Senate Bill 35: Authorize criminal penalties for nonpayment of “administrative hearing bureau” fines
Passed 35 to 1 in the Senate on April 18, 2013, to authorize additional penalties for failing to pay fines imposed by “administrative hearing bureaus” that most cities are allowed to create for enforcing “blight violations” under a 2003 law. Under that law, cities already have the power to place a lien against the property. The bill would authorize additional fines of $500, 93 days in jail for a second offense, and up to a year for a third offense.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659555
Senate Bill 36: Authorize penalties for nonpayment of “administrative hearing bureau” fines
Passed 35 to 1 in the Senate on April 18, 2013, to allow a local government to ban giving an approval required under a local zoning ordinance to a property owner who has failed to pay fines imposed by “administrative hearing bureaus” that most cities are allowed to create for enforcing “blight violations” under a 2003 law. Under that law, cities already have the power to place a lien against the property. Senate Bill 35 would also authorize jail time for second offenses.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659556
Senate Bill 37: Authorize penalties for nonpayment of “administrative hearing bureau” fines
Passed 35 to 1 in the Senate on April 18, 2013, to allow a local government to ban giving an approval required under a building code ordinance to a property owner who has failed to pay fines imposed by “administrative hearing bureaus” that most cities are allowed to create for enforcing “blight violations” under a 2003 law. Under that law, cities already have the power to place a lien against the property.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659557
Senate Bill 38: Authorize wage garnishment for nonpayment of “administrative hearing bureau” fines
Passed 35 to 1 in the Senate on April 18, 2013, to allow a local government to garnish the wages of a property owner who has failed to pay fines imposed by “administrative hearing bureaus” that most cities are allowed to create for enforcing “blight violations” under a 2003 law. Under that law, cities already have the power to place a lien against the property.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659558
Senate Bill 39: Authorize foreclosure for nonpayment of “administrative hearing bureau” fines
Passed 35 to 1 in the Senate on April 18, 2013, to allow a local government to foreclose on property owned by a person who has failed to pay fines imposed by “administrative hearing bureaus” that most cities are allowed to create for enforcing “blight violations” under a 2003 law. Under that law, cities already have the power to place a lien against the property. Senate Bill 35 would also authorize jail time for second offenses.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659559
Senate Bill 108: Authorize a memorial highway designation
Passed 109 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to designate a portion of I-94 in Kalamazoo county as the “Officer Eric Zapata Memorial Highway”.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659733
Senate Bill 218: Expand borrow-and-spend “water resource improvement authorities”
Passed 92 to 16 in the House on April 18, 2013, to eliminate the sunset on local governments creating new “water resource improvement authorities”which use extra property tax levies and “tax increment financing” schemes to divert other taxing units’ property tax revenue to cover debt service payments on debt they incur for various recreation and development projects. The bill would also expand the scope of activities and geographic limits of these entities, letting them borrow and spend for dredging among other things.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659732
Senate Bill 243: Use constitutional “waterway fund” money for dredging
Passed 27 to 7 in the Senate on April 17, 2013, to require that, for the next three years only, at least half the money spent by a state “waterways account” (to which the state constitution earmarks certain fuel tax and water-recreation related fee revenue) for boat harbor dredging and breakwalls.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659404
House Bill 4002: Increase interest to taxpayers owed refunds
Passed 107 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to require the state to pay 3 percent in interest (annual rate) to a taxpayer who is due a tax refund because of an overpayment (including excessive “withholding”), starting 60 days after the claim is filed.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659725
House Bill 4126: Revise horseback riding liability waiver
Passed 59 to 48 in the House on April 18, 2013, to revise a law limiting the liability of stables and equine event organizers for injury, death or property damage resulting from an inherent risk of an equine activity, by changing an exception allowing suits for “negligence” so that it instead only allows suits for “willful and wanton disregard” for participants’ safety.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659727
House Bill 4138: Prohibit Michigan National Guard executing federal “indefinite detention”
Passed 109 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to prohibit members of the Michigan National Guard or other state and local government employees from participating in the investigation, prosecution, or detention of any person under a recent federal law giving the current or a future President the power to order the indefinite detention of persons arrested on U.S. soil, without charge or trial (“section 1021 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Year 2012”).
