2013 Senate Bill 424

Revise Detroit powers population threshold

Introduced in the Senate

June 12, 2013

Introduced by Sen. Virgil Smith (D-4)

To revise the population threshold in a law that gives Detroit the power to incur certain types of debt (“issue bonds”) without a vote of the people. The Michigan constitution prohibits passing “local acts” with less than a two thirds majority vote in the House and Senate, so the legislature has circumvented this by granting certain privileges or exemptions to “a city with a population greater than 1 million,” later revised to 900,000, and then 750,000. This bill lowers the threshold in the Home Rule City Act to 600,000.

Referred to the Committee on Local Government and Elections