EXEMPTIONS
House Bill 4991
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Green
Committee: Agriculture and Resource
Management
Complete to 11-24-99
A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 4991 AS INTRODUCED 10-31-99
The bill would add a new section to the General Property Tax Act to exempt from property taxes a "vegetative filter strip" 16 feet or more wide that was immediately adjacent and parallel to a drain, river, or stream, and to require the Department of Agriculture to submit an annual report to the Senate and House committees that had the responsibility for agricultural matters about the effectiveness of the new section. The bill would define "vegetative filter strip" to mean a parcel of property at least 16 feet wide immediately adjacent and parallel to a drain, river, or stream that wasn't cultivated, maintained, or groomed and that filtered the surface water runoff flowing into the drain, river or stream as determined by the soil conservation district agency that had jurisdiction over that property. Vegetation in a vegetative filter strip would have to have a dense top growth and a heavy, fibrous root system, form a uniform ground cover, and tolerate pesticides used in farming.
MCL 211.7gg
Analyst: S. Ekstrom