Treasurer Darius Reyna updated the Eaton County Ways & Means Committee on December 12 on efforts to return foreclosure‑sale proceeds to former owners and on possible legal exposure from recent and pending litigation.

Reyna said the county’s foreclosure fund (kept separate from the general fund) has a balance a little over $2.0 million and that claims tied to foreclosure sales from 2016–2019 (combined into class actions) produced an estimated worst‑case exposure of about $1,071,000. He added three opt‑out cases for Eaton County recently received a court order requiring payment of roughly $300,000; checks for those claims were “literally in the mail” at the time of his report.

“Worst case, our fund balance would be down to $636,000,” Reyna said, noting he considered parts of his estimate conservative and that some claimed properties had no known claimants. He emphasized the payments would be made from the foreclosure fund, not the county’s general fund.

Reyna also briefed the committee on a separate pending case, Peng v. Isabella County, now before the U.S. Supreme Court. He said the argument in that case centers on whether proceeds after a foreclosure should be based on the auction sale price or on the property’s fair market value. Reyna said applying fair‑market value could raise liabilities dramatically; he used a hypothetical that raised a prior estimate to over $4 million — an amount that would exceed the county’s current foreclosure fund.

The treasurer warned that a broad Supreme Court ruling in favor of fair‑market valuation could affect many Michigan counties that collect property taxes and would likely prompt state intervention or legislative fixes. He noted a U.S. Department of Justice amicus brief had signaled some support for counties’ positions against using fair‑market value.

Reyna concluded by offering continued updates and acknowledging his foreclosure specialist for compiling the claims data. He invited commissioners and the public to contact the treasurer’s office with questions.

The board took no immediate formal action but heard follow‑up questions clarifying that payments would be made from the foreclosure fund and might require future adjustments to related budgets or funding sources if liabilities increased.