Much needed legislation
increasing various fees in order to balance the 2015-16 budgets cleared the
House this week. Below is a list of the
significant fee increases the House passed.
HB
4444, passing 57-52, changes fees for a variety of health centers, and also
extends the current requirement that they be inspected annually to every three
years.
HB
4391 passed 61-48, and greatly increases fees for
pesticides and fertilizers. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
would also be required to review any impediments to farms being verified under
the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program, which is funded by
the fees.
HB
4451 increases commercial feed license fees to $100
from $25 and the inspection fee to 30 cents per ton from the current 13 cents.
The changes would raise $916,650, up from $395,250 from the current fees.
HB
4449 increase fees for air emissions and certain
categories of facilities. For example, category
1 facilities, those that emit 100 tons or more of pollution, would see fees
increased from $4,485 to $5,250, plus they would pay air emissions charges.
Electric generators
would pay higher fees. Currently generators that emit up 5,000 tons a year pay
$37,000. The new fee would be $41,830.
Those that emit up to
12,000 tons would see their basic fee go from $127,000 to $5,250 but they would
pay higher air emission fees per ton discharged.