that will assist with future reporting
  • PowerPoint Presentation Template (PDF) (PowerPoint)
    • PowerPoint file that provides an overview of the opioid settlements, allowable strategies to fund, and areas for input of specific information around strategies the county will be funding
  • Annual Report Template (PDF) (Word)
    • Word file that outlines information that counties can share publicly on an annual basis through their website and with community partners that includes key questions to answer to increase public understanding, process, and transparency
    • Additional guidance from national organizations around specific metrics associated with activities are expected to be released later in the year

The National Association of Counties, in partnership with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, has also released a quick guide for completing a needs assessment, The Principles Quick Guide to Conducting a Needs Assessment to support counties in understanding community needs and assisting in tailoring services to meet those needs.

If you have specific template documents that you would like created, or questions, please contact MAC’s Amy Dolinky at dolinky@micounties.org.

 

Act by March 14 on ‘ROBIN’ broadband grants

Grant applications for the Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks (ROBIN) program are due by 4 p.m. on March 14. Almost $240 million is available for “last mile” and “middle mile” infrastructure for communities who partner with an internet service provider. The infrastructure must be used to expand broadband in unserved areas.

The Michigan High-Speed Internet Office (MIHI) will evaluate the applications and release funds in late spring or early summer 2023; all funds must be expended by 2026. For more information on the ROBIN program, please follow this link.

The ROBIN program is just the first of two major federal investments in broadband expansion. MIHI is currently in the data collection phase of administering the second program: Broadband Access, Equity, and Deployment Act (BEAD), a whopping $1.6 billion for unserved and underserved communities.

The MIHI team continues to travel across the state this winter and spring as part of its MI Connected Future Listening Tour gathering input from the public. They visited Lapeer and Marysville earlier this week and will be in Bad Axe on March 14. Please find a complete list of upcoming tour locations here.

For more information on MAC’s broadband policy work, contact Madeline Fata at fata@micounties.org. 

 

ARP reporting portal will open on April 1, NACo advises

The National Association of Counties issued the following alert on Thursday:

“Here’s an update from the U.S. Department of Treasury regarding new reporting requirements for the upcoming Project and Expenditure (P&E) Report due April 30, 2023, for the ARPA State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. The portal will not open until April 1, 2023, for counties to submit their P&E Reports. These updates apply to all counties unless a county allocated its entire ARPA allocation towards the $10 million revenue loss standard allowance.

“The P&E Report updates include:

  1. Unique Entity ID Requirements for Subrecipients and Contractors: All subrecipients and contractors are required to have a Unique Entity ID (UEI) and have that number included as part of the reporting process. The UEI is the replacement for the previously used DUNS numbers, and they are issued by SAM.gov. While this requirement is not new, starting in April 2023’s P&E Report the report form will now return an error when no valid UEI is provided when creating new Subrecipient or Contractor entities. This was previously not explicitly required, but strongly urged by Treasury.
    1. Treasury has stated that for the April 2023 P&E reporting form, if a pre-existing subrecipient or contractor record does not have a UEI, the system will simply flag it as a warning but not prevent them from submission of the entire P&E report.
    2. However, ANY NEW subrecipient or contractor records will be required to have their UEIs provided and they cannot create those entities without one.
    3. Treasury has stated they DO NOT KNOW how long they will be able to keep this flexibility available after April 2023 so counties should get their UEIs together ASAP.
  2. New Subaward/Direct Payments Entity Type: All Subawards/Direct Payments records will be required to have an “entity type” selected before a subaward can be created. This field will capture whether the entity receiving the award or payment is a Subrecipient, Contractor, or Beneficiary. If a county attempts to create a new subaward for a subrecipient without a populated entity type field will result in an error.

“For more information, go to Treasury’s Recipient Compliance and Reporting Guidance page.”

 

CRC webinar analyzes Michigan budget situation

The nonpartisan Citizens Research Council of Michigan, in partnership with the MIRS News Service, hosted a webinar to break down Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s fiscal year 2024 budget and the state’s financial situation.

MAC is a longtime supporter of the council’s work and encourages members to check out the webinar video or slides.

To watch the video, click here.

To review the slides, click here.

 

Governor appoints Kent commissioner, MAC director to housing panel

A Kent County commissioner and the executive director of MAC were included in appointments by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) Statewide Housing Partnership.

