HOUSE BILL No. 4455 April 13, 1999, Introduced by Reps. Lockwood, Neumann, Vaughn, Bovin, Cherry, LaForge, Rison, Mans, Jamnick, Martinez, Schauer, Dennis, Minore, Hale, Baird, Toy, Jacobs, Schermesser, Birkholz, Bogardus, Clark, Hardman, Sheltrown, Reeves, Gieleghem, Hansen, Spade, Julian, Rivet, Garza, Kilpatrick, O'Neil and Thomas and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy. A bill to provide for the establishment of cultural and rec- reational authorities; to provide powers and duties of an author- ity; to authorize the assessment of a fee, the levy of a property tax, and the issuance of bonds and notes by an authority; and to provide for the powers and duties of certain government officials. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT: 1 Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the 2 "cultural and recreational authorities act". 3 Sec. 3. As used in this act: 4 (a) "Articles" means the articles of incorporation of an 5 authority. 6 (b) "Authority" means a cultural and recreational authority 7 established under section 5. 00994'99 FDD 2 1 (c) "Board" means the board of directors of the authority. 2 (d) "Electors of the authority" means the qualified and reg- 3 istered electors of the participating municipalities who reside 4 within the territory of the authority. 5 (e) "Largest county" means, of those counties in which a 6 participating municipality is located, the county having the 7 greatest population. 8 (f) "Municipality" means a city, village, or township that 9 is located in a county with a population of less than 300,000 as 10 determined by the most recent federal decennial census. 11 (g) "Park" means an area of land or water, or both, dedi- 12 cated to 1 or more of the following uses: 13 (i) Recreational purposes, including but not limited to 14 landscaped tracts; picnic grounds; playgrounds; athletic fields; 15 camps; campgrounds; zoological and botanical gardens; boating, 16 fishing, and birding areas; swimming areas; and foot, bicycle, 17 and bridle paths. 18 (ii) Open or scenic space. 19 (iii) Environmental, conservation, nature, or wildlife 20 areas. 21 (h) "Participating", in reference to a municipality, means 22 that the municipality is named in articles of incorporation or 23 proposed articles of incorporation as joining in the original 24 establishment of an authority, or the municipality joins an 25 existing authority and is added to the articles of incorporation, 26 and that the municipality has not withdrawn from the authority. 00994'99 3 1 (i) "Swimming pool" includes equipment, structures, areas, 2 and enclosures intended for the use of individuals using or 3 operating a swimming pool, such as equipment, dressing, locker, 4 shower, and toilet rooms. 5 (j) "Territory of the authority" means the combined terri- 6 tory of the participating municipalities that is served by an 7 authority. 8 Sec. 5. (1) Two or more municipalities may establish a cul- 9 tural and recreational authority. A cultural and recreational 10 authority is an authority under section 6 of article IX of the 11 state constitution of 1963. 12 (2) To initiate the establishment of an authority, articles 13 of incorporation shall be prepared. The articles of incorpora- 14 tion shall include all of the following: 15 (a) The name of the authority. 16 (b) The names of the participating municipalities. 17 (c) A description of the territory of the authority. The 18 articles may provide that only a portion of the territory of a 19 participating municipality is included in the territory of the 20 authority. 21 (d) The size of the board of the authority, which shall be 22 comprised of an odd number of members; the qualifications, method 23 of selection, and terms of office of board members; and the fill- 24 ing of vacancies in the office of board member. If board members 25 are elected in at large elections by the qualified and registered 26 electors of the participating municipalities, voting 27 collectively, the election of board members shall be conducted 00994'99 4 1 pursuant to the same procedures that govern an election for a tax 2 under sections 13 to 17. 3 (e) The purposes for which the authority is established, 4 which shall be 1 or more of the following: 5 (i) The acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, 6 or improvement of a public swimming pool. 7 (ii) The acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, 8 or improvement of a public recreational facility. 9 (iii) The acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, 10 or improvement of a public auditorium. 11 (iv) The acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, 12 or improvement of a public conference center. 13 (v) The acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, 14 or improvement of a public park. 15 (f) The procedure and requirements for a municipality to 16 become a participating municipality in, and for a participating 17 municipality to withdraw from, an existing authority. For a 18 municipality to become a participating municipality in an exist- 19 ing authority, a majority of the electors of the municipality 20 residing in territory of the municipality proposed to be included 21 in the territory of the authority and voting on the question 22 shall approve a tax that the authority has been authorized to 23 levy by a vote of the electors of the authority under section 24 11. A municipality shall not withdraw from an authority during 25 the period for which the authority has been authorized to levy a 26 tax by the electors of the authority. 