House Introduced Bill 5708

HOUSE BILL No. 5708


     February 21, 2002, Introduced by Rep. Patterson and referred to the Committee on House Oversight and Operations.


        A bill to amend 1889 PA 226, entitled

   "An act to provide for the collection of specific taxes from cor-
   porations, copartnerships, parties or persons, subject under any
   laws of this state to the payment of such taxes; to fix the time
   when such taxes become a lien upon the property of such corpora-
   tions, copartnerships, parties or persons, and to define the
   property to which the lien shall attach; and to repeal Act No.
   57 of the session laws of 1872, approved March twenty-ninth,
   1872, and Acts No.  10 and 11 of the session laws of 1873,
   approved February fourteenth, 1873, being sections numbered 1249
   to 1256, both inclusive, of Howell's annotated statutes of 1882,"

   by amending sections 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 (MCL 207.441, 207.442,

   207.443, 207.444, and 207.445).

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

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             Sec. 1.   That all specific  SPECIFIC taxes imposed by any

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        law of this state upon any corporation, copartnership, party, or

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        person, that  shall  remain unpaid after the last day of the

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        month in which by law  such  THE specific taxes are  made

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        payable,  shall be  ARE subject to interest computed at the rate



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        of 7 per cent per annum from the day  such  THE specific taxes

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         may have become  BECAME due to the day of payment.  thereof:

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        Provided, That if in any case any  FURTHERMORE, IF A specific

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        tax, with the accrued interest  thereon, shall not be  IS NOT

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        paid within 10 days after demand  thereof  FOR PAYMENT is made by

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        the  auditor general  STATE TREASURER, then any corporation,

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        copartnership, party, or person so failing to pay as demanded  ,

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        shall be  IS subject to a penalty of 2 per cent for each month or

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        fraction  thereof  OF A MONTH, to be computed upon the amount due

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        from  such  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or person at

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        the date of  such  THE demand for payment.  And for the amount so

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        due, including the penalty,  herein imposed,  the  auditor

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        general  STATE TREASURER shall bring an action in the name of the

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        people of the state of Michigan, before the judge of the circuit

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        court of any county in this state having jurisdiction,  thereof,

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        in open court, if it shall be in session, otherwise at his OR HER

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        chambers, for the recovery of the  same; and said judge,  AMOUNT

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        DUE, INCLUDING THE PENALTY, after not less than 30 days' notice

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        to every such corporation, copartnership, party, or person of the

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        commencement of  such  THE action, either by actual service of a

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        copy of the petition of  said auditor general  THE STATE

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        TREASURER, or by publication, as the  said judge  COURT may

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        order, and after proper hearing of all and singular the premises

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        in  such said  THE petition by  said auditor general  THE STATE

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        TREASURER set forth, may enter a decree for the amount of  such

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        THE specific taxes, interest, and penalty as  herein  provided  ,

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        and execution shall forthwith  IN THIS ACT.  EXECUTION SHALL



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        IMMEDIATELY issue to the sheriff of any county in which the

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        principal office of the corporation or copartnership is located,

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        or the party or person may reside, commanding him OR HER to

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         forthwith  IMMEDIATELY levy the same, together with 10 per cent

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        as his OR HER fees, by distress and sale, as provided by section

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         10, chapter 191, Howell's annotated statutes of 1882  6038 OF

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        THE REVISED JUDICATURE ACT OF 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.6038, of

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        any of the property, real or personal, belonging to  such  THE

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        corporation, copartnership, party, or person, wherever the  same

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        PROPERTY may be found in this state, and to pay over the  same

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        REVENUE, reserving his OR HER fees, to the state treasurer,

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        within 10 days after the same is collected.

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             Sec. 2.  If the property so distrained cannot be sold for

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        want of bidders, or if the property of the corporation is insuf-

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        ficient to pay the tax, the sheriff shall  forthwith  IMMEDIATELY

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        return a statement of the same to the  auditor general  STATE

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        TREASURER, and if such corporation  shall still neglect or

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        refuse  NEGLECTS OR REFUSES to pay  such  THE tax within 30 days

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        after such return by the sheriff, it shall be deemed a forfeiture

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        of all its corporate or chartered rights and privileges.

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             Sec. 3.   Whenever any  IF A corporation, copartnership,

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        party, or person, doing business in this state,  shall neglect or

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        refuse  NEGLECTS OR REFUSES to make A report as required by law,

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        upon which the amount of specific tax imposed by any law of this

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        state, and due and payable by any  such  corporation, copartner-

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        ship, party, or person, is computed, the  auditor general  STATE

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        TREASURER shall estimate the amount of specific tax due from and



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        payable by  such  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or

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        person, from the best information he OR SHE may be able to

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        obtain, and charge  such  THAT amount upon the books of his OR

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        HER office.  , and after such estimate shall be so made by him,

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        he shall forthwith  AFTER MAKING THE ESTIMATE, THE STATE TREA-

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        SURER SHALL IMMEDIATELY send by mail or otherwise  ,  a written

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        notice signed by him OR HER to any of the officers or directors

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        of  such  THE corporation, or to any member of a copartnership,

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        or to the party or person, of the amount of the specific tax  so

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        estimated by him OR HER as due and payable by any  such  THE cor-

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        poration, copartnership, party, or person.

