MI: Kalamazoo Metro transit seeks millage increase for 2026-2030 funding
Kalamazoo County’s Metro transit service is asking voters to replace an expiring millage with a new, slightly increased millage to help fund services.
Metro’s urban millage, currently set at 0.9 mills, was passed in March 2020 and expires at the end of the year.
Voters in the cities of Kalamazoo, Portage and Parchment, along with those in Comstock Township, Kalamazoo Township and precincts three through nine in Oshtemo Township, are being asked to replace the expiring millage.
The new urban millage proposal would tax residents in those areas at 1.1 mills from 2026 through 2030. If approved, the new millage would cost a homeowner with a $200,000 home $110 per year in taxes — an increase of $20 annually over what the expiring urban millage requires.
Urban millage revenue would increase from $5.825 million in 2024 to a projected $7.8 million per year over the next five years, Metro Executive Director Sean McBride said.
The urban millage would continue to fund Metro’s fixed-route bus service, as well as its new on-demand Metro Link service that launched in 2024. The on-demand service provides approximately 7,000 rides per month, McBride said.
The transit service is seeking the increase for a multitude of reasons.
One is inflation. In 2020, the cost of purchasing a new bus was $525,000, McBride said. Today, that cost has risen to $775,000, a 40% increase.
Another reason is declining state revenue, which currently accounts for just over 25% of Metro’s operating revenue.
In 2024, Metro received $6.5 million from the state of Michigan, through its Act 51 formula. McBride sees that amount going down.
“The amount available for public transit has been on a downward slope for the past several years,” he said. “And without some significant changes, it’s going to continue on a downward slope.
“So, part of the revenue from the urban millage is to hedge against declining state revenue.”
Metro’s total operating revenue in 2024 was $25.7 million. The transportation district’s operating expenses, meanwhile, were $22.2 million.
In addition to the urban millage and state funding, Metro also received $3.4 million from a countywide millage, which is set to expire in 2026; $4 million from fares/operation; and $6 million from the Federal Transit Administration.
McBride said he isn’t as worried about federal funding declining as it has remained stable in recent years. Still, future federal funding is an unknown as the current Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will expire on Sept. 30, 2026, he said.
“The millage is for a five-year period so what we are really looking at is forecasting into the future to provide a key source of funding through 2030,” he said. “In 2026 and ’27, we’d be spending down a significant portion of our reserve and then the millage would fill the holes.
“We want to provide a robust service, to maintain our current 21-route, fixed-route bus system, provide the new Metro Link service and then be able to handle a couple economic things that are impacting a lot of organizations.”
About 90% of Metro bus riders use the system as their main means of mobility, survey data has shown. Getting to work is the No. 1 priority for riders, school is No. 2 and shopping, medical appointments and social reasons are all listed high as well.
“It’s an economic vitality tool,” McBride said. “We’re getting people to jobs, school and essential services. Don’t underestimate the impact Metro has.”
For more information on Metro and the millage proposal, visit kmetro.com.
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