At its annual meeting of the Pleasant Lake Property Owners Association (PLPOA) on April 8, 2018, State Senator Joe Hune spoke to about 50 residents, including several township officials, at the Freedom Township Hall. Sen. Hune updated the audience on a number of legislative issues, including Michigan roads and infrastructure, water quality, pipelines, agriculture, and auto insurance.

 

Hune chairs the Senate Agriculture and Insurance Committees and is Vice Chair of several other committees. He updated the group on his efforts to minimize additional taxation that can occur through recent agricultural taxation reinterpretations. He also explained how Michigan’s unique auto insurance laws make our state’s insurance costs some of the highest in the country. He sponsored a senate bill to improve those laws, including an improvement to cost containment, but it did not pass the House.

Hune explained that budget increases were approved for roads and infrastructure, as well as for education, but that those increases will still likely not be enough to meet all the existing needs.

 

With regard to water quality and the protection of Michigan lakes, the senator noted there are a number of statewide efforts under way, including initiatives to combat the spread of invasive species. Several attendees expressed concern about DNR’s ability (and limited budget) to effectively manage lake access expansions. With regard to pipelines, he was aware that Freedom Township has a high concentration of pipelines and that residents have concerns about pipeline safety. Hune emphasized the importance of constituents speaking up about issues important to them. “Contact my office,” he said, noting that constituent input helps him better represent our interests with messages to the DNR.

 

At this annual meeting, PLPOA voted to re-elect the following board members: Jan Davis, Beth Heuser, and Catherine Roberts. Lake residents also discussed the value of continued treatment and monitoring of Pleasant Lake to maintain the lake’s health and expressed appreciation for Freedom Township’s support of its lake health initiatives, as well as pipeline safety and emergency management efforts.