Election 2026 · Grand Rapids
Rockford, Kenowa Hills and Hudsonville ask voters to keep their business-property school taxes on Nov. 3: who pays and what is at stake
GRAND RAPIDS — Business owners, landlords and anyone with a cabin or second home in three West Michigan school districts will be the ones paying for the school taxes on their Nov. 3 ballots, while families who only own the house they live in will not pay them at all.
Rockford and Kenowa Hills in Kent County and Hudsonville Public Schools in Ottawa County are asking voters to renew their non-homestead operating millages, MLive reported. The tax applies to businesses, rental properties, commercial and industrial property, vacation homes and other property that is not an owner’s principal residence.
All three requests renew or replace existing taxes rather than adding new ones, according to the districts and MLive. The current authorizations in Rockford and Kenowa Hills expire with the 2026 levy.
What each district is asking
Rockford Public Schools wants 21 mills for four years, 2027 through 2030. The official ballot language estimates the district would collect about $9,536,108 in 2027 at 18 mills. The district says that is more than 8% of its operating budget, or about $1,200 per student.
Kenowa Hills Public Schools, which reaches into Ottawa County, is asking for 20 mills for 10 years, 2027 through 2036. Its ballot language estimates about $17,226,786 in 2027, which the district says is roughly 30% of its day-to-day budget.
Hudsonville Public Schools is asking to renew 19.6911 mills for five years, 2028 through 2032, which MLive said would raise about $9.56 million in 2028. Hudsonville also has a separate sinking fund renewal of 0.9709 mills for building repairs, estimated at $2.7 million in 2028.
Added together, the three operating requests come to roughly $36 million in their first year of collection.
Why the ballot says 20 or 21 mills
State law caps the levy at 18 mills, and districts must collect the full 18 mills on non-homestead property to receive their full per-pupil foundation allowance from the state. The extra 2 or 3 mills on the ballot are a cushion that can only be used to restore millage lost to Headlee Amendment rollbacks, which trim tax rates when property values rise faster than inflation. Neither Rockford nor Kenowa Hills can levy more than 18 mills in any year, according to their ballot language.
What it costs, and what happens if it fails
A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of taxable value. At 18 mills, a business or rental with a taxable value of $250,000 pays $4,500 a year toward school operations under this tax, by The Mitten Daily’s math. Rockford’s district tells homeowners to check their tax bill: a principal residence shows no line item for the operating millage.
If voters say no, the state does not make up the difference, all three districts say. “The district could not absorb a loss of more than $17 million annually within its existing budget without substantial reductions,” Kenowa Hills Superintendent Cherie Horner told Kent ISD’s School News Network.
Before you vote: register by mail or online by Oct. 19, or in person with proof of residency through 8 p.m. on Election Day; early voting runs Oct. 24 through Nov. 1; apply for an absentee ballot by mail or online by 5 p.m. Oct. 30, or in person by 4 p.m. Nov. 2. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3. County canvasses finish by Nov. 17, and the Board of State Canvassers certifies by Nov. 23.
Sources:
MLive, “West Michigan voters asked to approve school operating tax that skips primary residences,” Oct. 26, 2026 (three districts, Hudsonville figures, sinking fund), https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2026/10/west-michigan-voters-asked-to-approve-school-operating-tax-that-skips-primary-residences.html
Rockford Public Schools, “Non-Homestead Proposal 2026” (official ballot language, $9,536,108 estimate, per-student figure, 18-mill rule, Headlee explanation), https://www.rockfordschools.org/our-district/non-homestead-proposal-2026/
Kenowa Hills Public Schools, “2026 Operating Millage Proposal” (ballot language, $17,226,786 estimate, 30% of budget), https://khps.org/operating-millage-proposal-2026
School News Network (Kent ISD), “Operating millage on the ballot in Kenowa Hills,” Oct. 9, 2026 (Horner quote), https://www.schoolnewsnetwork.org/2026/10/09/operating-millage-on-the-ballot-in-kenowa-hills/
Photo: rossograph, “Downtown Rockford Pano.jpg,” March 25, 2019, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Downtown_Rockford_Pano.jpg
More from Grand Rapids
Michigan Travel · October 28, 2026
Grand Rapids’ rebuilt Canal Park is open on the Grand River, with a new playground, kayak launch and heated pavilion ahead of a spring grand opening
After more than a year of construction, the riverfront park north of downtown has reopened with wider walks, more green space, a river-themed playground and a heated pavilion. The city plans the official grand opening for spring.
News · October 28, 2026
GVSU starts work on its $166 million Blue Dot Lab in downtown Grand Rapids, a tech hub set to open in 2029 with $30 million from the state
Demolition has begun inside the Eberhard Center, which will be gutted and joined by a riverfront addition near the Blue Bridge. What will be inside, who is paying, and why some faculty have doubts.
Community · October 27, 2026
Grand Rapids trick-or-treat hours 2026: 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31, plus police safety tips and the early forecast
The city’s recommended window, the porch-light rule, what police want parents and drivers to do, and what the National Weather Service expects for Halloween night. Clocks fall back a few hours later.
News · October 27, 2026
Grand Rapids Public Schools names two superintendent finalists, Kelly Greene and Allison Tingwall, with public interviews and a pick planned Wednesday
One finalist is a GRPS insider; the other runs principal quality for Chicago Public Schools. The board plans to choose after interviews Wednesday night. Here is who they are and how to watch.