LANSING – The Michigan Senate Economic Development Committee on Wednesday unanimously reported a package of bills modifying various regulations for the Michigan Strategic Fund and removing an approaching sunset on the 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund, which the Strategic Fund Board also oversees.

The bills (SB 269 , SB 270 , SB 271 , SB 272 and SB 278 ) are only half of the package, the other half of which is expected to start in the House, said Jim McBryde, vice president of governmental affairs for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, whose CEO also is head of the Strategic Fund.

The first bill, SB 269, increases the deposit of tobacco settlement revenue into the 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund by removing the current sunset on the requirement that $75 million of tobacco settlement revenue be deposited annually to the 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund, according to a Senate Fiscal Agency analysis.

McBryde said the idea is to increase the resources available for economic development purposes in future years as currently, tobacco settlement revenue is used for deposits into the Trust Fund to repay bonds from previous securitizations of that revenue, as well as for appropriations in various state budgets.

SB 270 revises the amount of the appropriation from the 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund that may be used for business development and marketing costs.

“It would strike the limitations that say that 80 percent for business marketing and tourism have to be target to persons, entities outside of Michigan,” McBryde said. He gave the example that a little over half the $25 million is spent on national advertising buys, but when you make a national buy, you can’t take out just one state, like Michigan itself.

The bill would also authorize the Michigan Strategic Fund Board to spend funds appropriated to it by law without further appropriation, regardless of the source of those funds.

SB 271 is a fairly significant bill in that it amends a portion of the Michigan Strategic Fund Act regarding community revitalization programs to increase the maximum amount of such a grant from $1 million to $2.5 million. It would also allow the Strategic Fund Board to approve up to four single projects for community revitalization loans of up to $20 million each year. Not more than two of the projects could be located in the city of Detroit, though, so as to be able to spread out resources to various areas.

The bill also makes some changes to the Business Development Program, which provides grants, loans and other economic incentives to qualified businesses that make certain investments or jobs in the state. SB 271 would delete a requirement that the MSF establish policies and procedures for background checks on qualified businesses applying for assistance, as well as remove a requirement that it report annually to the Legislature.

SB 272 would amend the MSF Act to include port facilities as economic development projects, as well as dredging of recreations or commercial harbors to be consider such as well. The board would also have to establish an advisory committee to make recommendations regarding projects related to port facilities.

Finally, SB 278 would expand the uses of the Jobs for Michigan Investment Fund, the permanent fund established to receive earnings and repayments from loans and investments from 21st Century Jobs Trust Fund programs.

NEIGHBORHOOD ENTERPRISE ZONES: The committee also unanimously supported reporting SB 227 , which reduces a population threshold as it pertains to Neighborhood Enterprise Zones. The zone designation allows owners or developers wishing to rehabilitate certain property to obtain a certificate that would entitle the owner or developer to reduced taxes on the structure.

The bill is most applicable to Detroit and McBryde urged the support of the committee as population change bills were a priority of Governor Rick Snyder in his State of the State address. A similar bill was introduced last term, but the Legislature ran out of time to take it up.

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