House Introduced Bill 5353

HOUSE BILL No. 5353


     November 6, 1997, Introduced by Reps. Profit, Bobier, Birkholz, Hanley, Brackenridge, Middleton and Goschka and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy.


        A bill to amend 1893 PA 206, entitled

   "The general property tax act,"

   by amending sections 59 and 131 (MCL 211.59 and 211.131), section

   59 as amended by 1983 PA 254 and section 131 as amended by 1993

   PA 291.

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 1         Sec. 59.  (1) A person may pay the taxes, any 1 of the

 2     several  taxes, a portion of the taxes  that is  specified by

 3    resolution of the county board of commissioners, or if a specifi-

 4    cation is not made by a resolution of the county board of

 5    commissioners, a portion of the taxes  that is  approved by the

 6    county treasurer  ,  on a parcel or description of  land 

 7    PROPERTY returned as delinquent, or on an undivided share of a

 8    parcel or description of  land  PROPERTY returned as delinquent,

 9    with interest computed from THE March 1  next  after the taxes


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 1    were assessed at the rate of 1% per month or fraction of a month,

 2    except as provided in section 89, with 4% of the delinquent taxes

 3    as a county property tax administration fee  which  THAT shall be

 4    a minimum of $1.00 per payment of delinquent taxes, except as

 5    provided in section 89, to the county treasurer of the county in

 6    which the  lands are  PROPERTY IS situated, at any time before

 7     they are  THE PROPERTY IS sold OR FORFEITED.  The county  and

 8     township treasurers  TREASURER AND THE TREASURER FOR THE LOCAL

 9    TAX COLLECTING UNIT shall allocate and distribute the taxes and

10    interest paid proportionately among the county or  township 

11    LOCAL TAX COLLECTING UNIT funds and the property tax administra-

12    tion fee returned as delinquent  pursuant to  UNDER section 44(6)

13    to the treasurer of the local TAX COLLECTING unit who transmitted

14    the  statement of  taxes returned as delinquent.  On all descrip-

15    tions of  land on which the  PROPERTY WITH UNPAID taxes  remain

16     unpaid  on THE October 1  next preceding  BEFORE the time pre-

17    scribed for the sale OR FORFEITURE of the  land  PROPERTY,  there

18     shall be charged  an additional $10.00 SHALL BE CHARGED for

19    expenses, which shall  thereafter  be a lien on the  land 

20    PROPERTY.  When  IF collected, $5.00 of this expense charge

21    shall be credited to a restricted revenue fund of  the  THIS

22    state, to be known as the delinquent property tax administration

23    fund, to reimburse  the  THIS state for the cost of publishing

24    the lists of lands and other  expense  EXPENSES, and $5.00 shall

25    belong to the general fund of the county to reimburse the county

26    for the expense incurred in preparing the list of delinquent

27     lands  PROPERTY for sale or forfeiture.  IN ADDITION, ON MARCH 1



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 1    IN THE THIRD YEAR OF DELINQUENCY, A $15.00 TITLE SEARCH FEE SHALL

 2    BE CHARGED, WHICH SHALL BE A LIEN ON THE PROPERTY.  IF COLLECTED,

 3    THE TITLE SEARCH FEE SHALL BE CREDITED TO THE DELINQUENT PROPERTY

 4    TAX ADMINISTRATION FUND TO REIMBURSE THIS STATE FOR THE COST OF

 5    TITLE SEARCHES AND OTHER EXPENSES.

 6         (2) The  county  property tax administration fee paid to the

 7    county treasurer shall  belong  BE CREDITED to the general fund

 8    of the county and  that  THE PROPERTY TAX ADMINISTRATION FEE paid

 9    to the state treasurer shall be credited to the delinquent prop-

10    erty tax administration fund.  Amounts credited to the general

11    fund of the county shall be used only for the purposes  for which

12     they may be collected as  specified  by  IN subsection (6).

13         (3) A county board of commissioners, by resolution, may pro-

14    vide  that  ALL OF THE FOLLOWING for taxes paid BEFORE MAY 1 in

15    the first year of delinquency  before May 1  for the homestead

16    property  for which  OF a senior citizen, paraplegic, HEMIPLEGIC,

17    quadriplegic, eligible serviceman, eligible veteran, eligible

18    widow, totally and permanently disabled person, or blind person,

19    as those persons are defined in chapter 9 of  Act No. 281 of the

20     Public Acts of 1967, as amended, being sections 206.501 to

21     206.532 of the Michigan Compiled Laws  THE INCOME TAX ACT OF

22    1967, 1967 PA 281, MCL 206.501 TO 206.532,  makes  IF a claim  , 

23    IS MADE before February 15  ,  for the credit provided by

24    chapter 9 of  Act No. 281 of the Public Acts of 1967, as amended 

25    THE INCOME TAX ACT OF 1967, 1967 PA 281, MCL 206.501 TO 206.532,

26    if that claimant presents a copy of the form filed for that





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 1    credit to the county treasurer, AND IF THAT CLAIMANT has not

 2    received the credit before March 1:

 3         (a) Any interest, fee, or penalty in excess of the interest,

 4    fee, or penalty that would have been added if the tax had been

 5    paid before February 15  shall be  IS waived.

 6         (b) Interest paid  pursuant to  UNDER subsection (1) or sec-

 7    tion 89(1)(a)  shall be  IS waived unless the interest is pledged

 8    to the repayment of delinquent tax revolving fund notes or pay-

 9    able to the county delinquent tax revolving fund, in which case

10    the interest shall be refunded from the general fund of the

11    county.

12         (c) The county property tax administration fee  shall be  IS

13    waived.