00994'99 5 1 (g) Any other matters considered advisable. 2 (3) The articles shall be adopted and may be amended by an 3 affirmative vote of a majority of the members serving on the leg- 4 islative body of each participating municipality. Unless the 5 articles provide otherwise, the requirements of this subsection 6 do not apply to an amendment to the articles to allow a munici- 7 pality to become a participating municipality in, or to allow a 8 participating municipality to withdraw from, an existing 9 authority. 10 (4) Before the articles or amendments to the articles are 11 adopted, the articles or amendments to the articles shall be pub- 12 lished not less than once in a newspaper generally circulated 13 within the participating municipalities. The adoption of arti- 14 cles or amendments to the articles by a municipality shall be 15 evidenced by an endorsement on the articles or amendments by the 16 clerk of the municipality. 17 (5) Upon adoption of the articles or amendments to the arti- 18 cles by each of the participating municipalities, a printed copy 19 of the articles or the amended articles shall be filed with the 20 secretary of state by the clerk of the last participating munici- 21 pality to adopt the articles or amendments. 22 (6) The authority's articles, or amendments to the articles, 23 take effect upon filing with the secretary of state. 24 Sec. 7. (1) A vacancy shall occur on the board on the hap- 25 pening of any of the events set forth in section 3 of 1846 RS 15, 26 MCL 201.3. Appointed members of the board, if any, may be 27 removed by the appointing authority for good cause after a public 00994'99 6 1 hearing. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the 2 original appointment for the unexpired term. 3 (2) A majority of the members of the board constitutes a 4 quorum for the purpose of conducting business and exercising the 5 powers of an authority. Official action may be taken by an 6 authority upon the vote of a majority of the board members 7 present, unless the authority adopts bylaws requiring a larger 8 number. 9 (3) A member of the board shall not receive compensation for 10 services as a member of the board but is entitled to reimburse- 11 ment for reasonable expenses, including expenses for travel pre- 12 viously authorized by the board, incurred in the discharge of his 13 or her duties. 14 (4) The business that an authority may perform shall be con- 15 ducted at a public meeting of the authority held in compliance 16 with the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275. 17 Public notice of the time, date, and place of the meeting shall 18 be given in the manner required by the open meetings act, 1976 PA 19 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275. 20 (5) A writing prepared, owned, or used by an authority in 21 the performance of an official function shall be made available 22 in compliance with the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, 23 MCL 15.231 to 15.246. 24 (6) At its first meeting, a board shall elect a chairperson, 25 a secretary, a treasurer, and any other officers it considers 26 necessary. A board shall meet at least quarterly. 00994'99 7 1 (7) A board may adopt bylaws to govern its procedures. 2 Sec. 9. An authority has all the powers necessary to carry 3 out the purposes for which it is established, including, but not 4 limited to, the following: 5 (a) Acquire and hold, by purchase, lease with or without 6 option to purchase, grant, gift, devise, land contract, install- 7 ment purchase contract, bequest, or other legal means, real and 8 personal property inside or outside the territory of the 9 authority. The property may include franchises, easements, or 10 rights of way on, under, or above any property. The authority 11 may pay for the property from, or pledge for the payment of the 12 property, revenue of the authority. However, an authority may 13 acquire and hold real and personal property by condemnation only 14 with the approval of the governing body of the municipality in 15 which the property is located. 16 (b) Apply for and accept grants or contributions from indi- 17 viduals, the federal government or any of its agencies, this 18 state, a municipality, or other public or private agencies to be 19 used for any of the purposes of the authority. 20 (c) Hire full-time or part-time employees and retain profes- 21 sional services. 22 (d) Provide for the maintenance of all of the real and per- 23 sonal property of the authority. 24 (e) Assess and collect fees for services provided by and 25 expenses incurred by the authority. 26 (f) Receive revenue as appropriated by the legislature of 27 this state or a participating municipality. 00994'99 8 1 (g) Enter into contracts incidental to or necessary for the 2 accomplishment of the purposes of the authority. 3 Sec. 11. (1) To the extent authorized by its articles, an 4 authority may levy a tax of not more than 3 mills for a period of 5 not more than 20 years on all of the taxable property within the 6 territory of the authority for the purposes of acquiring, operat- 7 ing, maintaining, or improving a public swimming pool, public 8 recreational facility, public auditorium or conference center, or 9 public park. The authority may levy the tax only upon the 10 approval of a majority of the electors of the authority voting 11 collectively on the tax at a general or special election. The 12 proposal for a tax shall be submitted to a vote of the electors 13 of the authority by resolution of the board. 