Flint could owe state millions some industrial facilities taxes have not been paid since 1996 (March 30, 1999)
By Ron Fonger, JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
Flint likely owes the state of Michigan millions of dollars in industrial facility taxes that haven’t been paid since 1996, a state treasury official said. It’s the latest bombshell to land in the city’s troubled Finance Department and comes on the heels of a Flint Journal report earlier this month that the city may have made more than $1 million in incorrect property tax payments to local entities, such as the Flint School District.
Budget Director Matthew Grady said the industrial facility tax payments — money collected from companies granted tax abatements — have remained unspent in a city account. Thus, Flint shouldn’t have to approve dollars out of the general fund
to pay off the debt, Grady said.
Industrial facility taxes are paid by companies in place of property taxes, said Mark Hilpert, director of the state Department of Treasury’s Bureau of Local Government.
Flint and the state granted 50 separate abatements still in effect in the city, but state officials said none of the industrial facility taxes from those abatements has been forwarded to the state.
We know they owe. We just don’t know how much yet,
said Hilpert, who estimated the three-year total is likely millions of dollars.
The examination of Flint’s payments is part of a statewide review by the treasury department over cities’ track records in paying the taxes.
Grady confirmed Monday, The information coming from the state is correct,
but he said the city has no final estimate of how much the state is due.
The state’s claim against Flint is part of a wider tax distribution probe local auditors continue to investigate.
Earlier this month, auditors and Flint officials said the city misdirected some property taxes for several years, making more than $1 million in incorrect payments to local units.
Part of the tax distribution problems also involved the city’s collection of the industrial facility taxes.
Grady said it could be June before a final accounting shows which entities are due money and which were overpaid.
The budget director, who is also serving as interim finance director, said he wants to have a final accounting of the tax distribution problems before presenting a plan to the affected entities.
This stems back a couple of years ago,
said Grady. It hasn’t been done. It should have been done.
City Administrator David Ready said former Finance Director Marc Puckett disagreed with state officials on how much the city owed the state for industrial and commercial facilities taxes in the past.
In 1996, auditors from Dupuis & Ryden determined the city had not paid $12 million in the taxes for four fiscal years. That payment was later made.
Marc was of the impression we had overpaid them (or had the potential to overpay them),
Ready said. That threw a monkey wrench into the works.
Grady replaced Puckett, who resigned in the midst of an investigation over the failure to transfer employee and employer pension contributions to the proper account.
Flint Mayor Woodrow Stanley was forced to order the transfer of nearly $1 million in taxpayer funds to the Flint pension system to make up for uncollected interest that the pension system lost because of the city’s failure to make proper transfers.
The city’s Finance Department was responsible for both the pension transfers and the property tax distribution, city officials have said.
Since Puckett’s resignation, Stanley has ordered a comprehensive review of practices in … Marc’s department.
City Council President Scott Kincaid, a declared candidate for mayor, said Monday that he will withhold comment until an audit by the auditing firm Dupuis & Ryden is complete.
Kincaid said he believes $2 million to $4 million may have been distributed incorrectly by the city since the 1996 tax roll.
Copyright Flint Journal / MLive Media Group (mlive.com). Used with permission.
Files dealing with Marc Puckett
- 19920114 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19920225 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19920303 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19920305 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19920319 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19920623 Minutes of a special meeting of the city council for the City of East Detroit, Macomb County, Michigan
- 19960111 Retirement firm accuses official of favoritism
- 19960403 Folks soaked by water bills may get relief
- 19960920 Marc Puckett’s red light ticket
- 19990130 $9-million pension fund transfer raises questions
- 19990202 Retirement panel urges ‘immediate’ audit of plan
- 19990203 Retirement board splits over need for independent manager
- 19990203 Finance director resigns under fire of pension flap
- 19990210 Former finance director lashes back at critics, hints suit
- 19990224 Flint to boost pension fund
- 19990319 Flint sent tax funds to wrong units
- 19990326 Ex-finance director cashes in on $6,000 in unused vacation time
- 19990330 Flint could owe state millions some industrial facilities taxes have not been paid since 1996
- 19990408 Stanley acts on money woes, appoints new finance chief
- 19990411 Stanley must share blame as part of his plan to fix city’s financial woes
- 19990909 Audit details shortfalls in financial procedures
- 20100219 Personal injury complaint against Marc Puckett
- 20100408 Answer of defendant, Marc R. Puckett, to plaintiffs’ complaint
- 20101227 New finance director to step down
- 20101228 Marc Puckett out — Again
- 20101230 Leadership turmoil
- 20110104 The world according to John Moorlach
- 20110110 City faces $231,000 deficit
- 20110113 Interim finance director named
- 20110210 Marc Puckett’s speeding ticket
- 201102405 Marc Puckett’s ticket for stopping on a red signal
- 20110817 Marc Puckett’s ticket for no license plate
- 20120309 Marc Puckett’s Orange County accident case information
- 20120425 Marc Puckett’s speeding ticket
- 20120703 Marc Puckett’s speeding ticket
- 20140724 Marc Puckett’s speeding ticket
- 20141124 Marc Puckett’s ticket for coasting out of gear
- 20141205 Marc Puckett’s ticket for speeding
- 20150529 Marc Puckett’s ticket for improper use of preferred lane
- Comments for tonight’s council meeting
- The innumerate Mr. Puckett
- Shill crazy after all these years
- Earth to Puckett!
- About those awards
- One PRR story: American Express (CC)
- 20160913 Documents link top Apple Valley official to #FlintWaterCrisis
- 20160913 Investigation: Flint / Apple Valley Connection
- 20160915 Economic Speech (Trump)
- 20161018 Will Apple Valley become California’s Flint, MI?
- 20170319 Trump EPA grants Michigan $100 million to fix Flint water system
- 20170320 Sinkhole: Effort to replace pipes to Flint homes off to slow start
- 20170806 Vehicle belonging to AV town manager involved in hit-and-run
- He’s gonna need a good lawyer
- 20170809 Apple Valley official believes Liberty could have followed him before crash
- Public trust destroyed (Carloni)
- 20170907 Hit-and-run investigation involving Marc Puckett’s Cadillac sent to DA
- 20171010 Marc Puckett’s speeding ticket
- A question of character
- 20171206 Apple Valley Finance Director Marc Puckett charged with felony hit-and-run
- 20171206 A long wait for crash victim
- 20171117 A history of infractions
- 20171207 Apple Valley Finance Director Marc Puckett on personal leave after felony hit-and-run charge filed
- 20171214 Apple Valley Finance Director Marc Puckett pleads not guilty to felony hit-and-run charge
- 20171214 I-15 crash victim seeks $2M in damages from Apple Valley
- 20171219 Editorial: Passing the Puck (Valles)
- 20171228 Town Hall position not a factor in Puckett’s custody status, attorney says
- 20180105 Puckett forced out as Apple Valley’s Assistant Manager & Finance Director
- 20180109 Tin Cup Men (Valles)
- 20180116 Puckett’s dismissal just what the town needed (Valles)
- 20180307 Puckett deposition set for mid-April in town’s eminent domain case
- 20180425 Pre-plea report ordered in Puckett’s felony case