 David Bulkowski, of Grand Rapids, is a commissioner for Kent County and serves as executive director at the Disability Advocates of Kent County. He is appointed to represent community development or advocacy organizations that provide services or housing to families or support other organizations who do.

Stephan W. Currie is executive director of Michigan Association of Counties and serves as a member of the Horizon Bank Advisory Board of Directors. He is appointed to represent local government, which might include representatives from county or municipal government associations.

Last year, Whitmer signed Executive Order 2022-10 establishing the Statewide Housing Partnership. Its primary responsibility is to develop a strategy to implement the Michigan Statewide Housing Plan released in 2022 and make recommendations to MSHDA on how best to achieve its goals. The plan presented opportunities for organizations to partner on common objectives, including rehabilitating and stabilizing the housing supply, reducing equity gaps and homelessness and increasing home energy efficiency and weatherization.

The new Statewide Housing Partnership will lead a coordinated, data-driven, outcome-oriented approach to housing, ensuring that all Michiganders have a safe, affordable place to call home. They will also establish regional consortiums to ensure statewide initiatives build on local efforts whenever possible, and they will keep Michiganders updated on their progress with public-facing communications. The partnership will dissolve on Sept. 6, 2024.

As part of this process, the partnership will hold a facilitated work session to start laying the groundwork for a formal RHP and learn how regional collaboration is key to advancement of the plan. County leaders interested in participating in one of these meetings should go to the registration link.

 

Staff picks

Legislative Update 3-3-23

Blog, Events, Legislative, MAC news, MACSC, Marketing, NACo

Legislature approves $1.3 billion in additional state spending

A bill to spend another $1.3 billion in the current fiscal year, largely for economic development incentives, cleared the Legislature this week and was sent to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for final approval.

House Bill 4016 distributes money through no fewer than seven state departments, with the largest share, $800 million, going either to incentives for a Ford plant to be sited in Calhoun County and an additional investment in the state’s SOAR economic development fund.

In addition to those figures, the bill provides:

  • $212 million for homeowners and landlords to do energy efficiency updates
  • $63.5 million to increase Medicaid interim rates to nursing home providers (see more below)
  • $25 million for grants to offset water bills for low income residents
  • $10 million to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment in the waters of the Lake Erie and Saginaw Bay watersheds

MAC did not take a position on the legislation.

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

 

Michigan Supreme Court hears arguments on trial court funding case

This week, the Michigan Supreme Court (MSC) held oral arguments in a case challenging a key source of revenue for local court operations. In People of MI v Travis Michael Johnson, MSC will decide the constitutionality of trial court judges levying fees against criminal defendants.

Prior to 2014, trial courts were able to impose operations fees on defendants. As a result of a 2014 Michigan Supreme Court ruling, trial courts were no longer authorized to levy such costs without statutory authorization by the Legislature. In response to said ruling, a MAC-led coalition convinced the Legislature to amend state law to allow trial courts to place “reasonably related” costs of prosecution on defendants but included the legislative sunset.

Michigan trial courts retain the authority to impose such fees, but only until May 1, 2024, when a legislative “sunset” occurs.

If the court rules against such fees prior to the implementation of a legislative solution, local courts face losing more than 26 percent of their current funding for operational costs. Counties would then be forced to backfill this gap, as local units of government are a main funding source for trial courts.

Members of the Legislature are working to implement funding recommendations of the Trial Court Funding Commission. And MAC is urging quick action to guard against a funding lapse via the creation of a Trial Court Fund to distribute funding to trial courts based on operational requirements, while maintaining local discretion over trial court operational decisions, and the establishment of uniform assessments and centralized collections through the State Court Administrator’s Office. This system will maintain judicial discretion for ordering fines, reduce costs and increase efficiency.

For more information on this issue, contact Samantha Gibson at gibson@micounties.org. 

 

MAC-backed bills for tax reimbursement re-introduced

Legislation to fully reimburse counties for property tax losses due to state-mandated exemptions for disabled veterans returned to the legislative slate this week.

Sen. Jon Bumstead (R-Muskegon) reintroduced his idea for reimbursements for disabled veterans’ property tax exemptions via Senate Bills 95–96. These bills, which failed to gain approval in the last legislative session, are the culmination of years of negotiations with the veterans organizations, the Legislature and local units of government. Locals have seen increasing losses due to the 2014 legislation mandating property tax exemptions for veterans with 100 percent disability.

