Transitions... 2026 is within sight, and for better or worse the current year is about to expire. For me, the biggest take-aways from my first year as Township Supervisor were the revelations about how taxes are assessed and more surprisingly... where the tax money goes and how little control the township has over the allocation of those funds.

Our Treasurer advised me that she deposits approximately four million dollars of Elk Township tax revenue each year. That sounds like a lot of money. It is. What’s interesting about it is that the township’s “Operating Allocation” portion of that sum was about $80,000 in winter 2024. About 2%. The other 98% goes to a variety of government agencies, schools, law enforcement, fire department, etc. You’ll see these listed on your tax statement under the column heading “Taxing Authority”. The column next to that shows you the “Tax Rate” which is the number used to calculate the tax you pay for that specific government “service” for each $1000 of your property’s taxable value.

What is not shown on your tax statement is the total amounts the township collects for each of those “services”. For example, the “State Education Tax” is collected with our summer taxes, and Elk Township collected roughly $634,000.00 in 2025. The “Lake County Tax” allocation of the summer 2025 taxes was roughly $611,000.00. Combined, that’s about 31% of the four million dollars that Elk Township collects.

On your winter 2025 tax statement, you’ll see a longer list of the itemized “services” and the tax rates and amounts that apply to each. Again, you’ll see the amounts that you pay individually, but not the totals for the entire township. For example, the total amount to be collected in Elk Township for the Sheriff Department’s “Road Patrol” is roughly $303,000.00. Roughly $76,000.00 will be collected in Elk Township for “Ambulance” service. In Elk Township alone the tax collected for the Sauble, Elk, Eden Fire Department (SEEFD) will be $102,490.00 for “Operations”, $102,490.00 for “Equipment”, and $70,716.00 for the “Fire Station” bond. The list goes on with “Veterans” affairs, “Library”, “Dial-a-Ride”, “Senior” services, etc. A lot of money is collected by the township and then disbursed to other agencies and schools... for them to manage.

The other important part of the tax system is the source end of the equation. Our state property tax system penalizes (i.e., taxes) a property owner based on the value of their property. The higher the value, the higher the tax. There’s more to it of course, the Headley Amendment caps, etc. There’s a full explanation of the calculations on the Township’s website at Elk-Township.org. I shouldn’t comment (at length) on the constitutional or moral aspect of Michigan’s property tax system, but it is self-evident that it is not sustainable long term in a predominately middle-class society. With that said, it’s also a reality that our property values are assessed based on an elaborate scheme of calculations and formulas that the average PhD in mathematics would struggle to understand.

Here's the point I’m making; our Assessors (Michael and John Beach) are bound to the assessing structure that the State of Michigan imposes on them. They must meet certain established thresholds in their assessments of property based on State requirements. If their collective assessment of our township is too high or too low based on what the State’s expectations are, the accuracy of their work will be called into question. It’s easy to have negative feelings about “the assessor” but we should all remember they’re doing their job to the best of their ability while meeting State standards with tight constraints.

Currently, our residential assessments are at 45.74%, and they should be 50% according to the State. Be prepared... I’m told by a good source that the assessed values in Lake County will increase an average of 9% in the coming year to adjust for market value. Some more, some less. But on average... 9%. Remember, that’s “assessed” value not taxable value. The good news is that the State property tax rate for the 2026 tax season will be capped at the CPI (Consumer Price Index) rate of 2.7%. That’s really good news considering this year’s rate was 3.1% and the previous two years were 5.0%.

At this point you might be asking why I’m spending so much time writing about property taxes, assessors, and money allocations. Good question. Sometimes there’s a little animosity directed at township officials about tax bills and property assessments. It’s generally not personal, it’s just that some people tend to think local officials have far more control over the tax dollars than they actually do. And sometimes, some people forget that it is the residents of Elk Township and Lake County who voted for all the millages that fund the services we’re taxed for. The same is true with the tax assessing portion of the system. Those rules are written, debated, and passed into law in Lansing by our Governor and State legislators. Our assessors follow those rules or risk losing their license.

Whether these are valuable services to you individually, or you’re in favor of them for the benefit of the community, or whether you think we’re getting our money’s worth are all good questions to ask... and they can be answered in the voting booth when the time comes.

I can speak for every board member on this point; we enjoy helping people solve problems and we’re all willing to reach out to other government agencies to help Elk Township residents and property owners with issues that arise. We can influence, advocate, and ask for help... but we don’t control how other officials run their agencies or government operations. With few exceptions however, it has been my experience that our counterparts in county government, the sheriff’s department, fire department, road commission, and others are all working to the best of their ability to provide the best service possible.

Here’s some good news about a small piece of the tax system that the township board does control. Each year the township board is required to fill out a document called an L-4029. On this form, the State provides a maximum allowable millage rate that can be levied for the “Township Allocated Operating” portion of the property tax. In general, this is the default rate townships, including ours, have used to set this millage rate in the past, i.e., the maximum. The Treasurer and I spent a lot of time studying the millage calculations to determine what effect lowering this millage would have on our overall budget. At our September Special Board meeting I presented the Board with several options for lowering this millage and I’m happy to report that we passed a motion by unanimous vote to reduce the Township Allocated Operating to 60% of the State authorized level. Elk Township is the only township in Lake County to lower this millage rate for the winter 2025 tax collection. This is reflected in your enclosed property tax bill. Collectively, Elk Township property owners will save roughly $34,000.00 because of this board action.

On behalf of the Elk Township Board of Trustees, we wish everyone health and happiness throughout the holidays and winter season. Please check out our website at Elk-Township.org for helpful information or call or stop by the township hall for assistance.

Sincerely,

Jeff Mather
Elk Township Supervisor