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659734
House Bill 4147: Revise basis of public-safety “special assessment” levies
Passed 57 to 50 in the House on April 18, 2013, to allow local “special assessment” property taxes that are imposed on top of regular property taxes and earmarked for police and fire services to be levied on a flat-rate per parcel basis, rather than the assessed value of each parcel (which is called “ad valorem” in the tax laws). Special assessments were originally intended to only fund improvements that especially benefit properties within a certain “district,” but today are often imposed for core government services like public safety, and differ little from regular property taxes, except they are not subject to a vote of the people and other constitutional restrictions.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659726
House Bill 4303: Authorize other-state funeral director license reciprocity
Passed 108 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to recognize as valid in Michigan a license in the field of “mortuary science” or funeral directing issued by Indiana, Ohio, or Wisconsin that has substantially the same standards. This would apply for up to two years, when presumably the person would get a Michigan license.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659731
House Bill 4329: Authorize other-state funeral director license reciprocity
Passed 108 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to authorize fees for the “limited” funeral director license proposed by House Bill 4303.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659729
House Bill 4330: Authorize other-state funeral director license reciprocity
Passed 107 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to recognize as valid in Michigan a license in the field of “mortuary science” or funeral directing issued by Indiana, Ohio, or Wisconsin that has substantially the same standards. This would apply for up to two years, when presumably the person would get a Michigan license. House Bill 4303 contains the main part of this proposal.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659728
House Bill 4382: Allow guardians to execute do-not-resuscitate orders
Passed 107 to 0 in the House on April 18, 2013, to revise various court procedures and definitions to reflect the guardian-signed do-not-resuscitate orders proposed by House Bill 4384.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659730
House Bill 4383: Allow guardians to execute do-not-resuscitate orders
Passed 108 to 1 in the House on April 18, 2013, to revise statutory references to reflect the guardian-signed do-not-resuscitate orders proposed by House Bill 4384.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659735
House Bill 4384: Allow guardians to execute do-not-resuscitate orders
Passed 108 to 1 in the House on April 18, 2013, to essentially grant the court-appointed guardian of an incapacitated person the authority to sign a do-not-resuscitate order, subject to various restrictions and procedures, including expanded provisions allowing any interested person who objects to petition for a court review. When appointing a guardian for a individual who does not have a lawyer he or she has selected, a court-appointed “guardian ad litem” would have to inform the individual that the actual guardian would have this power.
See Who Voted “Yes” and Who Voted “No” at http://www.michiganvotes.org/RollCall.aspx?ID=659736
House Bill 4583: Authorize termination of parental rights upon child rape conviction
Introduced by Rep. Joel Johnson (R) on April 18, 2013, to authorize the termination of parental rights and child custody dispute visitation rights for a parent or legal guardian who is convicted and sentenced for child rape, if the sentencing court finds this “in the best interest of the child”.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158647
House Bill 4584: Authorize termination of grandparent rights upon child rape conviction
Introduced by Rep. Joel Johnson (R) on April 18, 2013, to authorize the termination of any “grandparent rights” related to child custody disputes for a grandparent convicted and sentenced for child rape, if the sentencing court finds this “in the best interest of the child”.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158648
House Bill 4585: Authorize paperless architect, engineer and surveyor filings
Introduced by Rep. Rob VerHeulen (R) on April 18, 2013, to authorize the use by architects, professional engineers, and surveyors of electronic versions of the official “seals” that attest their licensed status on documents that they file electronically with public authorities.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158649
House Bill 4586: Revise business tax detail
Introduced by Rep. Patrick Somerville (R) on April 18, 2013, to revise a business tax law “look-back period” detail related to the state tax filing responsibilities of business entities that previously were not required to file a tax return but then are required due to changes in state rules. See this House Fiscal Agency summary for details.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158650
