COUNTY TREASURER RE-ELECTION PLANS

By DEBRA HAIGHT

BCR Correspondent

ST. JOSEPH – Berrien County Treasurer Shelly Weich is the latest elected official to announce plans to run for re-election. With the filing deadline less than two weeks away, she already has a primary challenger in her bid for another term as treasurer.

Weich today announced her plans to seek re-election for a second term. She will be on the ballot in the Republican Primary on August 6th.

“Serving the public, helping taxpayers, and protecting taxpayer dollars have been my mission since starting in the Treasurer’s office 17 years ago,” Weich said.  “With the constant changes in property tax laws and having experience in handling all of the issues a Treasurer faces is important for the residents of Berrien County.”

Weich started in the Treasurer’s office in 2007.  She was brought in to audit primary residence exemptions, which is a huge issue in Berrien County with the high number of second homeowners.  “As the result of our work, Berrien County schools received millions of dollars because of the discovery of invalid exemptions,” Weich stated.

That program continues in the office today and generates thousands of dollars for education in Berrien County.  Weich was made a full-time employee and then named Chief Deputy Treasurer in 2010.  She was appointed Treasurer in 2020 after Bret Witkowski resigned and then successfully won the election that year.

She has continued the program begun by Witkowski to help Berrien County homeowners who have found themselves in financial hardship and facing foreclosure.

“I am proud of the work we do to assist homeowners who have fallen behind with their taxes,“ Weich said.  “Homeowners want to be informed of their options when they fall behind.  They are sometimes surprised to learn that the Treasurer doesn’t want to see foreclosure, but instead, will work to solve their problem,” she added.

Community outreach and engagement are also a big part of Weich’s service.  “It’s my job and desire to have an open door when a taxpayer feels there is no hope,” she said.  Weich has had office hours in municipalities across the county to increase access to the office.  “That has been very well received by residents and by municipal leaders,” Weich said.

Besides her duties as County Treasurer, she is the Chairperson of the County Land Bank, Vice Chair of District 7 for the Michigan Association of County Treasurers, and also serves as a member of the Michigan Municipal Treasurers Association and the Michigan Townships Association.

“It is my honor and privilege to serve the residents of Berrien County as their Treasurer.  I will fight every day to assist taxpayers and work to improve legislation that benefits property owners,” she stated.

A lifelong resident of Berrien County, Shelly Weich resides in Baroda Township with her husband Heath.  They have two grown children.

Her challenger in the August primary will be Margret Fife. Fife is a Stevensville resident and making her first run for public office. She is currently employed with the Berrien County Health Department.

She decided to run for County Treasurer after finding inaccurate information on the County Treasurer’s website regarding foreclosure dates. She said if elected County Treasurer, she will ensure that information on the county website is correct.

She said she will not confine her service to office hours and will be available after hours and on weekends to assist property owners in navigating payment plans. This commitment is especially crucial during these challenging times of inflation and increasing taxes, where property ownership is at risk.

She also plans to establish an office in the south county in recognition of the inconvenience of long drives for residents in the Niles, Buchanan, Berrien Springs and nearby areas. This initiative will ensure more accessible and efficient services for residents, she said.

The filing deadline is April 23 at 4 p.m. for partisan offices at the state, county and local levels and many non-partisan local races. The filing deadline for school boards, some cities and all villages is July 23 at 4 p.m. People running unaffiliated for a partisan position or for a local district library board must file by July 18 at 4 p.m.

Deadlines for county and local ballot proposals are May 14 for the Aug. 6 election and Aug. 13 for the Nov. 5 general election.

At the county level, several positions will be on the ballot this year including the County Clerk, County Treasurer, County Prosecutor, County Sheriff, Drain Commissioner, Register of Deeds and all 12 County Commissioner seats.

In addition, city, township, village and school board positions will be on the ballot. In state races, all state house seats will be on the ballot as will one U.S. Senate seat.