February 21, 2006, Introduced by Reps. Gonzales, Vagnozzi, Plakas, Polidori, Clack, Farrah and Gleason and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy.
A bill to amend 1893 PA 206, entitled
"The general property tax act,"
by amending sections 59 and 78n (MCL 211.59 and 211.78n), section
59 as amended by 2001 PA 97 and section 78n as added by 1999 PA
123.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 59. (1) A person may pay the taxes, any 1 of the taxes, a
portion of the taxes specified by resolution of the county board of
commissioners, or if a specification is not made by a resolution of
the county board of commissioners, a portion of the taxes approved
by the county treasurer on a parcel or description of property
returned as delinquent, or on an undivided share of a parcel or
description of property returned as delinquent. For taxes levied on
real property before January 1, 1999 and for taxes levied on
personal property, the amount paid under this subsection shall
include interest computed from the March 1 after the taxes were
assessed at the rate of 1% per month or fraction of a month, except
as provided in section 89, and 4% of the delinquent taxes as a
county property tax administration fee that shall be a minimum of
$1.00 per payment of delinquent taxes, except as provided in
section 89. Payment under this subsection shall be made to the
county
treasurer of the county in which the property is situated,
at
any time before the property is sold at a tax sale held pursuant
to
section 60, bid off to this state pursuant to section 70, or
forfeited to a county treasurer pursuant to section 78g. The county
treasurer and the treasurer for the local tax collecting unit shall
allocate and distribute the taxes and interest paid proportionately
among the county or local tax collecting unit funds and the
property tax administration fee returned as delinquent under
section 44(6) to the treasurer of the local tax collecting unit who
transmitted the taxes returned as delinquent. For taxes levied
before January 1, 1999, on all descriptions of property with unpaid
taxes on the October 1 before the time prescribed for the sale of a
tax lien on the property, an additional $10.00 shall be charged for
expenses, which shall be a lien on the property. If collected,
before January 1, 2006, $5.00 of this expense charge shall be
credited to a restricted revenue fund of this state, to be known as
the delinquent property tax administration fund, and after December
31, 2005 $5.00 of this expense charge shall be deposited in the
land reutilization fund created in section 78n, to reimburse this
state for the cost of publishing the lists of property and other
expenses, and $5.00 shall belong to the general fund of the county
to reimburse the county for the expense incurred in preparing the
list of delinquent property for sale or forfeiture.
(2) For taxes levied before January 1, 1999, the property tax
administration fee paid to the county treasurer shall be credited
to the general fund of the county and the property tax
administration fee paid to the state treasurer shall be credited to
the delinquent
property tax administration fund land
utilization
fund created in section 78n. Amounts credited to the general fund
of the county shall be used only for the purposes specified in
subsection (6).
(3) For taxes levied before January 1, 1999, and for taxes
levied after December 31, 1998, a county board of commissioners, by
resolution, may provide all of the following for taxes paid before
May 1 in the first year of delinquency for the homestead property
of a senior citizen, paraplegic, hemiplegic, quadriplegic, eligible
serviceman, eligible veteran, eligible widow, totally and
permanently disabled person, or blind person, as those persons are
defined in chapter 9 of the income tax act of 1967, 1967 PA 281,
MCL 206.501 to 206.532, if a claim is made before February 15 for
the credit provided by chapter 9 of the income tax act of 1967,
1967 PA 281, MCL 206.501 to 206.532, if that claimant presents a
copy of the form filed for that credit to the county treasurer, and
if that claimant has not received the credit before March 1:
(a) Any interest, fee, or penalty in excess of the interest,
fee, or penalty that would have been added if the tax had been paid
before February 15 is waived.
(b) Interest paid under subsection (1) or section 89(1)(a) is
waived unless the interest is pledged to the repayment of
delinquent tax revolving fund notes or payable to the county
delinquent tax revolving fund, in which case the interest shall be
refunded from the general fund of the county.
(c) The county property tax administration fee is waived.
(4) The treasurer of the local tax collecting unit shall
indicate on the delinquent tax roll if a 1% property tax
administration fee was added to taxes collected before February 15.
(5) The fees authorized and collected under this section and
credited to the delinquent property tax administration fund shall
be used by the department of treasury to pay expenses incurred in
the administration of this act.
(6) The county property tax administration fee shall be used
by the county to offset the costs incurred in and ancillary to
collecting delinquent property taxes and for purposes authorized by
sections 87b and 87d.
Sec. 78n. (1) The land reutilization fund is created within
the department of treasury.
(2) The state treasurer may receive money or other assets from
any source for deposit into the fund, including a transfer of funds
from the delinquent property tax administration fund as provided in
subsection (5). The state treasurer shall direct the investment of
the fund. The state treasurer shall credit to the fund interest and
earnings from fund investments.
(3) Money in the fund at the close of the fiscal year shall
remain in the fund and shall not lapse to the general fund.
(4) The department of treasury may expend money from the fund
for 1 or more of the following purposes:
(a) Contracts with title insurance companies pursuant to
section 78i.
(b) Costs of determining addresses, service of notices, and
recording fees incurred pursuant to section 78i.
(c) Defense of title actions as determined by the state
treasurer.
(d) Other costs incurred in administering the foreclosure and
disposition of property forfeited for delinquent taxes under this
act.
(5) The state treasurer may transfer to the fund any balance
remaining in the delinquent property tax administration fund of
this state created in section 59.
(6) (5)
As used in this section, "fund" means the
land
reutilization fund created in this section.