After thanking the Road Commission for working through the night to clear the snow-covered streets and the Sheriff’s Department for the previous day’s effort with the 100 plus-car pileup on I-196, Chair Jacob Bonnema opened the meeting.

Commissioner John Teeples was nominated to be the Committee’s Vice Chair for 2026 and was voted in unanimously.

Also approved unanimously—moving them onto the Board of Commissioners—were funding requests for scheduling software for the Sheriff’s Office, flooring for the Juvenile Detention and Juvenile Justice Institute, digital evidence management software for the Public Defender’s Office, and architecture and engineering services for the remodel of the Grand Haven Courthouse.

During the Treasurer’s report, the attorney for the Treasurer, Ted Seitz, shared an update on the Pung v Isabella County case and how it relates to Ottawa County.

• There are two Amendments being considered: the 5th Amendment of the US Constitution, takings without just compensation, and the 8th Amendment, the excessive fines clause.

• Seitz explained the Supreme Court is to decide if when a property is tax foreclosed and sold at auction, the interest holder (owner) only is entitled to the surplus proceeds, if there are any. That is the way the law in Michigan and most other states is written.

• Seitz said the alternative that the Supreme Court could decide is that the interest holder (owner), whose property is tax foreclosed and sold at auction, is entitled to the fair market value of the property.

• If the Supreme Court decides the owner is entitled to the fair market value, Seitz said he’d foresee the treasurers and counties no longer wanting to foreclose because they would lose money, tax dollars, by foreclosing. And if they stop foreclosing, there will be no recourse for those who don’t pay their property tax.

• Multiple states, including Michigan, stand to be impacted by the decision since most fund their local services through property taxes. There are a few states that use sales tax or income tax for those services.

• Commissioner Sylvia Rhodea asked what ramifications there would be if the decision doesn’t go the way they’re looking for it to go. Would that mean Michigan would need to look at moving to a sales tax model or doing something different? Seitz responded that Michigan definitely would need to.

• Commissioner Jordan Jorritsma said that the state needs to win this. He clarified that he wasn’t necessarily against changing to a sales tax model since that was an argument that has philosophical merits. Rather his concern was that Ottawa County could become obligated to buy any house that a resident decided to stop paying taxes on, which could bankrupt the County.

• The case is currently in front of the Supreme Court, with oral argument set for February 25th, 10:00 am, Washington, D.C. Seitz expected the Supreme Court to have a final decision by the end of June.

Erin Kamphuis, the Executive Director of Good Samaritan—a housing assessment and resource agency—presented an update on the Eviction Prevention Program.

• In Ottawa County, about 3000 households receive eviction filings every year.

• On average, eviction prevention costs an average of $1371 per individual. In comparison, it costs $38,000 to house one person in an emergency shelter for a year. Rehousing someone after homelessness costs five times more than it would to prevent the eviction. The data presented showed that short-term, targeted support can prevent needing more expensive solutions later.

• Of the people Good Samaritan has served, the primary reasons people fell behind on rent were: 30% had a medical bill that set them back, 20% had their hours cut, 17% experienced job loss, 11% had low income or lost wages, 7% had a car repair bill, for 3% it was due to childcare, and 1% had a rent increase.

• Jorritsma appreciated seeing that the biggest reasons tended to be temporary.

• Of the 1600 individuals served, 48% were under the age of 18 and 60% of the households had children. Kamphuis pointed out that children bear the deepest and longest lasting impact of housing insecurity, affecting their performance in school, their feelings of security, etc.

• To become eligible for Good Samaritan’s assistance requires: a court summons, total amount owed of less than $3000, regular household income below 50% area median income, a valid lease that extends beyond the 3-month stability period, monthly rent payments under 50% of monthly household income, a household budget showing sustainability, and landlord participation.

• Looking at the success rate of the program, of the 588 households served, only eight showed up again in the homeless database system. That means 98% of those served did not need additional support to continue staying housed.

• Good Samaritan trialed the repayment model which required program participants to repay the amount loaned to them. However, the program’s efforts were not successful. The participants did not repay the amounts. Going forward, the organization will continue to encourage those served to pay it forward as they are able.

January 20, 2026 Ottawa County Board of Commissioners Finance & Administration Committee meeting.

The first order of business was to elect a Vice Chair. Chair Jim Barry called for nominations. Commissioner Jordan Jorritsma was the only name submitted and was voted in unanimously.

All of the Action Items revolved around plans, grants, contracts, maintenance, and easements for various parks and trails across Ottawa County. All were approved unanimously to be forwarded to the Board of Commissioners.