14 (2) A ballot proposal for a tax shall state the amount and 15 duration of the millage and the general purposes for which the 16 millage may be used. A proposal for a tax shall not be placed on 17 the ballot unless the proposal is adopted by a resolution of the 18 board and certified by the board not later than 60 days before 19 the election to the county clerk of each county in which all or 20 part of the territory of the authority is located for inclusion 21 on the ballot. The proposal shall be certified for inclusion on 22 the ballot at the next general election, the state primary imme- 23 diately preceding the general election, or a special election not 24 occurring within 45 days of a state primary or a general elec- 25 tion, as specified by the board's resolution. 26 (3) If a special election is proposed, within 10 days after 27 receiving the proposal, the county clerk of the county described 00994'99 9 1 in subsection (2) having the greatest population shall request 2 approval of a special election date from the county election 3 scheduling committee of that county. The proposal shall be sub- 4 mitted to the electors of the authority on the date approved by 5 that county election scheduling committee. 6 (4) If a majority of the electors of the authority voting 7 collectively on the question of a tax approve the proposal, the 8 tax levy is authorized. Not more than 2 elections may be held in 9 a calendar year on a proposal for a tax. 10 Sec. 13. (1) The county election commission of each county 11 in which all or part of a participating municipality is located 12 shall provide ballots for an election for a tax under section 11 13 for each participating municipality or part of a participating 14 municipality located within the county. 15 (2) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4), an elec- 16 tion for a tax shall be conducted by the city and township clerks 17 and election officials of the municipalities located within the 18 territory of the authority. 19 (3) If an election on a proposal for a tax is to be held in 20 conjunction with a general election or state primary election and 21 if a participating village is located within a nonparticipating 22 township, the township clerk and election officials shall conduct 23 the election. On the forty-fifth day preceding the election, the 24 village clerk shall provide to the township clerk a list contain- 25 ing the name, address, and birth date of each qualified and reg- 26 istered elector of the village residing in the territory of the 27 authority. Not later than 15 days before the election, the 00994'99 10 1 village clerk shall provide to the township clerk information 2 updating the list as of the close of registration. A person 3 appearing on the list as updated is eligible to vote in the elec- 4 tion by special ballot. 5 (4) If a tax is to be voted on at a special election not 6 held in conjunction with a general election or state primary 7 election and if a participating village is located within a non- 8 participating township, the village clerk and election officials 9 shall conduct the election. 10 Sec. 15. (1) If an election for a tax under section 11 is 11 to be held in conjunction with a general election or a state pri- 12 mary election, the notices of close of registration and election 13 shall be published as provided for by the state election laws. 14 Otherwise, the county clerk of the largest county shall publish 15 the notices of close of registration and election. The notice of 16 close of registration shall include the ballot language of the 17 proposal. 18 (2) The results of an election for a tax shall be canvassed 19 by the board of county canvassers of each county in which a par- 20 ticipating municipality is located. The board of county canvass- 21 ers of a county in which a participating municipality is located 22 and that is not the largest county shall certify the results of 23 the election to the board of county canvassers of the largest 24 county. The board of county canvassers of the largest county 25 shall make the final canvass of an election for a tax based on 26 the returns of the election inspectors of the participating 27 municipalities in that county and the certified results of the 00994'99 11 1 board of county canvassers of every other county in which a 2 participating municipality is located. The board of county can- 3 vassers of the largest county shall certify the results of the 4 election to the board of the authority. 5 Sec. 17. (1) A county clerk shall charge the authority and 6 the authority shall reimburse the county for the actual costs the 7 county incurs in an election for a tax under section 11. 8 (2) If a participating municipality conducts an election for 9 a tax, the clerk of that participating municipality shall charge 10 the authority and the authority shall reimburse the participating 11 municipality for the actual costs the participating municipality 12 incurs in conducting the election if 1 or both of the following 13 apply: 14 (a) The election is not held in conjunction with a regularly 15 scheduled election in that municipality. 16 (b) Only a portion of the territory of a participating 17 municipality is included in the territory of the authority. 