LANSING – Legislation aimed at helping food service establishments could leave local health departments operating at a loss.
The two Michigan Senate bills would waive licensing fees for one year to help food service establishments recover from financial losses suffered during the pandemic. But waiving those fees could leave local health departments hundreds of thousands of dollars in the hole because the legislation does not include a mechanism to offset the local revenue loss.
The bills, introduced by Sen. Curt VanderWall, R-Ludington, passed the Senate in May by a 20-16 vote and are currently pending before the House of Representatives.
“It’s not a bad idea at all, in concept,” Ingham County Health Officer Linda Vail said. “There should be a way to fill that budget hole.”
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