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             Sec. 4.  If, in not less than 40 days after  the  mailing or

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        sending  such  THE notice, as provided in section 3,  of this

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        act, such  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or person  ,

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         shall still refuse or neglect  REFUSES OR NEGLECTS to pay the

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        specific tax so estimated, and no appeal  shall be  IS taken as

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         hereinafter  provided IN THIS ACT,  it shall be the duty of  the

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         auditor general to proceed to collect said  STATE TREASURER

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        SHALL COLLECT THE specific taxes in the same manner as is pro-

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        vided in case of failure to pay  such  THE taxes after the report

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        required by law has been made, as provided by section 1,  of this

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        act,  and with a like forfeiture of all corporate or chartered

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        rights and privileges in case the property distrained cannot be

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        sold for want of bidders, or is insufficient to pay the tax, and

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        the corporation does not within 30 days of the sheriff's return

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        of  such  THE facts, pay  such  THE specific tax.





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             Sec. 5.   In case any such corporation shall be  IF A

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        CORPORATION IS dissatisfied with the estimate so made by the

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         auditor general  STATE TREASURER, as  [hereinbefore]

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        hereinafter  provided, it may appeal therefrom to the circuit

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        court for the county of Ingham.  , and said  THE appeal shall be

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        transmitted to the county clerk of the county of Ingham, and a

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        copy to the  auditor general  STATE TREASURER within 30 days

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        after the receiving of  such  THE estimate, accompanied with a

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        statement in detail, signed and sworn to by  some  AN officer of

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         such  THE corporation in its behalf, or by  some  A member of

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         such  THE copartnership, or by the party or person making  such

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        THE appeal, of the objections to  such  THE estimate and the

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        reason why the same should not stand as a charge against  said

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        THE corporation, copartnership, party, or person.   Such  THE

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        appeal shall also be accompanied by a bond in double the amount

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        of  such  THE estimate, with sufficient surety or sureties to be

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        justified before a circuit judge, as to their pecuniary responsi-

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        bility, and to be approved by him OR HER, conditioned that such

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        corporation, copartnership, party, or person will prosecute its

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        appeal to effect, and to pay all costs and charges which the

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        court shall award, and also to pay any sum of money which shall

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        appear by the judgment of the  said  THE court to be due from

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         such  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or person as a spe-

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        cific tax.  Upon filing with the clerk of the circuit court of

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        the county of Ingham said appeal, statement and bond, with the

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        approval of the circuit judge evidenced thereon,  such  THE court

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        shall proceed to the trial and determination of the  same



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        APPEAL, according to the rules of law, allowing a trial by jury

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        of all questions of fact, in cases where  such  A trial may be

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        proper, and questions of law may be carried to the supreme

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        court.  Upon the trial of  said  THE appeal, the statement and

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        estimate of the  auditor general shall be  STATE TREASURER ARE

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        prima facie evidence of the amount of the specific tax due and

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        payable by  said  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or

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        person.  , and notice  NOTICE of trial of  said  THE appeal shall

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        be served by  said  THE corporation upon the attorney general.  ;

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        and in case  IF 2 regular terms of  said  THE court 
    shall at any

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        time pass  EXPIRE after filing  such  THE appeal, bond, and

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        statement, and  such  THE corporation, copartnership, party, or

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        person  shall not have  HAS NOT noticed the same for trial,

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         said  THE appeal, upon motion of the attorney general, shall be

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        dismissed.  , or if said appeal shall be  IF THE APPEAL IS tried

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        and judgment rendered  thereon  against  said  THE corporation,

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        copartnership, party, or person, execution shall be issued

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         thereon  AS directed to the sheriff of the county in which the

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        principal office of  such  THE corporation or copartnership is

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        located, or in which  said  THE party or person may reside, and

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         such  THE sheriff shall proceed to collect the amount of  said

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        THE execution, adding 10 per cent for his OR HER own fees there-

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        in, in  like manner as  A MANNER LIKE THAT provided by section

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         10 of chapter 191 of Howell's annotated statutes of 1882  6038

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        OF THE REVISED JUDICATURE ACT OF 1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.6038,

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        and pay the  same  REVENUE over to the state treasurer,





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         receiving his own fees,  within 10 days after  such  THE

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        specific taxes  shall have been  ARE collected.




















































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