The Sterling Heights City Council is set to consider a resolution Tuesday evening opposing tax policy bills in Lansing that one councilmember contends put every municipality “at risk.”

The Michigan House voted in May to pass several bills that would slash property taxes across the state, but skipped a vote on a bill needed to replace some of the more than $5 billion in lost tax revenue.

At its Tuesday evening meeting, Sterling Heights City Council is slated to consider the adoption of a resolution opposing Michigan House Bills 5872 through 5879 due to “their potential negative impact on local government revenue, financial planning, and administrative operations,” a city document said. Sterling Heights City Manager Mark Vanderpool said the city would lose about $5 million in annual revenue from the bills. He said there’s no “guaranteed replacement” for the lost revenue, and the city would need to cut services, he said.

“So we’re deeply concerned about that,” he said.

The House’s sweeping tax cuts can’t be implemented without the passage of a separate bill levying a loosely defined 6% sales tax on services that has yet to be revealed. Republicans who control the House did not hold a vote on the sales tax hike bill, which remains in committee.

All combined, the four property tax cuts passed by the House are estimated to result in a tax revenue loss that could progress from $5.5 billion to $7.5 billion a year, according to a series of nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency analyses. 

Vanderpool, the Sterling Heights city manager, said he wants the state Legislature to work “hand in hand” with cities, townships and villages to come up with a solution for “guaranteed revenue replacement.”

“We are more than willing ― I think our reputation precedes us ― to work with our state legislators hand in hand to come up with viable solutions that … may reform property taxes without harming communities across the state,” he said.

Sterling Heights Councilwoman Barbara Ziarko said the legislation reduces the city’s revenue without a guarantee of what it will be replaced with. She said that in the future, the legislation could prevent the city from maintaining positions that it has promised residents it would maintain, including public safety roles.

The Minnesota Republican Party is distancing itself from a moment of silence held for Derek Chauvin during its state convention, saying the gesture was not part of leadership planning, not included in the official program, and should not be interpreted as a party position.

GOP officials said in a Monday, June 1 Facebook post that the recognition of the former Minneapolis police officer, who was convicted in the killing of George Floyd in 2020, emerged from a spontaneous delegate motion on the convention floor and was not initiated or endorsed by leadership.

The controversy quickly escalated after state leaders, civil rights attorneys and Democratic lawmakers condemned the action, describing it as deeply harmful to Floyd’s family and inconsistent with accountability under the law.

The moment of silence took place during the party’s annual gathering in Duluth on May 30 and comes just days after the sixth anniversary of Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, an event that reshaped national debates over policing and racial justice.

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Republican Party of Minnesota says gesture was not leadership action

In a statement, the Republican Party of Minnesota said the recognition of Derek Chauvin originated as a delegate request during floor proceedings at the convention in Duluth and was handled under standard rules of order.

Party officials emphasized that convention leadership, including chair Danny Nadeau, did not propose the motion. The statement said leadership’s role was procedural only, and that presiding over the motion did not reflect agreement with or endorsement of its subject matter.

Officials reiterated that the convention agenda itself did not include any planned recognition of Chauvin and said the episode should not be interpreted as a leadership-driven decision or policy stance.

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Minnesota attorney general calls action ‘profound cruelty’

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who led the prosecution of Chauvin, sharply criticized the gesture, calling it an “act of profound cruelty” toward the Floyd family.

Ellison said the timing, so close to the anniversary of Floyd’s death, compounded the harm.

He said honoring Chauvin “dishonors the memory of George Floyd and wounds his loved ones all over again,” and called it “disturbing” to recognize someone convicted of violating his oath as a police officer.

Ellison also said the action was “disrespectful” to law enforcement officers who serve honorably, and reaffirmed that courts had already upheld Chauvin’s conviction through multiple appeals.

Broader backlash and political fallout

Democratic state Rep. Jamie Long called the moment of silence “disgusting,” arguing that Republicans chose to honor a convicted murderer rather than victims of violence or service members.

The gesture also drew criticism from civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, who represented George Floyd’s family in its civil case after his death. The attorneys called the moment of silence immoral and demanded a retraction and apology, saying it disrespected both the Floyd family and the broader public record of Chauvin’s conviction.

Floyd was killed on May 25, 2020, when Chauvin, a white former Minneapolis police officer, knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. Chauvin was later convicted of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, and sentenced to 22½ years in state prison.

The killing sparked global protests and became a defining moment in the Black Lives Matter movement and debates over policing in the United States.

Chauvin’s conviction has been upheld through multiple appeals, including a denial by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023, and he is serving his sentence in federal custody.

Party officials say despite the controversy, their focus remains on candidate endorsements and upcoming elections, not the floor action that triggered the backlash.

Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@usatodayco.com, or on X @athompsonUSAT.