Three ballot proposals will greet voters in Livingston County when they head to the polls on Tuesday, two of them in the Brighton area.

On May 7th, Brighton residents will head to the polls to decide on a 2.5-mil Headlee Amendment override. City Councilman Jon Emaus said feedback from the failed, full 4.35-mill override defeat last August helped lead them to the new lower request, including a shorter time period, 7 years, versus the previous 10. Fellow City Councilman Jim Bohn said they’ve also tightened up the ballot language to help ensure residents that all money gained from the revenue would be spent exclusively on roads. Bohn explained further that they are targeting primarily neighborhood streets. If passed, the millage would create roughly $1.185-million per year. A home with a taxable value of $90,000 would pay roughly an extra $230 annually for the life of the override. You can hear an interview with Emaus and Bohn by Clicking Here.

While that request will be exclusively for voters in the City of Brighton to decide, a millage proposal is also being put forward by the Brighton Area Fire Authority for voters in the city as well as Brighton and Genoa townships. The 0.89-mill request is for 12 years and if passed, would aid the organization with capital improvements and infrastructure. It’s a new millage that would be in addition to the authority’s current operational millage of 1.5 mills set to expire in 2020. Fire Chief Mike O’Brian says the funding would help make sure they have the infrastructure to support their firefighters and keep meeting the requests that come in on a daily basis. His interview is available by Clicking Here.

And finally, voters in the Howell Public Schools district will vote on a new $39-million bond proposal that provide for infrastructure repairs, security enhancements at each school and improvements in educational areas and sports and performing arts facilities. It follows a failed Sinking Fund proposal last November that lost by just 28 votes. Howell Superintendent Erin MacGregor said that after that defeat, they began to hear from parents and community members about coming back with a proposal that would allow them to do even more. Howell School Board Vice President Brent Earl says the main concept they want to pass along is that this proposal will achieve these needed updates without a negative financial impact. If approved, property taxes will actually decrease over the term, it’s just that the rate will be delayed as they extend the debt levy millage from 2029 to 2034. The interview with MacGregor and Earl is available by Clicking Here. (JK)