State Rep. Mark Tisdel Updates: New law to simplify tax collection on heavy rental equipment; Increase government transparency; Suspend gas tax and lower prices for Michigan drivers
March 17, 2022: Reps. Tisdel, Ellison celebrate new law to simplify tax collection on heavy rental equipment
State Reps. Mark Tisdel and Jim Ellison today touted their successful bipartisan effort to simplify a local tax for Michigan businesses.
Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills, and Ellison, D-Royal Oak, sponsored House Bills 4833 and 4834 to replace the personal property tax (PPT) on rented heavy equipment with a tax that will simplify the collection process for businesses and local governments. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer today signed HB 4833 into law, and she will soon sign HB 4834, which was amended and approved by the Legislature earlier this week.
“When a Michigan resident needs heavy equipment for a project at a home or small business — anything from excavators to electric generators and from heating units to hydraulic lifts — rental businesses are ready with their supplies,” Tisdel said. “Simplifying the tax on this equipment will not only help the industry, but will also remove unnecessary busy work for local assessors. With the reform Rep. Ellison and I have shepherded into law, we are making local governments more efficient without cutting revenue for community services.”
Ellison said: “Most of us don’t have industrial machinery lying around in our garages, but the heavy equipment rental industry is there if we need it. The nature of rental business means equipment is constantly moving to different locations, making tax assessment more of a hassle for everyone involved. Our new law simplifies the tax and the process that comes with it. This successful change to Michigan law is only possible because of the good will of industry businesses and local governments who helped formulate the solution. I am grateful for their efforts, as well as for Rep. Tisdel’s partnership, on this much-needed legislation.”
Previously under Michigan law, PPT on heavy equipment rentals has been assessed at the end of the year based on where the equipment is located, meaning local assessors must determine what equipment is presently stored in their respective jurisdictions.
The new law will exempt rented heavy equipment from PPT. The exemption applies to mobile construction, earthmoving or industrial equipment that is rented to customers, excluding equipment designed specifically for the oil and gas exploration, mining, and forestry industries. Exempted equipment will instead be subject to a 2% state excise tax on each rental transaction, which will be distributed to local governments. To ensure the tax rate is a fair substitute for PPT, the Michigan Department of Treasury will compare the amounts of the new tax and PPT for a period of three years, and the tax will be adjusted accordingly.
March 15, 2022: Rep. Tisdel urges Senate to pass his bipartisan plan to increase government transparency
In celebration of Sunshine Week, state Rep. Mark Tisdel today called on the Senate to pass his bipartisan legislation to make government more transparent and accountable.
Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills, and the House of Representatives last year approved House Bills 4383-4392 to expand transparency laws to require the Legislature and governor to disclose public records upon request.
“It’s Sunshine Week, and our bipartisan transparency plan is getting well-tanned as it sits in the Senate,” Tisdel said. “Michigan remains one of the least transparent states in the nation. Last year, the House approved a plan to bring the Legislature’s and governor’s records to light — unanimously. The Senate should quickly sign on to our efforts to make our government more transparent for the people of our state.”
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) sets requirements for retention and disclosure of records of public bodies, including local governments and state departments. However, the Legislature and the offices of the governor and lieutenant governor are not included under FOIA. House Bills 4383-4392 would remove the exemptions in FOIA for the governor and lieutenant governor, and create the Legislative Open Records Act (LORA) to establish similar procedures for the Legislature. Tisdel is the lead sponsor of HB 4384, which would provide for LORA coordinators in the Legislature as a whole and in the House of Representatives and Senate individually.
The House approved HBs 4383-4392 unanimously in March 2021, and the bills are currently in the Senate.
March 9, 2022: State Rep. Mark Tisdel votes to suspend gas tax, lower prices for Michigan drivers
As rising fuel prices continue to increase costs on Michigan families, state Rep. Mark Tisdel, who serves as majority vice chair of the House Tax Policy Committee, and the Michigan House of Representatives today approved a plan to remove the state gas tax for six months.
House Bill 5570 would suspend the state motor fuel tax beginning April 1. By pausing the tax of 27.2 cents per gallon, the plan is estimated to save Michigan drivers about $750 million over the six-month period.
“The price of gas has accelerated upward in the last year, inflicting financial pain on hard-working Michigan families,” said Tisdel, R-Rochester Hills. “Pausing the gas tax will help mitigate higher prices at the pump. This relief will provide savings to drivers on every gallon of gas — savings that will add up quickly with each refilled tank.”
House passage of the plan comes despite a political cop-out by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who yesterday urged Congress to support current legislation that would suspend the federal gas tax temporarily. The federal tax is only 18.4 cents per gallon, and the Legislature’s plan would enable greater savings on each gallon of gas.
Tisdel and the House also approved House Resolution 250, calling for Whitmer and the federal government to support policies to enable energy independence in the United States. In addition to calling for more oil production in the United States, the measure also urges the governor and Attorney General Dana Nessel to end their partisan attempts to shut down Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, which transports oil and natural gas through Canada, Michigan and Wisconsin.
“When it comes to filling up our cars or heating our homes, inflation isn’t the only factor contributing to increasing prices,” Tisdel said. “Adding insult to injury, the federal government has restricted the exploration, extraction and movement of oil and other fuel, and the governor has tried to do so at the state level. Energy independence will help prevent shortages and combat price hikes.”
The House approved HB 5570 with bipartisan support, and it now proceeds to the Senate, which is expected to approve the plan next week.
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About State Representative Mark Tisdel
State Rep. Mark Tisdel, of Rochester Hills, represents Greater Rochester in the Michigan House of Representatives. The 45th House District, which Tisdel represents, includes the cities of Rochester and Rochester Hills and part of Oakland Township.
Representative Mark Tisdel is one of 110 Members of The Michigan House of Representatives who are elected by the qualified electors of districts having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents.
Representatives are elected in even-numbered years to 2-year terms. Legislative districts are drawn on the basis of population figures through the federal decennial census.
Mar 17, 2022, from office of 45th District Michigan House Representative Mark A. Tisdel