As with last session’s versions, the bills create a refundable income tax credit to the veterans, payable to the local taxing units. Full reimbursement to counties for their losses due to the exemption is one of MAC’s top legislative priorities in 2023. However, the Michigan Department of Treasury remains opposed to Bumstead’s legislation.

The bills have been referred to the Senate Committee on Finance, Insurance and Consumer Protection.

Watch in future Legislative Updates and in MAC advocacy emails for ways that you, as county leaders, can become involved in bringing these bills through the Legislature.

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

 

Legislature OKs nursing grants backed by county medical care facilities

County medical care facilities (MCFS), caught in an ongoing and industry-wide staffing crunch, will receive state grants for workforce retention if Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signs House Bill 4016.

The Legislature approved HB 4016, the second supplemental budget of 2023, this week. It includes:

  • $67 million in workforce retention grants to nursing home providers
  • $63.5 million to increase Medicaid interim rates to nursing home providers, adjusting the interim rate to 4.5 percent, from 2.5 percent, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2023

The Michigan County Medical Care Facilities Council, which represents Michigan’s 34 county-operated MCFs, supports these investments.

For more information on this issue, contact Samantha Gibson at gibson@micounties.org.

 

MAC studying ‘unique’ proposal on handling property tax disputes

MAC has begun an internal review of a unique property tax proposal unveiled recently by Sen. Ed McBroom (R-Dickinson).

His Senate Bills 19–20 would create a county “Board of Revision” and vest all commercial, industrial and development real property — as well as commercial, industrial and utility personal property assessment appeals and decisions — to that body, bypassing the Michigan Tax Tribunal.

This appeals process would consider all property valued at $600,000 or more. Further challenges to decisions by the Board of Revision could be appealed directly to local circuit court.

The bills have been referred to the Senate Committee on Finance, Insurance and Consumer Protection.

MAC’s Finance and General Government Committee will review the legislation before the association takes any position on the bills.

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

 

Wayne’s Palamara touts MAC effort to aid opioid investment strategies

“County governments — charged with the delivery of public health services at the local level in our state — are on the frontlines of the overdose crisis in their communities. We now have the opportunity to create monumental change by making the best choices to help our families, friends and neighbors make the right ones,” Wayne County Commissioner Joe Palamara wrote in the Detroit Free Press this week to tout MAC’s opioid settlement assistance efforts.

In his opinion column posted online March 1, Palamara, a long-time member of the MAC Board of Directors, noted MAC’s Michigan Opioid Settlement Funds Toolkit: A Guide for Local Spending, developed by Amy Dolinky, MAC’s technical adviser for opioid settlement funds planning and capacity building.

Dolinky and Vital Strategies, a health policy nonprofit partnering with MAC in this work, already have been in contact with nearly half of Michigan’s counties to answer questions or provide expertise as local leaders decide how best to employ settlement funds to address substance abuse disorders.

Additional information and service details can be found on MAC’s Opioid Settlement Resource Center.

For any questions on opioid settlement funds, contact Dolinky at dolinky@micounties.org.

 

Cheboygan, Genesee leaders honored for energy efficiency work

Jeffery Lawson, administrator of Cheboygan County, and Deborah Cherry, Genesee County treasurer, recently were honored by Lean & Green Michigan with “Most Valuable PACEsetter” awards for 2022.

The pair were honored “for their dedication to helping businesses in their communities access capital to finance energy and water efficiency projects as well as renewable energy.”

Founded in 2012, Lean & Green Michigan, a corporate member of MAC, is a public-private partnership that helps local units of government administer Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE, financing. Since its inception, Lean & Green Michigan has closed 65 deals throughout the state and helped Michigan businesses access more than $207 million in private capital.  

Genesee County joined Lean and Green’s PACE district in October 2014 and closed their first project, Linden Senior Living, in February 2022. The case study can be found here.

Cheboygan County joined in May 2022 and expects to close on its initial project in the coming year.

PACE is a financing tool that allows a commercial property owner to voluntarily enter into a special assessment agreement with a local unit of government, which can be repaid over a period of up to 25 years. It enables cash flow positive investment in comprehensive energy efficiency, water efficiency and renewable energy projects. By financing such projects through PACE, businesses can eliminate the need for upfront capital and benefit from PACE’s long-term, fixed-rate financing structure so that the savings generated from the project are greater than the annual PACE loan repayment — generating immediate positive cash flow.

For more information on PACE, click here.

