Public Comment Needed on Petition Language with New Tax on Small Businesses

Updated July 22, 2025: Public comment is now closed.

The Michigan Board of State Canvassers is currently in the process of debating petition language for a ballot initiative that would impose a new tax for thousands of Michigan’s small business owners. The board is accepting public comment right now, and your voice could influence what voters read when they decide whether to sign the petition or not.

Some Background

The Board of State Canvassers is tasked with approving an accurate, unbiased 100-word summary that appears at the top of every petition. The summary must be clear, accurate, and reflective of the petition’s contents. A misleading summary could lead to voters signing a petition for this harmful ballot measure under false pretenses.

We urge the Board’s summary to include three critical facts:

1. This new tax applies to individuals and small businesses. As written, the proposed 100-word summary relies on deceptive logic and claims to be a tax only on the super-wealthy. In reality, an estimated 2/3 of the payers of this new tax would be small business owners, because Michigan’s individual income tax is the primary business tax for a vast majority of small businesses. Even business owners who take little or no income could see their tax rate more than double – greatly taking away from their ability to grow their business.
2. This eliminates Michigan’s flat income tax. This proposal would literally rewrite the State Constitution to allow for a new top-level tax rate, which is currently prohibited. Michigan’s current tax rate is a flat 4.25% and this proposal would increase the top-level rate to a whopping 9.25%, while also exposing businesses to future new taxes that are currently prohibited by our Constitution.
3. There is no guarantee this increases revenue for classrooms. Additionally, while this initiative claims to raise revenue strictly for schools, the actual language allows Michigan’s legislature free reign to implement as they see fit. There is no guarantee that implementing this tax will increase Michigan’s School Aid Budget.

Take Action Now: Submit your public comment to the Board of State Canvassers and ask for a truthful petition summary. Michigan’s voters deserve a full picture of this initiative, before their signature could decimate Michigan’s small businesses and economy.