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Saginaw officials press state bill to remove citys 1979 dollar tax cap
Summary
City finance director told council a $3.8 million dollar cap written into the 1979 charter keeps Saginaws property tax revenue flat despite rising property values; city staff recommended supporting House Bill 4,121 to remove the dollar cap while leaving the millage limit intact.
Saginaw finance director Lori Brown told the City Council on Tuesday that a dollar cap on property tax revenue written into the city charter in 1979 keeps the citys revenue flat even when taxable value rises. "We are allowed to levy up to 7.5 mills or $3,800,000 whichever is less," Brown said, and she added: "The 3,800,000 is a hard dollar cap and does not increase at the rate of inflation." Brown said the cap was fixed at 1978 revenue levels when voters approved changes in 1979 and that the Headley Amendment forced the citys millage down to 7.383 mills in 1997.
The finance director described the mechanics and the local impact: without the dollar cap the city would have collected about $4.45 million in 2025 property tax revenue rather than the $3.8 million it levied under the…
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