 

Legislative Update 2-24-23

Blog, Events, Legislative, MAC news, MACSC, Marketing, NACo

Counties with resources urged to share with areas hit hard by ice storm

Hundreds of thousands of Michigan residents remain without power on Friday as the state’s two major utilities continue to deal with the aftermath of a large ice storm that hit mid-week across Southern Michigan.

Approximately 700,000 locations are without power, and many will remain that way into next week, MAC is told. Consumers Energy and DTE have hundreds of crews out working to restore the power, and have brought in crews from other states.  Even though the storm is over, high winds caused even more power lines to fall from the weight of the ice Thursday night.

A statewide emergency has not yet been declared, but MAC has been assured by the Governor’s Office that they are deploying resources and have all hands on deck to help. MAC encourages counties to reach out to emergency management offices in hard-hit areas (see map) if they have resources to lend during the prolonged outage. Each emergency management office should have a list of needs to keep facilities operating and residents warm. The list may include generators, diesel fuel, and supplies for warming shelters.

For additional information on emergency management offices, visit the website of the Michigan Emergency Management Association.

DTE reported Friday morning that it hoped to have 50 percent of its down customers back online today.

Consumers Energy said it had restored more than 65,000 customers already and has 480 crews in the field.

For real-time information on restoration efforts, check the Twitter feeds for DTE and Consumers.

 

Filing period opens for special MAC Board elections at 2023 Legislative Conference

County commissioners interested in serving on the MAC Board of Directors have until March 24, 2023, to file for special elections to fill five seats on the Board at the 2023 Michigan Counties Legislative Conference.

These special elections will be for partial terms and held on April 25 at the conference in Lansing. To be an official candidate, commissioners must file official notice of their intent to run. Applications are due by 4 p.m. on March 24, 2023.

All five seats available represent regions, so will be decided by a vote in regional caucuses.

Click here to download the application form.

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.

Following seats are vacant and will be filled at the 2023 Legislative Conference:

  • Region II, Seat A (would serve term to Annual Conference of 2024*)
  • Region III, Seat A (would serve term to Annual Conference of 2024*)
  • Region IV, Seat B (would serve term to Annual conference of 2026)
  • Region V, Seat B (would serve term to Annual Conference of 2024*)
  • Region VI, Seat B (would serve term to Annual Conference of 2025)

No director shall serve more than three full three-year terms, except in certain situations where a director is filling a vacancy in an unexpired term. If the elected replacement shall serve more than half of the unexpired term, it shall be considered as if such person has served one full term for purposes of term limits. If the person filling the vacancy shall serve less than half of the unexpired term, that person shall be permitted to serve up to three additional full 3-year terms. *Denotes a period of less than half of a term.

Candidates who file 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 or scurrie@micounties.org.

 

Treasury’s Contact Center on ARP issues reopens

The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Contact Center for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) reopened on Feb. 21. The Contact Center closed last year due to an administrative funding shortfall, which impacted Treasury’s ability to provide technical assistance and support to counties that received State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF), Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Funds (LATCF), Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) funds and more.

Late last year, Congress provided additional resources for the Office of Recovery Programs in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2023 as part of the Cornyn/Padilla amendment (the National Association of Counties and MAC worked with both Congress and Treasury to ensure the inclusion of this critical amendment).

Counties can reach out to the Contact Center for questions related to recovery programs at these contact points:

 

Join Treasury, MSUE for free webinar on budgeting

MSU Extension and the Michigan Department of Treasury will cover the fundamentals of budgeting during uncertain economic times, tracking long-term fiscal health, and operational best practices.

The webinar is free and will run from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. (ET) on March 16, 2023. Click here to register.

Michigan communities have experienced fiscal instability for a number of reasons, including the economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, rising inflation, and ongoing economic uncertainty. This webinar will provide best practices for local government fiscal health, including budgeting, long-term planning, dealing with uncertainty, and financial policies and procedures.

MAC has just designated this session as part of County Commissioner Academy (CCA), the association’s continuing education program for members. Participants in this session will earn 3 credit hours for CCA.

What will be covered:

  • The budget process and communicating your budget
  • Dealing with uncertainty in a changing economy
  • Understanding key financial variables, such as:
  • The “rainy day fund”/fund balance/net position
  • Understanding how the tax base provides revenue
  • Understanding volatile revenue
  • Forecasting revenue and expenditures
  • How to track your budget performance, including reviewing and amending your budget
  • How spending in the present will have an impact on the future. 

