WYOMING, Mich. — The city of Wyoming is asking voters to pass two ballot proposals for police, fire and park improvements.
The proposals will be on the ballot this May.
One proposal reduces the property tax millage by roughly 60% over two years. That creates a gap in funding, so the city is looking at levying income tax as a solution.
Both proposals need to pass for either to go into effect.
Proposal one allows the City of Wyoming to levy an income tax of up to 1% on residents and businesses and up to 0.5 % on non-residents who work in the City.
Proposal two reduces the city-portion of the property tax millage by more than half, from 11.9 mills to five mills.
"If we went to our voters and just did a millage, we'd be looking at a two, two-and-half mill increase," said Curtis Holt, Wyoming City Manager. "But if we look at these in combination, a lot of our residents fair very well in this situation, especially our senior population who are on fixed incomes."
If approved, the city says the proposals would generate an additional $6 million dollars in revenue each year to improve police, fire and parks.
Around $2.1 million would be invested in hiring 13 additional police officers and one crime analyst.
"The officers we have on duty at any given period of the day for 76,000 people, we have seven officers on duty so those officers are going call to call to call. They're responding to one call after the other. That's how they spend their 10-hour shift," Holt said.
Around $3.3 million would hire 27 additional firefighters, and $600,000 would go annually for capital investment in Wyoming Parks.
Holt said renters will probably see the most increase in what they pay in income tax to the city.
"If we go out and we ask for a property tax millage to support the same number of police and firefighters, I can almost guarantee the landlord will raise rents to pay for the police and firefighters. So, in either way, I don't think our renters win," Holt said.
Holt says if the two proposals don't pass, the only possible funding source is a millage increase.
If you want to learn more, the final public meeting about the proposals will be held at the Kent District Library Wyoming Branch at 6 p.m. on April 19.
The election is May 3.To learn more about the proposals and for a tax calculator, click here.
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