Business Leaders for Michigan Support Personal Property Tax Reform

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DETROIT — Business Leaders for Michigan, the state’s business roundtable, announced today that it was supporting legislation to phase-out the Personal Property Tax.  In a letter to House Tax Policy Chairman Jud Gilbert, whose committee is responsible for advancing the legislation, Business Leaders for Michigan president and CEO Doug Rothwell called the bills a responsible way to “phase-out the personal property tax on Michigan businesses while making sure that our local communities can continue to provide necessary services efficiently and effectively.  This tax is a burden for the businesses that pay it and the local units of government that collect it.”

Many of Michigan’s competitor states don’t collect a Personal Property Tax.  According to studies conducted by Business Leaders for Michigan, this tax is a contributing factor to Michigan having an above-average cost of doing business. “The tax discourages investment in the equipment and technology that will create more jobs. This is especially important for the many manufacturers that have been at the center of our recovery and are major employers in our communities,” said Rothwell.  “We’ve been trying to reform this tax for decades.  Now is the time to act.”