Detailed guides that outline strong policies and procedures each local government should have. These guides include a checklist to track what your local government already has, what you are working on, and next steps. 

The Fiscally Ready Communities program was created to assist communities that want to establish, measure, and maintain policies to increase operational and financial effectiveness and safeguards. This partnership between MSU Extension and the Michigan Department of Treasury helps local governments work towards fiscal health by sharing best practices in fiscal sustainability. There are currently four webinars that are part of the Fiscally Ready Communities program, with a fifth to be added later in 2023.

 

NACo seeks applications for 2023 Achievement Awards

Counties have until March 3 to get the best fee on their applications for a 2023 National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Award.

The program is a non-competitive awards program recognizing innovative county government programs. One outstanding program from each category will be selected as the “Best of Category.” Below, find resources to help you begin your application and explore past winners.

Only county governments and state associations of counties are eligible to submit applications. There is no limit to the number of applications that can be submitted by a single entity. Regional partners are welcome to submit applications for a collective project; however, submitters must identify a single county or state association to submit the application on the group’s behalf.

To be eligible, programs must accomplish one or more of the following:

  • Offer new services to county residents, fill gaps in the availability of services, fill gaps in or tap new revenue sources
  • Improve the administration of an existing county government program
  • Upgrade the working conditions or level of training for county employees. Enhance the level of citizen participation in, or the understanding of, government programs
  • Provide information that facilitates effective public policy-making
  • Promote intergovernmental cooperation and coordination in addressing shared problems

The fee for each application submitted by March 3, 2023, is $75. The fee for each application will increase to $100 from March 4-April 7, 2023. Any application received without payment will not be judged or awarded.

For complete details, visit the Achievement Awards page.

 

Legislative Update 2-17-23

Blog, Events, Legislative, MAC news, MACSC, Marketing, NACo

Sens. Stabenow and Peters brief MAC delegation at NACo Legislative Conference

The National Association of Counties (NACo) hosted its annual legislative conference earlier this week. Michigan was well represented at the conference with nearly fifty commissioners in attendance, as well as several MAC staff members. The Michigan delegation had the opportunity to meet with U.S. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow to discuss their priorities and hear more about federal policies.

Medicaid Inmate Exclusion Policy (MIEP) was discussed with both senators. Currently, the use of federal funds, including Medicaid and Medicare, cannot be used for inmates. This means that counties are financially responsible for the medical care of all inmates, including pretrial detainees who are presumed innocent under the constitution. Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Jeff Merkley of Oregon are leading a bipartisan effort to reform the MIEP, and the MAC group encouraged Sens. Peters and Stabenow to support their efforts.

Executives from the Michigan County Medical Care Facilities Council shared with the senators the crisis they face in attracting and retaining staff. Sen. Peters expressed interest in pursuing broader immigration policies as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee that he believes could be a solution to this problem.

President Joe Biden made an appearance at the conference speaking to a general session on Tuesday. As a former Delaware county commissioner, he acknowledged a need for a more direct line from the federal government to county government. This was what led to him to create the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), giving $65.1 billion directly to counties. He said ARPA was responsible for creating 12 million jobs in just two years. Senator Stabenow echoed this sentiment during her meeting with the Michigan delegation and expressed a desire to continue working on job creation in the state.

The NACo legislative conference is always a great opportunity to swap ideas and learn from other states how they have tackled issues that Michigan is facing. It is a platform for learning more about federal programs and connecting with Michigan’s federal legislators. Please consider participating in 2024!

 

Podcast 83 talks foreclosure litigation

In this special episode of Podcast 83, MAC talks with Ted Seitz, an expert in property tax law, about ongoing litigation on tax foreclosures on property and the resulting proceeds from tax sales.

Host Stephan Currie and Deena Bosworth, MAC Governmental Affairs Director, discuss with Seitz all of the potential turns in the litigation and what that could mean to county governments.

See the full video, recorded on Jan. 25.

Previous episodes can be seen at MAC’s YouTube Channel.

And you always can find details about Podcast 83 on the MAC website.

 

Michigan Supreme Court sets hearing date for trial court funding case

This week, the Michigan Supreme Court announced its March 2023 oral arguments session docket. Oral arguments in the case to decide the constitutionality of trial court judges levying fees against criminal defendants, People of MI v Travis Michael Johnson, are scheduled for March 1.

