SB 54 Summary

• Creates the Air Quality Enforcement and Mitigation (AQEM) Fund to receive all civil and administrative fines collected under Michigan's air quality laws, with funds retained in the account rather than reverting to the general fund.

• Allocates AQEM Fund expenditures with 30% directed to department staffing and operations benefiting environmental protection communities, including air pollution mitigation, increased air monitoring, and improved compliance programs.

• Allocates 70% of AQEM Fund for grants to nonprofits, local health departments, environmental departments, and school districts for community impact projects including health assessments, education programs, and pollution mitigation measures.

• Requires the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy to establish an air quality community impact grant program with rules governing grant allocation, application procedures, award criteria, and fiscal requirements, developed with an advisory committee including public health experts, environmental justice representatives, and community residents.

• Directs the department to identify "environmental protection communities" facing disproportionate environmental burdens within 150 days of census data availability and to publish annual reports on how grants are awarded and which communities are affected.