A Michigan township might have violated state law by using taxpayer resources to urge residents to vote “yes” on a road millage renewal.

Salem Township in Allegan County posted a note on its website urging residents to vote for a renewal of what it called a crucial road millage, which had been in effect since the 1970s.

The post on the government website, preserved by the Internet Archive, read: “VOTE TUESDAY, AUGUST 6TH FOR ROAD MILLAGE RENEWAL.”

“Residents of Salem Township, On your August Primary ballot, you will find a crucial item: the renewal of our current road millage. This millage has been in effect since the 1970s and is set to expire in December 2025 unless renewed. Over the next few days, we encourage you to observe the excellent condition of our Township roads. This high standard of maintenance is largely made possible by your current millage contribution. Please consider voting ‘yes’ to ensure we can continue to uphold our roads as a source of pride for our community.”

Public entities such as townships can place a tax proposal on the ballot but can’t advocate for it using public funds, space or supplies. Governments can publish factual election statements, according to a post from the Lansing, Michigan, law firm Foster Swift Collins and Smith.

“For example, even a statement such as ‘the millage will allow us to provide better health services’ is generally prohibited because it is viewed more as a promotional message than a factual statement,” the law firm said. “Further, the public body may not post signs in its facilities or produce information with public funds that encourages citizens to ‘vote for’ or ‘vote against’ the ballot question. Typically, materials public bodies can provide are limited to the precise language of a millage, or other similar ballot initiative, and basic facts regarding that language.”

State law says: “A public body or a person acting for a public body shall not use or authorize the use of funds, personnel, office space, computer hardware or software, property, stationery, postage, vehicles, equipment, supplies, or other public resources to make a contribution or expenditure or provide volunteer personal services that are excluded from the definition of contribution under section 4(3)(a).”

Salem Township hasn’t yet responded to a request for comment.

The state can’t answer questions about whether a specific activity violates the Michigan Campaign Finance Act, said Sam May, the press secretary for Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

“Anyone seeking a legal determination on that activity can file an official complaint through the Bureau of Elections or a request for Department of State to issue a declaratory ruling/interpretive statement,” May wrote in an email reply to Michigan Capitol Confidential.

Voters rejected the road millage renewal in a vote of 559-538 on Aug. 6.

A township ordinance that banned all new cemeteries is unconstitutional, a Michigan judge ruled Thursday, Aug. 15.

Brooks Township banned new cemeteries in June 2023, after Peter and Annica Quakenbush had bought land to start a green cemetery business. The couple sued the township of 3,500 residents, with legal help from the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit public interest law firm.

The Newaygo County Circuit Court heard oral arguments Aug. 15 on a motion for summary disposition brought by Brooks Township, which sought to dismiss a lawsuit.

The court denied the motion and ruled that the township’s ban on new cemeteries was unconstitutional. Next, the court will enter a written order formalizing the ruling, which the township can appeal.

“We’re excited and feel vindicated by this ruling,” the Quakenbushes said in a statement. “We are delighted that the judge understood that Brooks Township’s ordinance violated our right to use our property and operate our cemetery.”

The 20-acre property houses a white oak and white pine forest over 100 years old. The couple plans to offer more burial choices in the green cemetery, in which bodies are buried in the earth in a wooden or wicker casket or no container.

Green burials do not use vaults, which are stone or concrete containers that surround a casket in traditional burials. As of Dec. 13, 2023, there were about 445 green burial cemeteries and burial grounds in the United States and Canada, according to NHfuneral.org, a resource for those interested in green burials.

Institute for Justice attorney Katrin Marquez welcomed the ruling.

“This victory recognizes Peter and Annica’s constitutional right to start a business,” Marquez said in a statement. “The township can’t just ban a necessity of life like a cemetery. People won’t stop dying just because the township doesn’t want them buried there.”

Brooks Township did not respond to a request for comment. The township is about 48 miles north of Grand Rapids.