Commissioners are also considering major changes for the veteran services department.
Kalamazoo County appears likely to place a senior millage on the November ballot, though it still has to work out the details. On Tuesday commissioners set a special meeting for August 8 where they hope to hammer out the language.
Kalamazoo is one of just 10 counties in Michigan that does not levy a millage for senior services. A number of local agencies and nonprofits support the millage, which would help pay for services for the county’s older residents and their caregivers. But Commissioner Scott McGraw says the tax could become a burden for the elderly.
“Our seniors are trying to stay in their homes and we’re going to add 0.5 mills to their tax bill,” he said.
But Karen Halsted disagrees, as she told the board on Tuesday.
“Allow the seniors to decide by voting if they want to pay for a millage or pay for the needed services. The services will cost them so much more than that millage,” she said.
Some board members said the county was moving too fast to meet the filing deadline. The board still has to decide the exact amount of the millage.
The proposal does seem to have enough support from the board to make it onto the ballot.
Veteran services
Kalamazoo County might change the way it handles help for veterans. Some on the board want to transfer the veteran services office out of the county health department and into another agency, Kalamazoo Community Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.
Supporters say that would expand care for veterans. Opponents say they’re not so sure about that, and they question plans to dissolve the board that oversees the current veterans’ office. The Kalamazoo Gazette reports that the committee and county administration have recently been at odds.
The commission will likely make a decision in August.
