MI Dept. of Agriculture on Track to Complete All Migrant Housing Inspections in Fiscal Year 2010
LANSING, MI – April 8, 2010 – (RealEstateRama) — Recently, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm signed into law a bill establishing a new per occupant fee as part of the licensing and inspection process for migrant labor housing in Michigan. The $5 per occupancy fee is paid by growers at the time of their application to help offset general fund budget reductions to the Michigan Department of Agriculture’s (MDA) Migrant Labor Housing Inspection Program.
The $5 per occupancy fee is calculated by the maximum capacity of a licensed housing unit. For example, if a housing unit is licensed to house 10 people then the fee would be $50.
“This fee assures MDA will have the staff needed to complete all housing inspections prior to occupancy – at least for Fiscal Year 2010,” said Don Koivisto, MDA Director. “As migrants are making decisions on where to work during the upcoming growing season, it’s our hope they will continue to choose Michigan as their temporary home. This state has a national reputation for providing quality housing to its agriculture workers and MDA works hard to ensure this continues.”
MDA’s Migrant Labor Housing Inspection Program works with about 850 farm operations in Michigan to inspect more than 4,400 living units providing housing for 23,000 migrants and their families. Migrants come to Michigan to help plant, tend, harvest, and process more than 35 different crops with a value greater than $2.3 billion such as apples, blueberries.
“Each year, many Michigan farms offer low or no cost living arrangements as part of their worker compensation package and yearly maintenance of these facilities can often cost farmers thousands of dollars,” said Koivisto. “While this fee is added burden to our growers, they are more concerned about their crops rotting in the field because migrant staff would not be available.”
For more information on MDA’s Migrant Labor Housing Inspection Program, click on the following link: http://www.michigan.gov/mda/0,1607,7-125-1569_45168—,00.html
###Find us on Facebook! Go to Facebook.com/mideptofagriculture
Follow MDA on Twitter at MichDeptofAg.
Contact:
Jennifer Holton 517-241-2485
