March 16, 2011, Introduced by Rep. Opsommer and referred to the Committee on Transportation.
A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the state
constitution of 1963, by amending sections 9 and 10 of article IX,
to provide for the disposition of certain regulatory fees for
transportation purposes, to provide for certain conditions
concerning public-private agreements, and to dedicate a certain
percentage of sales tax revenue to road construction, maintenance,
and repair.
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
state of Michigan, That the following amendment to the state
constitution of 1963, to provide for the disposition of certain
regulatory fees for transportation purposes, to provide for certain
conditions concerning public-private agreements, and to dedicate a
certain percentage of sales tax revenue to road construction,
maintenance, and repair, is proposed, agreed to, and submitted to
the people of the state:
ARTICLE IX
Sec. 9. All specific taxes, except general sales and use taxes
and certain regulatory fees, imposed directly or indirectly on
fuels sold or used to propel motor vehicles upon highways and to
propel aircraft and specific taxes and license and regulatory fees
and other money received and collected in sections 801 through 810
of the Michigan vehicle code, 1949 PA 300, MCL 257.801 to 257.810,
on registered motor vehicles and aircraft shall, after the payment
of necessary collection expenses, be used exclusively for
transportation purposes as set forth in this section.
The increase in fees implemented by 1987 PA 232 in sections
309, 312e, 314e, 320e, 321a, 811, 812, 819, and 820 of the Michigan
vehicle code, 1949 PA 300, MCL 257.309, 257.312e, 257.314e,
257.320e, 257.321a, 257.811, 257.812, 257.819, and 257.820, shall
be deposited in the transportation economic development fund or
used for highway, road, or street projects designed primarily for
the use of motor vehicles using tires.
Not less than 90 percent of the specific taxes, except general
sales and use taxes and regulatory fees, imposed directly or
indirectly on fuels sold or used to propel motor vehicles upon
highways and on registered motor vehicles shall, after the payment
of necessary collection expenses, be used exclusively for the
transportation purposes of planning, administering, constructing,
reconstructing, financing, and maintaining state, county, city, and
village roads, streets, and bridges designed primarily for the use
of motor vehicles using tires, and reasonable appurtenances to
those state, county, city, and village roads, streets, and bridges.
The balance, if any, of the specific taxes, except general
sales and use taxes and regulatory fees, imposed directly or
indirectly on fuels sold or used to propel motor vehicles upon
highways and on registered motor vehicles, after the payment of
necessary collection expenses; 100 percent of the specific taxes,
except general sales and use taxes and regulatory fees, imposed
directly or indirectly on fuels sold or used to propel aircraft and
on registered aircraft, after the payment of necessary collection
expenses; and not more than 25 percent of the general sales taxes,
imposed directly or indirectly on fuels sold to propel motor
vehicles upon highways, on the sale of motor vehicles, and on the
sale of the parts and accessories of motor vehicles, after the
payment of necessary collection expenses; shall be used exclusively
for the transportation purposes of comprehensive transportation
purposes as defined by law.
The legislature may authorize the incurrence of indebtedness
and the issuance of obligations pledging the taxes allocated or
authorized to be allocated by this section, which obligations shall
not be construed to be evidences of state indebtedness under this
constitution.
All revenue, gifts, loans, cash, contributions, whether
contributions in kind or contributions as money, devises, bequests
from public or private sources, financing, and assistance received
by the state transportation department or other public body, public
agency, governmental authority, commission, intergovernmental
entity, or international compact entity named in or derived from a
transportation-related public-private partnership agreement
authorized under the law, associated interlocal agreement
authorized under the law, or other associated agreement authorized
under the law, shall be used exclusively for transportation-related
purposes and shall not be used for nontransportation-related
purposes.
All revenue, gifts, loans, cash, contributions, whether
contributions in kind or contributions as money, devises, bequests
from public or private sources, financing, and assistance shall be
used for the construction, operation, or maintenance of the
specific transportation-related project named in a public-private
partnership agreement authorized under the law or associated
agreement authorized under the law, as well as for the repayment of
any transportation-project-related debt or transportation-project-
related obligations named in a lawfully authorized public-private
partnership agreement or lawfully authorized associated agreement.
Revenue, gifts, loans, cash, contributions, whether
contributions in kind or contributions as money, devises, bequests
from public or private sources, financing, and assistance received
shall not be used for any other purpose or appropriated by any
legislative body, with the exception of surplus money transferred
after transportation-project-related debts and obligations have
been fully extinguished, which shall only be appropriated by the
legislature by the passage of law and for transportation-related
purposes.
Any surplus money lawfully transferred as the result of a
highway-, road-, or bridge-related public-private partnership
agreement shall only be used for transportation-related
infrastructure designed primarily for the use of motor vehicles
using tires.
The state transportation department or other public body,
public agency, governmental authority, commission,
intergovernmental entity, or international compact entity shall not
enter any agreement that would prohibit or impair the early
repayment of debt or obligations or deny the application of
Michigan law to the state transportation department or other public
body, public agency, governmental authority, commission,
intergovernmental entity, or international compact entity.
No revenue-generating transportation-related public-private
partnership agreement shall be extended or renewed except by the
passage of law after at least 75% of the original public-private
partnership contract period has transpired.
Sec.
10. Fifteen Seventeen percent of all taxes imposed on
retailers on taxable sales at retail of tangible personal property
at a rate of not more than 4% shall be used exclusively for
assistance to townships, cities and villages, on a population basis
as provided by law. In determining population the legislature may
exclude any portion of the total number of persons who are wards,
patients or convicts in any tax supported institution.
Six percent of all taxes imposed on retailers on taxable sales
at retail of tangible personal property at a rate of not more than
4% shall be used exclusively for road construction, maintenance,
and repair as provided by law.
Resolved further, That the foregoing amendment shall be
submitted to the people of the state at the next general election
in the manner provided by law.