Vote today

Gentle readers, today is the first election of 2018 if you live in in the Ann Arbor Public School District, Sharon Township, or Ypsilanti Township. The proposal in AAPS is to re-authorize the 18-mil operating millage for the school district. (The actual proposal is for a 21-mil tax which is three mil higher than allowed under state law. The extra 3 mils are a buffer against Headlee rollbacks. Read more about this at AnnArborVotes.Org) Without getting too much into the weeds, taxable value is about one half of market value. So if you own a home, and it’s worth $200k, your taxable value would be $100k. An 18-mil property tax would cost you $1800 per year. Sharon Township residents will be voting on whether the Township should take out a loan, not exceeding $4,900,000 to build a municipal broadband system. Ypsilanti Township residents will be voting for a 0.50 mil tax to provide equipment for the Ypsilanti Township Fire Department and to fill a vacancy on the Township Parks Commission. You can read more about the proposals here.

Remember gentle readers, don't just go out and vote yourself, harass your friends and family and make sure they vote too.