Recreational authority; establishment; articles of incorporation; adoption; applicability of subsection (3); publication; filing copy with secretary of state; effect.
MCL 123.1135
in effect123.1135. Recreational authority; establishment; articles of incorporation; adoption; applicability of subsection (3); publication; filing copy with secretary of state; effect.
Sec. 5.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, 2 or more municipalities or districts may establish a recreational authority. If the municipality, municipalities, district, or districts are located in a county with a population of less than 4,000, 1 or more municipalities or districts may establish a recreational authority. A recreational authority is an authority under section 6 of article IX of the state constitution of 1963. A recreational authority under this act constitutes a governmental subdivision or unit of this state and a public body corporate and politic. A recreational authority under this act is a local unit of government or public authority under section 1901 of the natural resources and environmental protection act, 1994 PA 451, MCL 324.1901.
(2) To initiate the establishment of an authority, articles of incorporation must be prepared. The articles of incorporation must include all of the following:
(a) The name of the authority.
(b) The names of the participating municipality or municipalities.
(c) A description of the territory of the authority.
(d) The size of the board of the authority, which must be comprised of an odd number of members; the qualifications, method of selection, and terms of office of board members; and the filling of vacancies in the office of board member. If board members are elected in at-large elections by the qualified and registered electors of the participating municipality or municipalities, voting collectively, the election of board members must be conducted under the same procedures that govern an election for a tax under sections 13 to 17.
(e) The purposes for which the authority is established. Permissible purposes include the acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, or improvement of 1 or more of the following:
(i) A public swimming pool.
(ii) A public recreation center.
(iii) A public auditorium.
(iv) A public conference center.
(v) A public park.
(vi) A public museum.
(vii) A public historic farm.
(viii) If the territory of the authority is located only in a county with a population of less than 4,000, a public forest and natural resources area.
(f) The procedure and requirements for a municipality or district to become a participating municipality in, and for a participating municipality to withdraw from, an existing authority or to join in the original formation of an authority. For a municipality or district to become a participating municipality in an existing authority or to join in the original formation of an authority, a majority of the electors of the municipality or district proposed to be included in the territory of the authority and voting on the question shall approve a tax that the authority has been authorized to levy by a vote of the electors of the authority under section 11. A municipality or district shall not withdraw from an authority during the period for which the authority has been authorized to levy a tax by the electors of the authority.
(g) Any other matters considered advisable.
(h) If the authority's purpose includes the acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, or improvement of a public forest and natural resources area, the process by which the authority designates property the authority owns as a public forest and natural resources area.
(3) The articles must be adopted by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members serving on the legislative body of each participating municipality. If a participating municipality is a district, the articles must be adopted by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members serving on the legislative body of the entire municipality. Unless the articles provide otherwise, the requirements of this subsection do not apply to an amendment to the articles to allow a municipality or district to become a participating municipality in, or to allow a participating municipality to withdraw from, an existing authority.
(4) Before the articles or amendments to the articles are adopted, the articles or amendments to the articles must be published not less than once in a newspaper generally circulated within the participating municipality or municipalities. The adoption of articles or amendments to the articles by a municipality or district must be evidenced by an endorsement on the articles or amendments by the clerk of the municipality.
(5) After adoption of the articles or amendments to the articles by each participating municipality, a printed copy of the articles or the amended articles must be filed with the secretary of state by the clerk of the last participating municipality to adopt the articles or amendments.
(6) The authority's articles of incorporation, or amendments to the articles, take effect on filing with the secretary of state.
2000, Act 321, Eff. Dec. 1, 2000; Am. 2003, Act 135, Imd. Eff. Aug. 1, 2003; Am. 2026, Act 12, Imd. Eff. May 14, 2026
Source: Michigan Legislature (legislature.mi.gov)URL: https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-123-1135Fetched: 10/20/2026