House Bill 4587: Allow family member to get disabled veteran plate
Introduced by Rep. Jon Switalski (D) on April 18, 2013, to allow the spouse, parent, sibling, or child of a totally disabled armed services veteran to get a disabled veteran special license plate.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158651
House Bill 4588: Exempt police and firefighters from property tax
Introduced by Rep. Kurt Heise (R) on April 18, 2013, to exempt police and firefighters from property tax on their principle residence if they live in the same community in which they are employed. A 1999 law prohibited local governments from imposing residency mandates on police and firefighters, and a number of bills have been introduced since to partially repeal that preemption.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158652
House Bill 4589: Revise foster care adoption rules
Introduced by Rep. Kurt Heise (R) on April 18, 2013, to revise details of child foster care and adoption procedures, to among other things, prohibit the adoption of a foster care child by a foster care home or parents if they have been determined to be unsuitable to continue providing foster care.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158653
House Bill 4590: Authorize new specialty plate; give profits to particular organization
Introduced by Rep. Joseph Haveman (R) on April 18, 2013, to authorize a new specialty license plate, with the profits delivered to an entity that calls itself “First in Michigan”.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158654
House Bill 4591: Exempt home monitoring system installers from electrician licensure mandate
Introduced by Rep. Aric Nesbitt (R) on April 18, 2013, to establish that an electricians license is not required for a registered or licensed security alarm provider or contractor to install a “home monitoring system,” defined as one that lets a person “remotely monitor their home through audio, video, or sensor detection systems and that may allow them to remotely control the home’s environment, including controlling temperature, humidity, lighting, doors, locks” and more.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158655
House Bill 4592: Exempt home thermostat installers from mechanical contractor licensure
Introduced by Rep. Bradford Jacobsen (R) on April 18, 2013, mandate to establish that an “mechanical contractors” license is not required for a registered or licensed security alarm provider or contractor to install a home thermostat.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158656
House Bill 4593: Expand scrap metal regulatory regime
Introduced by Rep. Paul Muxlow (R) on April 18, 2013, to expand the regulations imposed on scrap metal dealers under a 2008 law that imposed regulations and record keeping requirements on sales of nonferrous scrap metal.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158657
House Bill 4594: Expand scrap metal regulatory regime
Introduced by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D) on April 18, 2013, to expand the scope of a 2008 law imposed regulations and record keeping requirements on dealers who buy and sell nonferrous scrap metal. The bill wood expand these to include transactions involving a larger range of items.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158658
House Bill 4595: Expand scrap metal theft law scope
Introduced by Rep. Jim Ananich (D) on April 18, 2013, to expand penalties authorized for stealing nonferrous metals such as copper, brass, aluminum, bronze, lead, zinc, or nickel, so they apply to any scrap metal theft.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158659
House Bill 4596: Revise county veterans affairs committee detail
Introduced by Rep. Sam Singh (D) on April 18, 2013, to require appointees to a county department of veterans’ affairs administration committee to be recommended by either county residents or a veterans service organization.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158660
House Bill 4597: Restrict health insurance abortion coverage
Introduced by Rep. Amanda Price (R) on April 18, 2013, to prohibit health care providers from accepting health insurance reimbursements from a health policy that covers abortion unless the coverage is added as an optional rider for which an additional premium has been paid.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158661
House Bill 4598: Prohibit coercing a woman to have an abortion
Introduced by Rep. Amanda Price (R) on April 18, 2013, to make it a crime to coerce or attempt to coerce a woman into having an abortion. In addition to potential prison for threats of violence or “stalking,” the bill authorizes penalties for acts like threatening divorce or other living arrangement changes, threatening to withhold current or promised support, etc.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158662
House Bill 4599: Prohibit coercing a woman to have an abortion
Introduced by Rep. Nancy Jenkins (R) on April 18, 2013, to establish sentencing guidelines for the penalties proposed by House Bill 4598 for attempting to coerce a woman into having an abortion.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=158663