By Nathan Clark
mlive.com
NORVELL TWP., Mich. — Voters in Norvell Township will decide Nov. 3 if they want to approve a new tax spanning 10 years to pay for emergency services in the township.
A new millage is on the ballot in Norvell Township in the November general election asking taxpayers to approve a tax of 2 mills for 10 years beginning immediately in November 2026 if approved.
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Funds collected from the tax will be used for the purpose of operating, equipping, purchasing and making capital expenditures for police, fire and emergency medical services, including ambulance services.
In November of 2024, the board voted to re-establish the Norvell Police Department. The department is still in its early stages of development and not yet operational.
Fire services in the township are contracted through the Cambridge Fire Department, which serves the southern portion of the township, and Napoleon Township, which serves the northern portion of the township.
“The millage is intended to help complete the re-establishment of the township PD as well as fund the fire contracts with Napoleon and Cambridge,” Township Supervisor Andrew Haystead said. “It will give the township a dedicated and sustainable revenue source for public safety. There is still some remaining equipment that needs to be obtained as well as hiring of a police chief.”
If the millage passes, the township intends to suspend the current 1.01 mil Fire SAD millage and begin collecting the 2 mil public safety millage, Haystead said.
If the new millage doesn’t pass, then the 1.01 mil Fire SAD millage will continue to be collected and the township will have to decide the future of police coverage, he said.
The tax, if approved, is expected to collect $391,000 in its first year.
One mill is equal to $1 paid in property taxes per every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value, roughly half of market value. As an example, a Norvell Township resident who owns a $200,000 home would pay about $200 a year for the millage.
To read the millage language in its entirety, click here.
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