Act No. 168

Public Acts of 1998

Approved by the Governor

June 25, 1998

Filed with the Secretary of State

June 26, 1998

EFFECTIVE DATE: 91st day after final adjournment of 1998 Regular Session

STATE OF MICHIGAN

89TH LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 1998

Introduced by Reps. Callahan, Brackenridge and Dobronski

ENROLLED HOUSE BILL No. 5174

AN ACT to amend 1986 PA 196, entitled "An act to authorize the formation of public transportation authorities with certain general powers and duties; to provide for the withdrawal of certain local entities from public transportation authorities; to authorize certain local entities to levy property taxes for public transportation service and public transportation purposes; to protect the rights of employees of existing public transportation systems; to provide for the issuance of bonds and notes; to provide for the pledge of taxes, revenues, assessments, tax levies, and other funds for bond or note payment; to provide for the powers and duties of certain state agencies; to validate taxes authorized before the effective date of this act, elections held before the effective date of this act, and bonds and notes issued before the effective date of this act; to provide for transfer of certain tax revenue and certain powers, rights, duties, and obligations; to authorize condemnation proceedings; to grant certain powers to certain local entities; and to validate and ratify the organization, existence, and membership of public transportation authorities created before the effective date of this act and the actions taken by those public transportation authorities and by the members of those public transportation authorities," by amending the title and section 8 (MCL 124.458), section 8 as amended by 1990 PA 10.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

TITLE

An act to authorize the formation of public transportation authorities with certain general powers and duties; to provide for the withdrawal of certain local entities from public transportation authorities; to authorize certain local entities to levy property taxes for public transportation service and public transportation purposes; to protect the rights of employees of existing public transportation systems; to provide for the issuance of bonds and notes; to provide for the pledge of taxes, revenues, assessments, tax levies, and other funds for bond or note payment; to provide for the powers and duties of certain state agencies; to validate taxes authorized before July 10, 1986, elections held before July 10, 1986, and bonds and notes issued before July 10, 1986; to provide for transfer of certain tax revenue and certain powers, rights, duties, and obligations; to authorize condemnation proceedings; to grant certain powers to certain local entities; to validate and ratify the organization, existence, and membership of public transportation authorities created before July 10, 1986 and the actions taken by those public transportation authorities and by the members of those public transportation authorities; and to prescribe penalties and provide remedies.

Sec. 8. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2), a political subdivision that is a member of a public authority or the portion of a city, village, or township, which portion is a member of a public authority may be released from membership in the public authority if all of the following conditions are met:

(a) Adoption of a resolution by a majority of the members elected to and serving on the legislative body of the political subdivision requesting release from membership.

(b) Acceptance of the request by a 2/3 vote of the members serving on the board of the public authority, excluding the members representing the political subdivision requesting release.

(c) Payment or the provision for payment is made regarding all obligations of the political subdivision to the public authority or its creditors.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), an entity that is a political subdivision and is a member of a public authority or the portion of a city, village, or township, which portion is a member of a public authority, may be released from membership in the public authority if all of the following conditions are met:

(a) The entity desiring to withdraw from the authority has approved the question by a majority of the qualified and registered electors voting at a general or special election held in November before the expiration of a tax authorized to be levied under this act.

(b) Subject to subsection (6), a petition that bears the signatures of registered electors of the entity equal to at least 20% of the number of votes cast in the political subdivision or portion of a city, village, or township for all candidates for governor in the last general election in which a governor was elected and that requires the governing body of the entity by resolution to submit the question to its electors at the next general or special election is filed not less than 60 days before the election with the clerk of the entity presenting the question.

(c) The vote upon the question approving the resolution is by ballot and is in substantially the following form:

"Shall __________ (township, village, city, or other) as provided by 1986 PA 196 withdraw from the authority as a member?

Yes ____

No ____".

(d) All ballots are cast, canvassed, and the results of the election certified in the same manner as ballots on any other question submitted to the electors of the entity seeking withdrawal pursuant to the Michigan election law, 1954 PA 116, MCL 168.1 to 168.992.

(e) Payment or the provision for payment is made regarding all obligations of the political subdivision to the public authority or its creditors. If withdrawal is approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question, the decision will take effect at the expiration date of the tax and neither the authority nor officials of the political subdivision may appeal or amend this decision.

(3) A tax authorized to be levied by a public authority within the boundaries of the political subdivision or the portion of a political subdivision to be released shall continue to be levied for the period of time originally authorized and shall be paid over to the public authority originally authorized to be the recipient of the tax revenue. A political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision that has been released from an authority shall continue to receive transportation services from the authority until the political subdivision or portion of the political subdivision is no longer required to pay a tax levied by the authority.

(4) Release of a political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision from a public authority shall be evidenced by an amendment to the articles of incorporation executed by the recording officer of a public authority and filed and published in the same manner as the original articles of incorporation.

(5) A political subdivision or other entity that is part of a public authority under this act may withdraw from the public authority until the expiration of the thirtieth day following the date the public authority is incorporated without meeting the conditions listed in subsection (1) or (2). If a public authority under this act has as a member a political subdivision that is part of a metropolitan statistical area, as defined by the United States department of commerce or a successor agency, and the metropolitan statistical area has a population of not less than 600,000 and not more than 1,500,000, a political subdivision or other entity that is part of the public authority may also withdraw from the public authority until the expiration of 30 days after the date on which the board of the public authority adopts a resolution calling for an election for the purpose of levying a tax pursuant to section 18, without meeting the conditions listed in subsection (1) or (2). If all or a portion of a city, village, or township is part of an authority incorporating as a public authority under this act, the city, village, or township may also decide to only withdraw a portion of the entity bounded by the lines described in section 4 from the public authority under the deadline established in this subsection. In addition, a political subdivision or other entity that is part of a public authority under this act may withdraw from the public authority in any year in which a tax authorized to be levied under this act expires, without meeting the conditions listed in subsection (1) or (2), if the political subdivision or entity makes the determination to withdraw by a vote of its legislative body held in January of that year. Further, if all or a portion of a city, village, or township is part of an authority incorporating as a public authority under this act, the city, village, or township may also decide to only withdraw a portion of the entity bounded by the lines described in section 4 from the public authority in that same January. However, if a tax is authorized to be levied in a political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision by a public authority under this act and the political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision withdraws pursuant to this subsection, the tax shall continue to be levied in the political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision for the period of time originally authorized. A political subdivision or portion of a political subdivision that withdraws from the authority shall continue to receive public transportation services from the authority until the political subdivision or portion of the political subdivision is no longer required to pay a tax levied by the authority.

(6) A petition under subsection (2), including the circulation and signing of the petition, is subject to section 488 of the Michigan election law, 1954 PA 116, MCL 168.488. A person who violates a provision of the Michigan election law, 1954 PA 116, MCL 168.1 to 168.992, applicable to a petition described in subsection (2) is subject to the penalties prescribed for that violation in the Michigan election law, 1954 PA 116, MCL 168.1 to 168.992.

Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect unless House Bill No. 5138 of the 89th Legislature is enacted into law.

Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Secretary of the Senate.

Approved

Governor.