Birmingham Public Schools — School Facilities and Safety Improvement Bond Proposal (Oakland County)

What it does

Shall the Birmingham Public Schools, County of Oakland, State of Michigan, borrow the sum of not to exceed Two Hundred Forty Million Dollars ($240,000,000) and issue its general obligation unlimited tax bonds, in one or more series, for the purpose of paying for the cost of the following projects: • Enhancing school safety and security, including security camera systems, an emergency notification system, emergency radios, backup generators, and fire alarms; • District-wide heating and cooling improvements, playground improvements addressing accessibility for students with disabilities and remodeling, equipping, re-equipping, furnishing, re-furnishing school buildings and other facilities, including the upgrade and expansion of the Midvale Early Childhood Center; • Acquiring and installing instructional technology infrastructure and equipment, including career and technical education equipment, in school buildings and other facilities; and • Erecting and completing additions to and preparing, developing, and improving sites at school buildings and other facilities and the purchase of school buses? The annual debt millage required to retire all bonds of the School District currently outstanding and proposed pursuant to this Proposal is expected to remain at or below 3.80 mills which is a 0.00 mill increase from the annual debt millage levied in 2026. The maximum number of years any series of bonds may be outstanding, exclusive of refunding, is not more than twenty (20) years; the estimated millage that will be levied to pay the proposed bonds in the first year is 0.84 mills (which is equal to $0.84 per $1,000 of taxable value); and the estimated simple average annual millage that will be required to retire each series of bonds is 1.30 mills annually ($1.30 per $1,000 of taxable value). (Pursuant to State law, expenditure of bond proceeds must be audited, and the proceeds cannot be used for teacher, administrator or employee salaries, repair or maintenance costs or other operating expenses.)

A YES vote means

Birmingham Public Schools could borrow up to $240,000,000 in bonds of up to 20 years for safety and security, heating and cooling, playgrounds, building remodeling including Midvale Early Childhood Center, technology, additions and buses, with total debt millage expected to stay at or below 3.80 mills (no increase).

A NO vote means

Birmingham Public Schools would not borrow this $240,000,000.

Needed to pass

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Left–right lean

Not a left–right issue: a procedural or local question that liberals and conservatives don't typically split on (AI read of the official ballot summary).

The YES and NO lines are SpectrumVote's plain-language reading of the official text above; the official text is what you vote on.

Official text: source

Background

The Birmingham Public Schools Board of Education placed this $240,000,000 bond proposal on the ballot; the district describes it as continuing its existing debt tax rate without an increase, and its bond page also reports how the district's 2020 bond was spent.

According to the ballot language, total debt millage for all district bonds is expected to stay at or below 3.80 mills, a 0.00 mill increase from 2026; the new bonds would require an estimated 0.84 mill in the first year and an average of 1.30 mills, with no series outstanding more than 20 years.

Planned projects include security cameras, emergency notification and radios, backup generators and fire alarms, heating and cooling, accessible playgrounds, expansion of the Midvale Early Childhood Center, technology and career-technical equipment, building additions and school buses; bond money cannot be used for salaries or operating expenses.

Put on the ballot by Birmingham Public Schools Board of Education (2026).

From official source 1, official source 2.

Next elections here

• 2028 presidential election · Who has filed so far, from FEC filings

Also on Oakland County ballots

• Farmington Public School District — School Improvement Bond Proposition
• Ferndale Public Schools — Operating Millage Replacement Proposal
• Lake Orion Community Schools — School Improvement Bond Proposition
• The Lamphere Schools — School Improvement Bond Proposition
• Royal Oak Schools — School Improvement Bond Proposition
• Waterford School District — Replacement Non-Homestead Operating Millage Proposal

All Oakland County races and measures →

Quick answers

What does a YES vote on Birmingham Public Schools mean?

Birmingham Public Schools could borrow up to $240,000,000 in bonds of up to 20 years for safety and security, heating and cooling, playgrounds, building remodeling including Midvale Early Childhood Center, technology, additions and buses, with total debt millage expected to stay at or below 3.80 mills (no increase).

What does a NO vote on Birmingham Public Schools mean?

Birmingham Public Schools would not borrow this $240,000,000.

How many votes does Birmingham Public Schools need to pass?

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Should I vote yes or no on Birmingham Public Schools?

SpectrumVote doesn't endorse anyone or tell you how to vote. Read what a YES and a NO vote each do, and the official text, then decide based on what you want to happen.

When is the vote?

The general election was Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Counts are unofficial until each state certifies its results over the following weeks; your state or county election office has the official results.