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BERRIEN COUNTY — Students and staff at Lake Michigan College had cause to celebrate Tuesday, after the school’s millage renewal passed by a wide margin.

The results mean that the current millage for Lake Michigan College, which expires with the 2023 tax levy, will be renewed for another 20 years. The current millage generates nearly 30 percent of LMC’s total operational budget. 

Residents in Berrien County and parts of Van Buren County voted on the millage. According to unofficial ballot results from ElectionReporting.com, with 100 percent of precincts reporting there were 12,413 voters who supported the millage and 6,236 who voted no. The millage passed by 6,177 votes.

A millage is the rate at which property taxes are levied on real estate or other property. The millage rate is the number of dollars of tax assessed for each $1,000 of property value. A mill is one-thousandth of a dollar or one-tenth of a cent. LMC’s renewal is for 0.8804 of a mill.