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On Tuesday, March 23, a package of bills, HB 4530-4533 was presented at the House Elections and Ethics Committee. HB 4530-4533 eliminates the May and August elections and replaces
them with a June election.
House Bills 4530-4533 would amend different acts to remove the May regular election date and move the date of the primary election in Michigan from August to June, limiting a
jurisdiction to holding only two elections in a year.
Libraries rely on locally dedicated millages for funding. A millage loss could very well close the doors permanently for a library, so alternative dates to re-present their proposal
to their community during the calendar year are essential. Additional restrictions to the number of times each year that a millage can be brought before voters are detrimental to libraries.
Read MLA's Statement in Opposition to Any Restrictions to Millage Dates by the Michigan Legislature
The most recent modifications to the state’s election dates are the 2015 Public Acts 98 -103, which eliminated the February election date. Since 2015, only May, August, and November
have remained.
Currently, under the law, the primary election is held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in August. HBs 4530 - 4533 would move that election date to the Tuesday after the
first Monday in June. They would also eliminate the May regular election.
Legislators need to hear from us about why it is important to keep three election dates to allow libraries more flexibility in seeking millages. Please contact your House members
today to tell them that libraries need three millage election dates. Ask them to oppose HB 4530-4533 and ANY legislation that limits election dates and hurts a library's ability to seek funding.
Click Take Action to visit our website and contact your legislator. We’ve created a template email for you that you can modify to share your concerns or send as-is. Thank you
for taking action to support libraries!
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