LADY BUDGETDOWN'S SOCIETY PAPERS
Oakland County: Turn the Page to November...
Dearest Readers,
If you thought Oakland County's August ballot was the end of the ledger, there is another page worth reading.
On August 4, voters will consider the proposed NEW 1.5-mill Oakland Schools Regional Enhancement Millage, estimated to raise approximately $125.76 million in its first year.
And, as Lady Budgetdown has previously documented, that proposal appears alongside numerous other city, township, school and library bond/millage requests on the August ballot.
But then comes November 3, 2026.
According to Oakland County's current Unofficial Proposal List, here is what awaits:
🏛� COUNTYWIDE
• Oakland County Zoological Authority — 0.10 mill — RENEWAL + RESTORATION
Detroit Zoo — approx. $8.83M first year
🏙� CITIES
• Bloomfield Hills — 0.52 mill — RENEWAL/REPLACEMENT
Library services — approx. $440K first year
• Lathrup Village — 1.00 mill — NEW
Library services — approx. $175K first year
• Novi — 1.00 mill — REPLACEMENT
Capital improvements — approx. $5.41M first year
• Royal Oak — 0.70 mill — RENEWAL
Parks, recreation, playgrounds & animal shelter — approx. $2.93M first year
• Royal Oak — 0.20 mill — RENEWAL
Senior services — approx. $836K first year
🏡 TOWNSHIPS
• Commerce Township/Wolverine Lake — $18.6M BOND
Pathways — estimated 0.5986 mill first year
• Lyon Township — 1.10 mills — NEW
Public library — approx. $2.56M first year
• Oakland Township — 0.6809 mill — RENEWAL
Parks & recreation — approx. $1.46M first year
• Oakland Township — 0.1580 mill — RENEWAL
Safety paths & trails — approx. $351K first year
• Orion Township — $13.3M BOND
Public library improvements — estimated 0.3116 mill first year
🏫 SCHOOL BONDS
• Birmingham Public Schools — $240 MILLION BOND
Safety, HVAC, facilities, technology, buses & other improvements
• Farmington Public Schools — $171 MILLION BOND
Facilities, STEAM/Maker Spaces, safety, technology & athletics
• The Lamphere Schools — $47.34 MILLION BOND
School building and site improvements
• Royal Oak Schools — $165 MILLION BOND
Buildings, additions, athletics, technology & site improvements
Those six November bond proposals alone represent:
$655.24 MILLION IN PROPOSED BORROWING
And, Dearest Readers, that figure represents bond principal — not the ultimate cost including interest. The county proposal document does not provide a total interest cost for all six bonds.
🎓 COMMUNITY COLLEGES
• Mott Community College — 0.6152 mill — RENEWAL
Community college purposes — approx. $8.9M first year
• Schoolcraft College — 2.27 mills — RENEWAL with continued Headlee Override
College operations — estimated $50.76M in 2029
Altogether, the current November proposal list contains 17 separate bond or millage questions.
Some are new.
Some are renewals.
Some replace existing millages.
Some restore previously approved rates.
And several involve substantial new borrowing.
There is another important detail in the school bond proposals: Birmingham, Farmington and Royal Oak Schools state that their total annual debt millage is expected to remain at or below their respective 2026 rates despite the proposed new bonds. That distinction deserves to be included when examining the ledger.
So the complete picture stretches across two elections:
August: A proposed NEW 1.5-mill Regional Enhancement Millage, plus numerous other local bond and millage questions.
November: Another 17 bond and millage proposals, including $655.24 million in proposed bond borrowing.
Not every taxpayer will vote on—or pay—every local proposal. Where you live determines which local measures apply to your property.
But perhaps that makes examining the entire ledger even more important.
How much is being requested? What is new? What is simply being renewed? What debt already exists? And what will each proposal actually mean for the taxpayer who receives the bill?
Because Lady Budgetdown has never objected to reading the fine print.
Quite the contrary.
The receipts are where the interesting details tend to hide. 🕯�
— Lady Budgetdown
#LadyBudgetdown #OaklandCounty #PropertyTaxes #Millages #SchoolBonds #FollowTheMoney #TheReceipts #August2026 #November2026