LANSING – There was no official action taken on the expanded sales tax on services on Monday, but the leading lawmakers working out the issue have been holding discussions on changes.
Rep. Steve Bieda (D-Warren), Sen. Jud Gilbert (R-Algonac) and Sen. Mark Jansen (R-Gaines Twp.) have been in conversations trying to reach agreement on a final version of HB 5408 .
The tax is scheduled to go into effect on Saturday if a change – or a delay – is not passed by that date.
Sources said the discussions focus on the main agreements between the House and Senate versions of the bill: that the tax would be replaced by a surcharge to a company’s Michigan Business Tax assessment.
Other proposals, such as a statewide vote on a sales tax increase, have come up but are unlikely to make the final cut, sources said.
Sources are still hopeful the Legislature will reach a decision on the tax’s change before Saturday, though they acknowledged a final resolution may not come until Thursday or Friday.
Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Twp.) said he was meeting with Senate Republicans Monday night and he expected negotiations on that issue to be worked through Tuesday as well.
Dillon said he didn’t want to send the bill to conference because that can become cumbersome and if agreements are made between the two chambers, the faster the bill can get to the governor.
This story was provided by Gongwer News Service. To subscribe, click on Gongwer.Com
a>>
