The Eaton County road millage is a property tax levied to fund road improvements and maintenance on County Local Roads. A millage was initially approved by Eaton County voters in 2014 for 12 years (2015-2026) to resurface and rehabilitate nearly all County Local Roads. In November 2026, Eaton County voters will be asked to consider a new 10 year millage (2027-2036) to replace the expired millage so the investment made by Eaton County property owners is not lost. The replacement millage will maintain surface of County Local Roads as well as make improvements to drainage, culverts, bridges, and any other work necessary on County Local Roads.
If approved and levied in full, this millage will raise an estimated $7,843,350 in 2026, to be disbursed to the Eaton County Road Commission, the Cities of Charlotte, Eaton Rapids, Grand Ledge, Lansing, Potterville, and Olivet, and the Villages of Bellevue, Dimondale, Mulliken, Sunfield, and Vermontville.
Very little. The new road millage of 1.5000 mills will replace the current road millage of 1.4964 mills, so this isn’t “more money”. The minor increase represents the restoration of Headlee Amendment rollbacks of 0.0036 mills. To see the estimated taxes for your parcel, please visit the Eaton County Road Mill Rate Estimator page.
Median Home Sales Price
| HOME VALUE | HOME VALUE | CURRENT MILLAGE | PROPOSED MILLAGE | ANNUAL DIFFERENCE |
| Market Value | Taxable Value | 1.4964 Mill | 1.5000 Mill | 0.0036 Mill |
| $500,000.00 | $250,000.00 | $374.10 | $375.00 | $0.90 |
| $350,000.00 | $175,000.00 | $261.87 | $262.50 | $0.63 |
| $250,000.00 | $125,000.00 | $187.05 | $187.50 | $0.45 |
| $230,000.00 | $115,000.00 | $172.09 | $172.50 | $0.41 |
| $150,000.00 | $75,000.00 | $112.23 | $112.50 | $0.27 |
| $100,000.00 | $50,000.00 | $74.82 | $75.00 | $0.18 |
Millage funds received by the Road Commission would be used exclusively for improvements and maintenance on County Local Roads. A map showing the current condition of paved County Local Roads as well as the gravel roads, culverts, and bridges is available here. Work on County Local Roads may include:
Millage funds will not be used for:
Road improvement projects would be prioritized based on several factors, including:
Yes. Resident input is an important part of identifying local road concerns. While routine maintenance follows scheduled cycles, reported issues and community feedback helps determine priorities to meet the needs of residents.
Unfortunately, State funding is not sufficient for County Local Roads to perform routine maintenance and preventative maintenance. The Road Commission will focus on our legal duties to maintain the roads but will not have sufficient funding to perform other preservation and improvements. With Township matching funds, some roads may receive surface treatments, but not as needed to keep the roads in good to fair condition.
Paved surfaced roads require maintenance to prevent water from seeping into and softening the base of the road. Recurring surface treatments and preventative maintenance are the most cost effective methods to protect paved roads from early deterioration. The requested millage rate is sufficient to provide 2 surface treatments to all paved County Local Roads over the next 10 years. On gravel roads, new gravel is required to replace old gravel that had deteriorated over time. The requested millage rate is also sufficient to provide one application of gravel to each mile of gravel road over the next 10 years. The millage will also apply 2 applications of dust control each year which greatly improves the longevity of the road gravel.
New roads can be compared to buying a new car. You wouldn’t buy a new car, never change the oil, and then replace the engine when it blows up. It is less expensive to change the oil every 3-6 months compared to replacing the engine every 5 years. Surface treatments on roads are like changing the oil. It is less costly to extend the life of the paved surface compared to performing a resurfacing or major rehabilitation every 15-20 years.
