Madison Heights urges Oakland County to reject proposed equalization fee increase

Madison Heights City Council voted to send a resolution to the Oakland County Board of Commissioners urging the county to reject a proposed increase in equalization service fees that, the city says, would raise Madison Heights’ cost from roughly $230,600 to about $410,060 — a 77.8% jump in the first year.

City Manager Melissa Marsh told the council the March memo from county assessing did not warn of a “significant increase.” “Nowhere in there did it allude to a 77% increase,” Marsh said, adding the city’s budget is already set and lacks flexible funds to absorb that rise.

The resolution matters because Madison Heights and roughly half of Oakland County’s municipalities rely on the county to provide parcel assessment, tax bill production and related services. County officials at the meeting said the proposed change reflects a decision to capture the full cost of providing that service, including direct labor, benefits and a portion of indirect overhead.

Dave Woodward, chairman of the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, told the council the county’s assessing operation serves roughly half of the county’s communities and that the cost to provide the service is about $6.5 million. He…