Act No. 290
Public Acts of 2003
Approved by the Governor
January 8, 2004
Filed with the Secretary of State
January 8, 2004
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 7, 2004
STATE OF MICHIGAN
92ND LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION OF 2003
Introduced by Reps. Shackleton, Meyer, Sheltrown, Vander Veen, Stahl, Rocca, Ehardt, Spade and Richardville
ENROLLED HOUSE BILL No. 4299
AN ACT to amend 1911 PA 235, entitled "An act to provide for the payment and reimbursement by counties, in certain cases upon application therefor, of expenses incurred in the burial of the bodies of honorably discharged members of the armed forces of the United States, or their spouses, and to repeal certain acts or parts of acts," by amending section 1 (MCL 35.801).
The People of the State of Michigan enact:
Sec. 1. (1) Except as otherwise provided under subsection (2), if an honorably discharged member of the armed forces of the United States who served for a period of not less than 90 days of active service, or who is discharged under honorable conditions after serving less than 90 days of active service because of a service-connected disability, during a period of time in which the United States was at war or during the Vietnam conflict, or the spouse or surviving spouse of a member of the armed forces of the United States, dies possessed of an estate, both real and personal, not exceeding the sum of $25,000.00, over and above all encumbrances and was a resident of the state at the time of death and a resident of the state for a period of 6 months before entering the service or for a period of 3 years immediately before death, the county board of commissioners or the board of county auditors, upon application by the executor or administrator of the estate of the deceased person, or by the person who incurred or advanced expenses in connection with the burial of the honorably discharged member of the armed forces, or the spouse of the honorably discharged member of the armed forces, shall pay to the estate of the deceased person, or to the person who incurred or advanced the burial expense, the sum of $300.00. If the investigation provided for in section 2 shows that the deceased did not leave a dependent surviving, but did leave an estate sufficient to meet lawful claims, including burial expenses, then the county board of commissioners or the board of county auditors shall not pay the expenses. The application shall be submitted within 2 years after the date of death of the deceased person.
(2) On the effective date of the amendatory act that added this subsection, the estate limit provided for under subsection (1) shall be $40,000.00. This subsection does not apply to a county if the county board of commissioners passes a resolution by majority vote that exempts the county from the requirements of this subsection.
(3) If a county makes an election under subsection (2), the county shall file a copy of the resolution with the department of management and budget. The department of management and budget shall report not less than annually to the legislature which counties, if any, have made an election under subsection (2).
(4) As used in this act, "service" includes service in the armed forces of the United States in a place of emergency, as described in section 1 of 1965 PA 190, MCL 35.61, when ordered to do so by the government of the United States.
(5) As used in this section:
(a) "Estate" means the ownership of real or personal property at the time of death, the title to which was held either in the sole name of the decedent or by the entireties, tenancy in common, or joint tenancy with the spouse, child, or parent of the decedent, but does not include real property owned by the decedent as the homestead of the decedent.
(b) "Homestead" means a dwelling or a unit in a multiple unit dwelling and includes a mobile home or trailer coach.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 30 days after the date this amendatory act is enacted.
This act is ordered to take immediate effect.
Clerk of the House of Representatives
Secretary of the Senate
Approved
Governor