Michigan Dem running for Senate enjoys full property tax exemption on 'agricultural improvement' land with no agriculture

A Democrat congresswoman from Michigan without a farm or farming-related license saves thousands of dollars every year in taxes because of an agriculture-related exemption for her property, an exclusive report from the New York Post reveals.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), a three-term congresswoman vying for the U.S. Senate seat currently occupied by retiring Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow, lives in Holly, Michigan, a rural village about 55 miles northwest of Detroit.

The images 'show a single-family home, woods and fields — but no farming,' the Post said

The property where she lives also comes with a full tax exemption because of a classification regarding "agricultural improvements." Under Michigan law, such improvements include:

any improvements, buildings, structures, or fixtures suitable for use in farming which are located on agricultural land. Agricultural improvements includes a single-family dwelling located on agricultural land which is or will be occupied by the beginning farmer and structures attached to or incidental to the use of the dwelling.

Michigan law permits the "agricultural" classification on properties on which at least 50% of land is used for agricultural purposes.

Once a property has been granted the classification, it can keep it even if the property changes hands and even if the property is no longer used for farming, as appears to be the case with Slotkin.

Slotkin's grandfather purchased the property in 1956 and used it to raise cattle, according to previous reporting from the Lansing City Pulse.

When Slotkin's grandfather acquired the property, he reportedly had between 400 and 500 head of cattle that eventually became the beef used in hot dogs sold at the now-defunct Tiger Stadium.

Slotkin's grandfather slowly sold his beef company, and by the time Slotkin moved to the property as a child in 1980, the cattle were "gone," the Pulse said.

Slotkin's father, Curtis, gifted the family property to Slotkin and her brother in May 2023, the Post said.

Sometime before Slotkin received the property from her father, the property was granted the "agricultural" designation that remains attached to the property to this day, saving Slotkin about $2,700 a year in property taxes, the Post claimed.

Yet according to the Post, the property has no current agricultural licenses associated with it, and aerial images of the property captured by drones indicate that no agricultural-related activity is conducted there.

The images "show a single-family home, woods and fields — but no farming," the Post said.

Though Slotkin does not currently appear to be engaging in farming activity in any meaningful sense, Michigan Farm News reported as recently as April that Slotkin "resides on her family’s beef cattle farm in Holly."

Slotkin, a member of the House Agricultural Committee, has also claimed during previous campaigns that she grew soybeans on the Holly property.

Owners can petition to have the "agricultural" classification removed from their property by submitting a written request to the Michigan State Tax Commission, the Post said.

In response to a request for comment, Slotkin's campaign told the Post: "Rep. Slotkin’s farm has been in her family for three generations since 1956. It has been agricultural since then and Oakland County has confirmed on multiple occasions that the property qualifies for the agricultural exemption."

National Republican Senatorial Committee spokeswoman Maggie Abboud told the Post that the report about Slotkin was "not a surprise."

"Phony politician Elissa Slotkin is lying to Michigan voters and pretending she is a farmer," she said.

Blaze News reached out to Slotkin's Republican opponent in the Senate race, Rep. Mike Rogers. His spokesperson redirected us to Abboud, who gave Blaze News the same statement provided to the Post.

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