Enabling statute

Michigan

Michigan Zoning Enabling Act (Act 110 of 2006)

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Summary

Michigan delegates zoning authority to local units of government through the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act, 2006 PA 110 (MCL 125.3101 et seq.), effective July 1, 2006. This act consolidated Michigan's three prior zoning enabling acts (the separate City/Village, Township, and County Zoning Acts) into a single statute. Under MCL 125.3102(o), a "local unit of government" authorized to zone means a county, township, city, or village; the core grant of power in MCL 125.3201(1) empowers any such local unit to provide by zoning ordinance for the regulation of land development and the establishment of districts within its zoning jurisdiction. Authority is thus exercised at both the municipal level (cities, villages, townships) and the county level, with counties' jurisdiction generally limited to areas not otherwise covered by township or city/village zoning (MCL 125.3102(x)).

The delegation

MCL 125.3102 Definitions. Sec. 102. As used in this act: ... (n) "Legislative body" means the county board of commissioners of a county, the board of trustees of a township, or the council or other similar elected governing body of a city or village. (o) "Local unit of government" means a county, township, city, or village. ... (x) "Zoning jurisdiction" means the area encompassed by the legal boundaries of a city or village or the area encompassed by the legal boundaries of a county or township outside the limits of incorporated cities and villages. The zoning jurisdiction of a county does not include [a township that has adopted a zoning ordinance or that is subject to a county zoning ordinance...]. MCL 125.3201 Regulation of land development and establishment of districts; provisions; uniformity of regulations; designations; limitations. Sec. 201. (1) A local unit of government may provide by zoning ordinance for the regulation of land development and the establishment of 1 or more districts within its zoning jurisdiction which regulate the use of land and structures to meet the needs of the state's citizens for food, fiber, energy, and other natural resources, places of residence, recreation, industry, trade, service, and other uses of land, to ensure that use of the land is situated in appropriate locations and relationships, to limit the inappropriate overcrowding of land and congestion of population, transportation systems, and other public facilities, to facilitate adequate and efficient provision for transportation systems, sewage disposal, water, energy, education, recreation, and other public service and facility requirements, and to promote public health, safety, and welfare. (2) Except as otherwise provided under this act, the regulations shall be uniform for each class of land or buildings, dwellings, and structures within a district. (3) A local unit of government may provide under the zoning ordinance for the regulation of land development and the establishment of districts which apply only to land areas and activities involved in a special program to achieve specific land management objectives and avert or solve specific land use problems, including the regulation of land development and the establishment of districts in areas subject to damage from flooding or beach erosion. (4) A local unit of government may adopt land development regulations under the zoning ordinance designating or limiting the location, height, bulk, number of stories, uses, and size of dwellings, buildings, and structures that may be erected or altered, including tents and recreational vehicles. History: 2006, Act 110, Eff. July 1, 2006

Verification

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Verified against the official Michigan Legislature site (legislature.mi.gov) and Justia. (a) Citation is a real, current statute: the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act, 2006 PA 110, codified at MCL 125.3101–125.3702, effective July 1, 2006. MCL 125.3101 is the short-title section ("Michigan zoning enabling act"). (b) It is genuinely the state's zoning enabling authority — the act expressly codifies the law of local zoning and repealed/consolidated the prior City and Village, Township, and County Zoning Acts into one statute. The core grant is at MCL 125.3201(1): "A local unit of government may provide by zoning ordinance for the regulation of land development and the establishment of 1 or more districts within its zoning jurisdiction..." (confirmed verbatim, matching the claim aside from the trivial "1 or more"). (c) Authority model is accurate: MCL 125.3102 defines "local unit of government" (subsection (o)) as "a county, township, city, or village," and "zoning jurisdiction" (subsection (x)) as the area within a city/village's boundaries or, for counties/townships, the area outside incorporated cities and villages — confirming county_and_municipal with the county-limitation caveat as stated. The subsection letters cited in the summary ((o) and (x)) are correct. No errors found.