Orion Township, one of five Oakland County communities where voters rejected police and fire service millage renewals in the August primary, will hold a town hall meeting Tuesday, Aug. 25 on its safety millages as officials prepare to ask voters again in November for approval.
Township officials said the meeting, planned for 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the township’s offices on Joslyn Road, will offer a chance for residents to ask questions and get information.
“We’re planning a series of opportunities to gather, ask questions, share concerns and hear responses,” said Orion Township in a Facebook post. “These conversations will vary in format, day and time with the goal of accommodating as many schedules as possible.”
In early August, Orion Township voters said no to two public safety millage renewals. A police millage renewal failed 57% to 43%, while a separate fire and EMS millage went down 51% to 49%.
On Nov. 3, voters will now cast ballots on two similar but smaller requests: a 3.41-mill police service tax renewal and a 2.92-mill fire tax renewal. The township had sought a 3.75-mill police protection millage and 3.85-mill fire and EMS millage earlier this month.
Without dedicated millages for public safety services, Orion Township — which contracts with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office for its police services — will run out of funds, said Supervisor Chris Barnett.
“We do have some fund balances in police and fire, but we will run out of money,” said Barnett at an emergency meeting just days after voters turned down both millage renewals.
All told, voters in six Metro Detroit communities rejected police and fire millages in the August primary — Brandon Township, Highland Township, Independence Township, Orion Township and Waterford Township in Oakland County; and Sumpter Township in Wayne County. All of the millages were renewals, meaning they weren’t new taxes.
All six communities plan to go back to voters in November for approval.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Orion Township plans town hall meeting on safety millages after failed votes
Reporting by The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
