I'm not a business owner, what does Proposal 14-1 mean to me? Here are eight things you need to know about ballot proposal 14-1 (proposal 1) before the August 5 primary. At its simplest, this proposal seeks to eliminate the business equipment double-tax called personal property tax and create a stable stream of revenue for Michigan cities:

1. To start, proposal 1 is listed on the actual ballot as proposal 14-1. It is a yes vote on this proposal that we are recommending.

2. If this proposal passes with a yes vote, the individual taxpayer will see no change to their wallet.

3. Essentially, this proposal ends the personal property tax (PPT) law over time and provides a more stable stream of funding for cities to replace this outdated tax. The PPT currently taxes businesses annually, on equipment they already paid sales tax on when they purchased it. Although this is called personal property tax, it is a tax that only businesses pay on equipment; it is not the same as your personal taxes.

4. The money that is being lost due to ending PPT will be made up by eliminating some corporate tax breaks and by creating an assessment that ONLY businesses will pay.

5. This proposal gives cities a more stable stream of funding so they can more appropriately budget for things like police, fire, library and senior services, without all the hassle of the current way the state system is set up.

6. The language on the actual proposal has a lot of legal jargon that can be a bit confusing if you aren't familiar with tax code terminology. This is because, if you want to modify tax code, you need a statewide vote and need to include the original code language. Click here to read the proposal.

7. Very few states still have a tax code that taxes businesses yearly on equipment they already own. Of those that do, Michigan's is the highest, which doesn't help our case for attracting new business which brings new jobs.

8. This is one of the few pieces of legislation that almost everyone supports: both sides of the legislature, school administrators, police officer and librarian associations, citizen groups, unions, businesses and just about everyone else. It makes a common sense change to the tax code.

We all need a YES vote on proposal 14-1. Please find out more about this important ballot proposal and help the State of Michigan to be more competitive by placing a YES vote. If you have questions, please let us know.

Need more voter information? Click here

Click here to read an article about this issue by our City Manager, Jon Lynch.

Video link for another viewpoint: Click here