House Introduced Bill 5875

HOUSE BILL No. 5875


     May 20, 1998, Introduced by Rep. Birkholz and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy.


        A bill to amend 1893 PA 206, entitled

   "The general property tax act,"

   by amending section 56a (MCL 211.56a).

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 1         Sec. 56a.  (1)  On or before the first day of May in the

 2     sixth year after any tax upon personal property has been levied

 3     which remains uncollected  IF A TAX LEVIED ON PERSONAL PROPERTY

 4    REMAINS UNCOLLECTED FOR MORE THAN 5 YEARS, the township or city

 5    treasurer shall  make in substantial record books duplicate

 6     statements  PREPARE A STATEMENT showing  such  ALL OF THE

 7    FOLLOWING:

 8         (A) THE taxes LEVIED upon personal property  remaining  THAT

 9    REMAIN unpaid.  , and the 

10         (B) THE names of the persons against whom THOSE TAXES WERE

11    assessed.  , the 


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 1         (C) THE amount assessed against each  which  PERSON THAT

 2    remains uncollected,  to which shall be added  TOGETHER WITH all

 3    fees,  and  penalties,  for which provision is made by  AND

 4    INTEREST DUE UNDER this act or  by any  UNDER A city charter.

 5         (2) The original copy of  such  THE statement PREPARED PUR-

 6    SUANT TO SUBSECTION (1) shall be filed with the circuit court of

 7    the county in which  such  THE township or city is located

 8    together with a petition.  , which shall appear on the first page

 9     of the record book containing the statement required herein,

10     addressed to such circuit court stating therein that  TWO OR MORE

11    TOWNSHIP OR CITY TREASURERS MAY FILE A JOINT PETITION UNDER THIS

12    SECTION.

13         (3) THE PETITION SHALL STATE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

14         (A) THAT the taxes upon personal property as shown in  such 

15    THE statement have remained unpaid for more than 5 years after

16    they were returned to the county treasurer as delinquent.  , that

17     the same 

18         (B) THAT THE TAXES have remained delinquent despite the fact

19    that  he and  THE TOWNSHIP OR CITY TREASURER OR his OR HER prede-

20    cessors in office  have  exercised due diligence in an effort to

21    collect  them and they  THE TAXES.

22         (C) THE TAXES are, to  his  THE TOWNSHIP OR CITY TREASURER'S

23    best knowledge and information, uncollectible.  Such 

24         (4) THE petition shall  pray  REQUEST that a date, not less

25    than 30 nor more than 45 days after the date of filing  such  THE

26    petition,  shall  be set for a hearing  thereon  ON THE PETITION

27    and that  said court shall, after said hearing, enter a decree 



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 1    THE COURT ENTER A JUDGMENT in favor of  such  THE township or

 2    city,  providing in all cases where the court shall determine

 3     that the township or city treasurer and his predecessors in

 4     office have exercised due diligence in an effort to collect the

 5     taxes upon the personal property listed in said statement pro-

 6     vided for in this section, that such  STRIKING THOSE taxes  shall

 7     be stricken  from the tax rolls of the county and township or

 8    city.  and  IF A JUDGMENT IS ENTERED IN FAVOR OF THE TOWNSHIP OR

 9    CITY, THE TAXES IN THE STATEMENT shall cease to constitute an

10    asset of  such  THE township or city,  of  the county in which

11    the  same  TOWNSHIP OR CITY is located, and  of  any school dis-

12    trict in which  such  THE personal property was located at the

13    time it was assessed for taxes.

14         (5) The township or CITY treasurer shall, not less than 10

15    days  prior to  BEFORE the date set by the circuit court for the

16    hearing,  herein provided for,  notify the county treasurer and

17    the clerk or secretary of any school district in which any per-

18    sonal property may have been located at the time it was assessed

19    for taxes  of the filing  THAT A PETITION WAS FILED with the cir-

20    cuit court  of such petition and of  UNDER THIS SECTION, THAT the

21    statement  herein  required  to be made  UNDER THIS SECTION WAS

22    PREPARED, and  of  the date set for THE hearing  thereon  ON THE

23    PETITION.

24         (6) Within 15 days after the hearing  herein provided for

25     shall have been held a final decree shall be entered in the chan-

26     cery record for recording the decrees of such court, having the

27     usual caption for decrees, and shall state,  ON THE PETITION, THE



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 1    COURT SHALL ENTER A JUDGMENT THAT as to all items or personal

 2    taxes set forth in the statement of uncollected taxes filed with

 3    the court for which the township or city treasurer and his OR HER

 4    predecessors in office  shall be deemed by said court to  have

 5    exercised due diligence in an effort to collect the taxes upon

 6     such  THAT personal property,  that such  THOSE taxes shall be

 7    stricken from the tax rolls of the county and of the township or

 8    city and shall cease to constitute an asset of  such  THE town-

 9    ship or city,  of  the county in which the  same  TOWNSHIP OR

10    CITY is located, and  of  any school district in which  such  THE

11    personal property was located at the time it was assessed for

12    taxes, and that the debt created by the provisions of this act or

13    by any city charter of the person assessed for  such  THOSE taxes

14    to the township or city shall, from the date of  such decree 

15    ENTRY OF THE JUDGMENT, assume the status of a debt against which

16    the statute of limitations has run.

17         (7) A copy of  such decree  THE JUDGMENT shall be served

18    upon the county clerk, the clerk of the township or city,  as the

19     case may be,  and  upon  the clerk or secretary of each school

20    district located in  such  THE township or city.  :  Provided,

21     however, That in counties where 

22         (8) IN A COUNTY IN WHICH the county treasurer collects

23     such  delinquent personal property taxes as provided in

24    section 56,  above set forth,  the  said  county treasurer shall

25    undertake and carry out all of the proceedings to strike

26    DELINQUENT PERSONAL PROPERTY TAXES from the COUNTY TAX rolls  in

27     like manner as above provided for the respective township and



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 1    city treasurers, and in the construction of this section 56a, the

 2     words county treasurer shall be read into the act wherever the

 3     words township or city treasurer occur  AS PROVIDED IN THIS

 4    SECTION.
















































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