I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
Although Detroit city councilwoman JoAnn Watson may have gotten away with not paying around $12,000 in property taxes for the last 9 years, she may only have to pay back about one-third of that total because of a provision in state law. The Detroit Free Press reports:
Under state law, when an error is found on a tax bill, city officials can bill only for the current year and two previous years, Terry Stanton, a state Treasury Department spokesman, said Tuesday.
The Free Press reported that Watson’s property tax bill last year was $68 because her home was listed as vacant for nearly a decade. When questioned, Watson said she would pay the back taxes the city assesses.
Tax records obtained Tuesday show Watson paid about $1,400 a year on her west-side home before her property was reclassified around 1999. She has paid $50 to $68 a year since. That means the most the city could bill her for is about $4,000.
It is not yet known whether Watson will pay back the full amount owed or just the lower amount required by law. Watson continues to claim that she is the victim of a “smear campaign,” but many Detroit residents seem to be wondering how Watson could have seen her property tax bill drop from $1,400 down to almost nothing without questioning why that drop happened.
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