Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


A slight increase in the Livingston County Veterans Services millage rate was approved last night but not without debate.

In 2022, voters approved a millage renewal of up to 0.1127-mills to be levied for maintaining operations and providing services to county veterans and their families through 2027.

The Livingston County Board of Commissioners authorizes the rate. It met Monday night and voted 6-3 to approve the increase. Chair Jay Drick and Commissioners Wes Nakagiri and Nick Fiani were opposed.

A memo from Veterans Services Director Ramon Baca noted commissioners were aware of a plan to spend down fund balance collected over the years and each year slightly raise the millage. Last year, 0.0770-mills were collected. For the upcoming year, 0.0918-mills were said to be needed to support 2025 fiscal year operations and a budget of approximately $1.2 (m) million. The increase would come at an average cost of $2.03 to taxpayers.

Lengthy discussion resulted following a presentation from Baca about the need for the increase and the services the department provides.

Baca stated during the meeting that he was happy the millage rate discussion “finally hit the agenda since it has been postponed since May”. Without the board vote to set the rate, Baca said they cannot maintain operations for military veterans. He assured they are good stewards of the funds, “everything goes back into the community”, and “inflation hits them the same as everyone else”. Baca further pointed out that over the last few years the department has received grant funding that has covered the salary of one employee and a portion of rent. As that money fades away, he said he has to budget more for personnel costs and rent.

Baca noted the max rate had previously been levied every year from 2018 to 2021. In 2022 and 2023, he said they lowered it because of the cash reserve that had been built up largely due to being understaffed. Baca said the plan that some of the current commissioners were involved in was to spend down the cash reserve to an amount equal to one year’s operation budget and maintain it at that level going forward. He recommended the board add to the resolution what the agreed upon fund balance will be for his department moving forward “so we don’t have such differences in opinion every year as we discuss this”.

Nakagiri asserted that keeping the rate the same would not impact services and not result in cutting any programs and thinks it’s “ridiculous that we’re even having this discussion”, adding in these times of inflation, they should be setting an example by not raising taxes. An amendment he put forth to keep the rate the same failed. Drick and Fiani were also in support.

Commissioner Jay Gross raised questions about potential budget shortfalls impacting the fund balance/cash reserves, since that’s where funds would come from to make up for it. He said the department has an opportunity to operate at a “break-even” situation. If they kept the status quo and current rate, Gross said the department would be looking at at least one and possibly two years the reserve fund would be depleted - which he felt was “risky business”. He said he felt they were far better off to increase the rate by a minimal amount to keep the department from operating at a loss position year after year.

Commissioner Roger Deaton commented that Baca is looking at both what’s needed now and in the future.

Resident Ella Nikitin spoke during the second call to the public following the vote. She’s running as a Democrat against Nakagiri for the 4th District in November and commented the same commissioners who voted "no" all approved a bigger increase to the veterans millage last year. Nikitin said she does not have an issue with increasing the millage but does “have an issue with Nakagiri and the two others playing chicken with the millage to make themselves look good for the election”.

The full memo from Baca can be accessed in the provided link.