Agency Report to JCAR-Page 2
The new rules are intended to:
(1) Regulate the use of electric tricycles/bicycles under the motor vehicle ban in Mackinac Island
State Park in accordance with state and federal disability laws.
(2) Control the use of consumer fireworks to decrease the risk of spooking horses, protect the historic
and natural ambiance of the parks, control litter, prevent fires, and otherwise provide for the health,
safety, and welfare of the parks’ visitors.
It is important that the rules are promulgated before the 2023 summer season begins on the Island at
the beginning of May 2023.
The popularity of electric bicycles has skyrocketed in recent years, posing a significant challenge to
the motor vehicle ban within Mackinac Island State Park. At the same time, the Legislature has
tasked the Commission with regulating electric bicycles on the Island in a way that comports with
state and federal disability laws.
The rules are not only required by the Legislature’s directive to regulate electric bicycles in a way that
complies with state and federal disability laws, but they give law enforcement officers additional
tools to enforce the more than 100-year-old ban on motor vehicles on the Island. They are key to
maintaining the Island’s international reputation as being vehicle-free. This reputation generates
hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue within Michigan, and the livelihood of thousands of people
depends on it. So, it is critical that the reputation is protected. Further, citizens have raised concerns
about firework use in within the Park, so the rule banning fireworks is necessary for the preservation
and protection of lands under the control of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission.
4. Summary of proposed rules:
These rules govern the use and occupancy of Mackinac Island State Park, Michilimackinac State
Park, and Historic Mill Creek State Park. The rules provide for the protection of public enjoyment
and preservation and protection of the lands and property under the control of the Mackinac Island
State Park Commission against the wrongful use or occupancy and protect the lands and property
from depredations, preserves the lands and property from molestation, spoliation, destruction, or any
other improper use or occupancy.
New rules are intended to:
(1) Regulate the use of electric tricycles/bicycles under the motor vehicle ban in Mackinac Island
State Park.
(2) Control the use of consumer fireworks to decrease the risk of spooking horses, protect the historic
and natural ambiance of the parks, control litter, prevent fires, and otherwise provide for the health,
safety, and welfare of the parks’ visitors.
5. List names of newspapers in which the notice of public hearing was published and
publication dates:
Jackson Citizen Patriot, St. Ignace News, Traverse City Record Eagle. Published in all three
newspapers on March 23, 2023.
6. Date of publication of rules and notice of public hearing in Michigan Register:
3/15/2023
7. Date, time, and location of public hearing:
MCL 24.242 and 24.245