18 (3) In addition to costs reimbursed under subsection (1) or 19 (2), a county or municipality shall charge the authority and the 20 authority shall reimburse the county or municipality for actual 21 costs that the county or municipality incurs and that are exclu- 22 sively attributable to an election for a tax. 23 (4) The actual costs that a county or municipality incurs 24 shall be based on the number of hours of work done in conducting 25 the election, the rates of compensation of the workers, and the 26 cost of materials supplied in the election. 00994'99 12 1 Sec. 19. The tax shall be collected with county taxes and 2 distributed by the local tax collecting unit under the provisions 3 of the general property tax act, 1893 PA 206, MCL 211.1 to 4 211.157. 5 Sec. 21. (1) An authority may borrow money and issue bonds 6 or notes to finance the acquisition, construction, or improvement 7 of a public swimming pool, a public recreational facility, a 8 public auditorium, a public conference center, or a public park, 9 including the acquisition of sites and the acquisition and 10 installation of furnishings and equipment for these purposes. 11 The authority may pledge any admission fees and charges generated 12 by the public project financed under this section to the repay- 13 ment of the debt. 14 (2) An authority shall not borrow money or issue bonds or 15 notes for a sum that, together with the total outstanding bonded 16 indebtedness of the authority, exceeds 2 mills of the taxable 17 value of the taxable property within the district as determined 18 under section 27a of the general property tax act, 1893 PA 206, 19 MCL 211.27a. 20 (3) Bonds or notes issued by an authority are a debt of the 21 authority and not of the participating municipalities. 22 (4) Bonds or notes issued under this act are subject to the 23 municipal finance act, 1943 PA 202, MCL 131.1 to 139.3. 24 Sec. 23. (1) An authority may issue general obligation 25 unlimited tax bonds upon approval of a majority of the electors 26 of the authority voting collectively on the question of issuing 27 the bonds. The proposal to issue general obligation unlimited 00994'99 13 1 tax bonds shall be submitted to a vote of the electors of the 2 authority by resolution of the board. 3 (2) The language of the ballot proposal shall be in substan- 4 tially the following form: 5 "Shall [name of authority], formed by [names of 6 participating municipalities], borrow the sum of 7 not to exceed __________ dollars ($__________) 8 and issue its general obligation unlimited tax 9 bonds for all or a portion of that amount for 10 the purpose of __________? 11 Yes [ ] No [ ]". 12 (3) The election shall be conducted in the manner provided 13 in sections 11 to 17 for an election for a tax. Not more than 2 14 elections on the question of issuing general obligation unlimited 15 tax bonds may be held in a calendar year. 16 (4) If an authority issues general obligation unlimited tax 17 bonds under this section, the board, by resolution, shall autho- 18 rize and levy the taxes necessary to pay the principal of and 19 interest on the bonds. 20 Sec. 25. (1) An authority may issue general obligation 21 limited tax bonds for the purposes provided in section 21 by res- 22 olution of the board, without submitting the question to the 23 electors of the authority. 24 (2) The board shall not authorize or levy a tax to pay the 25 principal of and interest on the general obligation limited tax 00994'99 14 1 bonds that exceeds the tax levy authorized by a vote of the 2 qualified electors of the district as provided in section 11. 3 Sec. 27. (1) An authority may borrow money and issue its 4 negotiable bonds and notes for the purpose of refunding outstand- 5 ing debt obligations of the district by resolution of the board, 6 without submitting the question to the electors of the 7 authority. 8 (2) Refunding bonds or the refunding part of a bond issue 9 shall not be considered to be within the 2-mill limitation of 10 section 21(2), but shall be considered to be authorized in addi- 11 tion to the 2-mill limitation. 12 Sec. 29. (1) A board shall obtain an annual audit of the 13 authority, and report on the audit and auditing procedures, in 14 the manner provided by sections 6 to 13 of the uniform budgeting 15 and accounting act, 1968 PA 2, MCL 141.426 to 141.433. The audit 16 shall also be in accordance with generally accepted government 17 auditing standards as promulgated by the United States general 18 accounting office and shall satisfy federal regulations relating 19 to federal grant compliance audit requirements. 20 (2) An authority shall prepare budgets and appropriations 21 acts in the manner provided by sections 14 to 19 of the uniform 22 budgeting and accounting act, 1968 PA 2, MCL 141.434 to 141.439. 23 (3) The state treasurer, the attorney general, a prosecuting 24 attorney, bank, certified public accountant, certified public 25 accounting firm, or other person shall have the same powers, 26 duties, and immunities with respect to the authority as provided 00994'99 15 1 for local units in sections 6 to 20 of the uniform budgeting and 2 accounting act, 1968 PA 2, MCL 141.426 to 141.440. 3 (4) If an authority ends a fiscal year in a deficit condi- 4 tion, the authority shall file a financial plan to correct the 5 deficit condition in the same manner as provided in section 21(2) 6 of the state revenue sharing act of 1971, 1971 PA 140, MCL 7 141.921. 8 (5) The board may authorize funds of the authority to be 9 invested or deposited in any investment or depository authorized 10 under section 1 of 1943 PA 20, MCL 129.91. 00994'99 Final page. 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