House Bill 4177 would allow counties to form History Museum Authorities

State Rep. Donni Steele on Thursday voted against a plan that could raise taxes on property owners across Michigan. The legislation would allow for the creation of History Museum Authorities. The authorities would be able to levy new property taxes against county residents, many of whom may never have any interest in visiting the museums their tax dollars would support.

“People who don’t visit their local museum shouldn’t have to pay to keep its lights on,” said Steele, R-Orion Township. “These authorities have no oversight or transparency. This is another way to raise taxes unfairly and subsidize huge deficits in Detroit by pushing expenses onto the backs of hard-working people in our communities. Museums should be finding innovative ways to make exhibits more interesting and boost attendance numbers in the process. If they can’t accomplish that, they should be exploring consolidation before forcing regular people to raise taxes.”

House Bill 4177 allows the newly created authorities to levy a property tax of a max of 0.2 mills for no more than 10 years, which could cost taxpayers in Oakland County more than $160 million. A majority of voters in each county must approve a tax before it can be levied. Once the authority and tax are created, nothing is stopping a rogue authority from sending taxpayer money outside the county of origin.

The plan now moves on to the Senate for further consideration.

###