Prior to 2014, trial courts were able to impose operations fees on defendants. As a result of a 2014 Michigan Supreme Court (MSC) ruling, trial courts were no longer authorized to levy such costs without statutory authorization by the Legislature. In response to said ruling, the Legislature amended the current statute to allow trial courts to place “reasonably related” costs of prosecution on defendants but included the legislative sunset.

Currently, Michigan trial courts have the authority to impose fees, a critical funding element, until May 1, 2024. The legislature is currently working to implement the recommendations of the Trial Court Funding Commission before the May 2024 sunset date arrives. MAC supports the creation of the Trial Court Fund to distribute funding to trial courts based on operational requirements while maintaining local discretion over trial court operational decisions, and the establishment of uniform assessments and centralized collections through the State Court Administrator’s Office. The system will maintain judicial discretion for ordering fines, will reduce costs and increase efficiency.

For more information on this issue, contact Samantha Gibson at gibson@micounties.org. 

 

NACo seeks applications for 2023 Achievement Awards

Counties have until March 3 to get the best fee on their applications for a 2023 National Association of Counties (NACo) Achievement Award.

The program is a non-competitive awards program recognizing innovative county government programs. One outstanding program from each category will be selected as the “Best of Category.” Below, find resources to help you begin your application and explore past winners.

Only county governments and state associations of counties are eligible to submit applications. There is no limit to the number of applications that can be submitted by a single entity. Regional partners are welcome to submit applications for a collective project; however, submitters must identify a single county or state association to submit the application on the group’s behalf.

To be eligible, programs must accomplish one or more of the following:

    • Offer new services to county residents, fill gaps in the availability of services, fill gaps in or tap new revenue sources
    • Improve the administration of an existing county government program
    • Upgrade the working conditions or level of training for county employees. Enhance the level of citizen participation in, or the understanding of, government programs
  • Provide information that facilitates effective public policy-making
  • Promote intergovernmental cooperation and coordination in addressing shared problems

The fee for each application submitted by March 3, 2023, is $75. The fee for each application will increase to $100 from March 4-April 7, 2023. Any application received without payment will not be judged or awarded.

For complete details, visit the Achievement Awards page.

Legislative Update 2-10-23

Blog, Events, Legislative, MAC news, MACSC, Marketing, NACo

Boost for revenue sharing highlights governor’s FY24 budget

A 17 percent boost in county revenue sharing is a “great indicator” that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recognizes the need to reinvest in local public services, MAC Executive Director Stephan Currie said Wednesday in response to Whitmer’s fiscal 2024 budget presentation in Lansing.

“The fact that this and so many of MAC’s 2023 priorities, such as investments in juvenile justice, public health and foster care, are reflected in the governor’s spending plan is a good start as the budget work begins in Lansing,” Currie added in an official statement.

Deena Bosworth, MAC director of governmental affairs, told the Gongwer News Service, “We’re hoping (the county revenue sharing increase) stays with 10 percent and the 7 percent. That represents a significant increase.”

Among MAC’s 2023 priorities in Lansing is the creation of a Revenue Sharing Trust Fund to include dollars earmarked by law from the state sales tax.

In other budget areas affecting county government:

Public health and public safety
  • A $30 million increase in base funding to local public health departments
  • An almost 60 percent increase in funding to support essential public health services to enhance recruitment efforts for behavioral health workers
  • Dedication of a 7 percent increase in revenue sharing to public safety, totaling $17 million, to aid with public safety employee recruitment, retention and training, and equipment and infrastructure improvements
  • $2 million to establish a Juvenile Justice Services Division within the State Court Administrator’s Office, implementing one of the Michigan Task Force on Juvenile Justice Reform’s recommendations
  • $556,900 to create a juvenile justice unit within the State Appellate Defender’s Office, which would provide appellate counsel for indigent youth
  • $32 million for Michigan Department of Health and Human Services juvenile justice programming reimbursements; these reimbursements, through the Michigan Child Care Fund, are used for community programming for juvenile justice at the local level
  • $2 million to establish the Office of Child Advocate juvenile justice services
  • $220.9 million for Michigan Indigent Defense Commission (MIDC) grants, a $72 million increase from FY23 to cover the minimum MIDC standards for indigent attorney compensation (120 local trial court funding units will receive this funding to implement the requirements for “effective and fair assistance of counsel for indigent criminal defendants”)
  • $19.3 million to increase the daily rate paid to foster families, adoptive families, and juvenile guardians.
Infrastructure

While Whitmer spoke at length about changing the vehicles on our roads (see bullets below), she had little to say about investments in roads. Nearly all the money in the proposed transportation budget is dedicated to ongoing programs, including debt service and a bridge bundling initiative.