The only discussion item was regarding the potential relocation of Veterans Services to the Fillmore Administration Building. Bonnema questioned why the consideration was for the Fillmore complex rather than in Holland, saying that many of the veterans are coming from Holland and there are no restaurants or shopping near Fillmore for those bringing the veterans to their appointments.

Last December, the Trump Administration charged Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (RFK, Jr.) with investigating the childhood vaccine schedules of peer nations. After assessing 20 peer nations, it was found that many recommended fewer routine vaccinations yet achieve high health outcomes. Denmark, for example, recommends about half of the vaccinations compared with the U.S.

After an exhaustive review, RFK Jr. said the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule will be aligning with “international consensus while strengthening transparency and informed consent.”

With the change, the CDC’s recommended routine vaccination scheduled went from 72 to 11 injections. The vaccines that changed were for rotavirus, influenza, meningococcal disease, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), Hepatitis A, and Hepatitis B. Those vaccines are no longer automatically recommended for children of all ages, but rather for children considered high risk or through shared clinical decision making between parents and physicians.

According to Nicolas Hulscher, Michigan epidemiologist and a McCullough Foundation Fellow, the CDC’s schedule change is a major victory even as safety concerns remain for the vaccines that continue to be recommended—as they are untested, administered during critical periods of neurodevelopment, and increase the risk of over 20 chronic diseases including autism.

The Ottawa County Medical Director, Dr. Gwen Unzicker, provided information on what the CDC’s January 5th announcement means for local residents.

• In December, Michigan Chief Medical Executive Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, who was appointed by Governor Whitmer, issued a standing recommendation that healthcare providers continue to refer to vaccine schedules from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians, which are the same automatic recommendations that were previously aligned with CDC’s guidelines. Unzicker explained that it’s a standard practice to refer to multiple organization’s guidelines.

• Unzicker said the “terminology change” at the CDC level doesn’t really change how clinicians work with families at the local level. The County Health Department always has practiced shared-decision making with their patients and will continue to make evidence-based recommendations for vaccines while respecting families’ rights to make their own decisions. By continuing to make all the vaccines available and supporting families in their decisions, she said her department’s practice is consistent with the federal CDC guidance.

• The Public Health department does not require vaccines for school enrollment, does not determine whether students meet school enrollment requirements, nor does it deny school enrollment for non-vaccination or set vaccination requirements or policies.

• The Public Health department provides non-medical exemption and certification for families who are seeking waivers, as well as disease control measures during active outbreaks. She explained that if, for example, there’s a case of measles in a classroom, those not protected from a vaccine or from having had the measles previously, need to stay home from school for a certain amount of time as a temporary measure to prevent the spread of the disease.

• More families have been interested in getting vaccine waivers, and Unzicker is hopeful the online vaccine waiver education program will be available in the next few weeks.

• Unzicker closed her presentation by offering to take questions on planning and policy. Questions on vaccines, clinical or medical issues she said she would answer outside of the meeting.

• Commissioner Allison Miedema asked how the narrative of the online waiver education would be presented. Unzicker replied that it was still being worked out.

• Miedema shared that in the past, the State always has followed the Advisory Council of Immunization Practices (ACIP) but is not choosing to do so, which concerned her. Miedema cautioned following a direction due to politics and encouraged Unzicker to consider if her department should continue to follow ACIP as before.

• Commissioner Kendra Wenzel shared that two of her four children were vaccine injured. She asked Unzicker if there’s a list available of all the substances used in vaccines that are not in the final product. Wenzel explained that she had found there are approximately 70 different additives in vaccines that can and do cause harm to children. “It’s insane what’s in there: animal DNA, animal blood, aborted fetal cells, aluminum…Had I seen that and been able to research that, I never would have done it… I would love to see a time when we actually give all of that information to every single parent who decides to put that shot into their child’s body.”

• Unzicker responded that a vaccine information sheet and the manufacturer information are provided but that anyone wanting additional information could contact the manufacturer. She added that these were conversations that weren’t really policy related and encouraged anyone with specific questions to come and see her.

For more resources on vaccination options, visit Michigan for Vaccine Choice.

January 20, 2026 Ottawa County Board of Commissioners Planning & Policy Committee meeting.

Ottawa County Board of Commissioners
Planning & Policy and Finance & Administration Committees
January 20, 2026

Ottawa County Administration Building
12220 Fillmore Street
West Olive, MI 49460