Wayne County voters pass proposals A, P; Detroiters pass library millage renewal
Officials said if the proposal to renew Detroit’s Library Operating Millage had not passed, 22 city libraries would have closed.
A wall with a "vote" mural in Detroit.
Wayne County voters approved two ballot initiatives on Tuesday that will renew a millage to fund improvements to parks and recreational facilities and remove a requirement to find a new financial auditor every eight years.
Proposition P renews the county’s existing millage to provide continued financial support for parks and related facilities, generating approximately $14 million annually from 2026 to 2030.
The funds raised through this millage will be directed toward capital improvements and infrastructure projects in major parks, including Hines Park, Elizabeth Park, Wayne County Family Aquatic Center at Chandler Park, and improvements to municipal parks in more than 40 Wayne County communities.
For a home assessed at $100,000, the renewed millage will add around $12 per year to homeowners’ property tax bill.
The proposal passed with more than 74% of the vote.
Voters also approved Proposition A, which removes language in the Wayne County Charter requiring it find a new auditor every eight years, and instead, allow any qualified auditing firm to be awarded a contract for services when the contract is competitively bid.
More information about the proposal, which passed with 52.4% of the vote, can be found here.
Lastly, voters in Detroit also approved Proposal L, which renews the city’s Library Operating Millage for another 10 years. The 3.9943 millage renewal — which will not raise residents’ taxes — will provide city libraries with almost all of its operating budget for the next decade.
Homeowners in the city will continue to pay $3.99 per $1,000 of taxable property value. The millage renewal also includes changes to Detroit’s tax capture policies that will boost library funding by an additional $3 million next year.
Officials said if the proposal had not passed, Detroit’s 22 libraries would have closed.
Detroiters voted overwhelmingly to renew the millage, with over 85% of voters approving the measure.
WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.
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