Electric vehicle spending

  • $45 million for local governments to convert their fleets to electric vehicles (EVs)
  • $65 million for charging infrastructure both commercially and at-home
  • $48.8 million to temporarily suspend the sales tax on electric vehicles
  • $150 million for electric school buses

The governor called for $225.8 million to replace thousands of water service lines made of lead and $280.5 million for water treatment facility upgrades and stormwater management systems. Not all these dollars would come from the state General Fund, however, as a large portion would be drawn from funds via the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Also, she proposed $25 million to remove dams, so long as they do not contain invasive species or generate power for communities.

A more detailed line-item breakdown of the governor’s budget is planned for the Feb. 17 Legislative Update.

 

Podcast 83 gives initial review of governor’s FY24 budget

There is much to like for counties in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s fiscal 2024 budget proposal, members of MAC’s Podcast 83 team said during an episode taped the day after the governor’s presentation on Feb. 8.

Guest host Deena Bosworth, MAC Governmental Affairs Director, led MAC staffers Madeline Fata and Samantha Gibson through areas of particular note to counties, highlighted by:

  • A 17 percent increase on county revenue sharing
  • A $19 million boost to support foster families
  • More than $12 million to support ongoing work for a statewide judicial case management system

By contrast to these high points, the governor’s budget only raised more questions about another perennial county concern: proper funding for roads and bridges. The budget’s emphasis on electric vehicles, which do not contribute to the state’s key fuel funds, only exacerbate the concerns MAC and others expressed about road funding trends during a policy briefing in late January.

On the lighter side, watch the episode to find out who celebrated a birthday this week.

See the full video, recorded on Feb. 9.

Previous episodes can be seen at MAC’s YouTube Channel.

And you always can find details about Podcast 83 on the MAC website.

 

State releases opioid settlement spending principles

On Friday, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released its spending “plan” for the state of Michigan’s opioid settlement dollars for 2023.

The document does not provide dollar amounts, but states it is: “A brief overview of key efforts and investments.”

MDHHS has been authorized to spend $39.2 million of the settlement dollars to carry out these efforts and plans to focus on activities that cannot be funded from other restricted sources. The areas for investments align with the state opioid strategy focusing on the pillars of prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, data, equity, criminal-legal and pregnant and parenting populations. Additional areas targeted include administrative costs and technical assistance and resources for local governments.

The assistance for local governments will be provided through three universities and will involve partnership with MAC. Many of the investments outlined by the state are associated with work taking place at the local level, potentially increasing the amount of funds flowing into counties in Michigan.

For information on MAC’s opioid settlement assistance, contact Amy Dolinky at dolinky@micounties.org.

 

Budget includes plan for pay boost for nursing care workers

The state would commit $210.1 million to increasing pay for direct care workers in skilled nursing facilities under a provision of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s fiscal 2024 budget.

These recommendations would increase the average wage by $1.50 per hour for direct care workers.

An additional $90 million in state dollars would go to boost pay for non-direct care employees.

The Michigan Counties Medical Care Facilities Council, which represents the 34 county-owned medical care facilities in Michigan, supports pay increases for workers, its executive director, Renee Beniak, said Friday. To see the council’s legislative priorities for fiscal year 2024, click here.

For more information on this issue, please contact Samantha Gibson at gibson@micounties.org.

 

Counties pass resolutions to honor MAC’s 125th Anniversary

MAC extends its thanks to member counties that have passed, or are planning to pass official resolutions in honor of MAC’s 125th Anniversary year, which began on Feb. 1.

As of mid-day Friday, MAC had copies of such resolutions from Branch, Lenawee, Mackinac, Newaygo, Ogemaw, Sanilac and Wexford. Three other counties have advised MAC they plan such action in the next two weeks.

To assist members with this effort, MAC created a resolution template with historical facts and accomplishments by the association, which was sent to county board chairs and administrators. Members can still download a copy at this link on MAC’s special anniversary webpage.

If your county has passed a resolution or plans to do so, please alert MAC via email to melot@micounties.org.

 

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