14         (4) The  local  treasurer OF THE LOCAL TAX COLLECTING UNIT

15    shall indicate on the delinquent tax roll if a 1% property tax

16    administration fee was added to taxes collected before

17    February 15.

18         (5) The fees authorized and collected  pursuant to  UNDER

19    this section and credited to the delinquent property tax adminis-

20    tration fund shall be used by the department of treasury to pay

21    expenses incurred in the administration of this act.

22         (6) The county property tax administration fee shall be used

23    by the county to offset the costs incurred in and ancillary to

24    collecting delinquent property taxes  ,  and for purposes autho-

25    rized by sections 87b and 87d.

26         Sec. 131.  (1) The director of the department of natural

27    resources may  , with the approval of the commission of natural



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 1    resources,  withhold from sale any  land  PROPERTY that he or she

 2    determines to be suitable for state forests, state parks, state

 3    game refuges, public hunting, or recreational grounds.  The

 4    director OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES may set a minimum

 5    price for  land  PROPERTY not withheld from sale.  Except as pro-

 6    vided in subsection (2), all  land  PROPERTY not withheld from

 7    sale and not held by a  city or village  LOCAL TAX COLLECTING

 8    UNIT shall be offered for sale by the director OF THE DEPARTMENT

 9    OF NATURAL RESOURCES, at a price to be determined by the director

10    OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, pursuant to  Act No. 21

11     of the Public Acts of 1873, as amended, being sections 322.261 to

12     322.266 of the Michigan Compiled Laws  1873 PA 21, MCL 322.261 TO

13    322.266.  A bid shall not be accepted for less than the minimum

14    price set by the director OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL

15    RESOURCES.  If no bids are received or accepted by the director

16    of the department of natural resources, the director OF THE

17    DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES may sell the  land  PROPERTY to a

18    person applying  for the  TO purchase  of  the  land  PROPERTY at

19    a price not less than the minimum price affixed by the director

20    OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES.  THE DEPARTMENT OF NATU-

21    RAL RESOURCES SHALL RECORD A DEED FOR THE PROPERTY SOLD WITH THE

22    REGISTER OF DEEDS FOR THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE PROPERTY IS

23    LOCATED. The proceeds of the sale, after deducting costs paid by

24    the department of natural resources for maintaining the  land 

25    PROPERTY in condition to protect the public health and safety,

26    shall be accounted for to the state, county,  township  LOCAL TAX

27    COLLECTING UNIT, and school district in which the  land  PROPERTY



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 1    is situated, pro rata according to their  several  interests in

 2    the  land  PROPERTY arising from the nonpayment of taxes and spe-

 3    cial assessments on the  land  PROPERTY as that interest appears

 4    in the offices of the state, county, city, and  village  LOCAL

 5    TAX COLLECTING UNIT treasurers.  A person who purchases  land 

 6    PROPERTY under this section shall, in addition to paying the pur-

 7    chase price, pay to the state a fee of $10.00 per parcel of

 8     land  PROPERTY purchased, plus 5% of the purchase price, PLUS

 9    THE RECORDING FEE FOR EACH DEED RECORDED.  The $10.00 charge and

10    5% of the purchase price shall be deposited in the  state

11     treasury  GENERAL FUND to the credit of the delinquent property

12    tax administration fund.

13         (2) A local tax collecting unit or a county may file an

14    application with the department of natural resources requesting

15    the conveyance to the local tax collecting unit, the county, or a

16    designated recipient of property identified as certified special

17    residential property under section 55a and for which the redemp-

18    tion period provided for under section 74 has expired.  A county

19    filing an application under this subsection shall provide a copy

20    of the application at the time of filing to the certified special

21    residential property officer of the local tax collecting unit.

22    Not later than 45 days after the filing of a county's applica-

23    tion, the local tax collecting unit may file an application cer-

24    tifying that a specific parcel included in the county's applica-

25    tion is a designated parcel and requesting the conveyance of that

26    parcel to the local tax collecting unit.  An application

27    certifying that a parcel is a designated parcel supersedes the



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 1    application of the county with respect to the parcel for which a

 2    certification is made.

 3         (3) Property for which an application is received under sub-

 4    section (2) shall be conveyed by the director of the department

 5    of natural resources to the local tax collecting unit, to the

 6    county in which the land is located, or to a designated recipient

 7    OF THE LOCAL TAX COLLECTING UNIT, whichever is applicable, within

 8    90 days after the expiration of the redemption period provided

 9    for under section 131e upon the payment of an administration fee

10    of $75.00 for up to 5 parcels and $10.00 for each additional

11    parcel over 5.  A designated party that is determined by the cer-

12    tified special residential property officer of the local tax col-

13    lecting unit or the county, whichever is applicable, to be pri-

14    marily responsible for the identification of the certified spe-

15    cial residential property shall be offered the right to become a

16    designated recipient of that property before any other designated

17    recipient is appointed by the local tax collecting unit or the

18    county.  However, this subsection does not require a local tax

19    collecting unit, a county, or a designated recipient to accept a

20    conveyance of property.  A local tax collecting unit or county

21    that receives certified special residential property under this

22    act may convey that property to a designated party for a nominal

23    fee and the conveyance shall be considered to have been made for

24    the public purpose of eliminating neighborhood deterioration and

25    blight.







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 1         Enacting section 1.  This amendatory act does not take

 2    effect unless all of the following bills of the 89th Legislature

 3    are enacted into law:

 4         (a) Senate Bill No. _____ or House Bill No. _____ (request

 5    no. 03098'97 *).

 6         (b) Senate Bill No. _____ or House Bill No. _____ (request

 7    no. 04766'97).










































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