OAK PARK, Mich. (WXYZ) — Lawmakers returned to Lansing on Tuesday for the lame-duck session. Now, state and local leaders are urging the Senate and the governor to pass reforms on revenue sharing.
If it doesn't pass, the legislation dies and will need to be reintroduced next session.
Police, fire and road repair are three services we're all familiar with that benefit from state revenue sharing. That's when the state Legislature gives money to cities, townships and villages to fund those types of services.
But lawmakers are concerned because the amount varies from year to year and that leaves municipalities guessing on how much they're going to receive to pay for those services.
WATCH: News conference with leaders calling for passage of 'revenue sharing trust fund'
"This is imperative that we have predictable and stable funding for our local communities that provide those services that we touch and feel and depend upon every single day," state Rep. Mark Tisdel said at a press conference Tuesday morning in Lansing.
Tisdel and fellow state Rep. Amos O'Neal introduced bi-partisan legislation to establish a "revenue sharing trust fund" to take away some of the uncertainty for municipalities.
The bill calls for a portion of the state's sales tax to go to the trust fund to take some of the politics out of the appropriation process.
7 News Detroit spoke with taxpayers in Oak Park about the proposed legislation.
"It sounds good, but we'll have to wait and see how it progresses over time," Tim Jones said.
Jacquelyn Sneed said, "As long as we don't have to pay more taxes, then I don't see anything wrong with it."
As the bills stand, taxes won't increase.
We also spoke with Oak Park City Manager Erik Tungate.
"Since 2004, this community has lost almost $39 million in revenue sharing, revenue that we would have otherwise received. So, in order to make up for that chunk, we've had to go and raise taxes a few times. Thankfully, our taxable values since the crash of 2008 have recovered to some degree now. But it's been a long road," he explained.
Tungate said the vast majority of the city's revenue is generated from property taxes, while nearly 20% comes from state revenue sharing.
He said the city wrote its own resolution that urges lawmakers to establish a stable revenue sharing funding model.
"The trust fund itself provides a stabilizing force to the revenue picture for communities like ours. So, it's a huge piece of the puzzle for us," Tungate said.
The House passed bills 4274 and 4275.
State and local leaders made the case Tuesday in Lansing for the Senate to do the same before the end of the month, so it doesn't have to be reintroduced next session.
"We're begging the governor to make this a lame-duck priority to get it to the Senate and get the Senate to pass it... to pass it into law," O'Neal said.
7 News Detroit reached out to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's office for comment. Press Secretary Stacey Larouche wrote:
"We've increased revenue sharing to a 20-year high. We will review legislation as it makes its way through the process."
