The bill amends the Michigan Planning Enabling Act by updating the appointment process and composition of planning commissions in municipalities and counties. It stipulates that the chief elected official in a municipality or the county board of commissioners will appoint members to the planning commission, with a requirement for a majority vote from the legislative body. The bill specifies that planning commissions must consist of either 5, 7, or 9 regular members for cities, villages, or townships, and 5, 7, 9, or 11 regular members for counties. Additionally, it mandates that members, excluding ex officio members, must be appointed for 3-year terms, with provisions for staggered terms to ensure that approximately one-third of members' terms expire each year.

Furthermore, the bill introduces the option for municipalities with populations under 5,000 to designate certain boards as their planning commission and allows for the appointment of up to three alternate members to the planning commission. These alternates can serve in the absence of regular members or in cases of conflict of interest. The bill also emphasizes the need for planning commission membership to reflect the community's diverse interests and requires that members be qualified electors of the local unit of government, with some exceptions. Lastly, it includes provisions for the removal of members for misconduct and establishes a definition for "regular member" to clarify the distinction from alternate members.

Statutes affected:
House Introduced Bill: 125.3815