Benzie County, Michigan

What Benzie County, Michigan does

Benzie County, Michigan is a county government entity headquartered in Beulah, Michigan, serving approximately 17,800 permanent residents across 340 square miles in northwestern lower Michigan, with a seasonal population that swells to 50,000+ during the summer tourist period. The county operates a comprehensive portfolio of mandated and community services including law enforcement (Sheriff's Office with road patrol, Marine Division covering 25 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline and 50+ inland lakes, and Snowmobile Patrol), judicial administration (19th Judicial Circuit Court, 85th District Court, Probate Court), emergency services (911 Central Dispatch, EMS/ALS ambulance), property and vital records (Register of Deeds, County Clerk, Equalization, Treasurer), and supporting functions such as Animal Control, Building Safety & Code Enforcement, Materials Management/Recycling, and Parks & Recreation. Service delivery is concentrated at the Benzie County Government Center at 448 Court Place, Beulah, with adjacent Sheriff's Office (505 Michigan Ave) and Animal Control (543 Michigan Ave) facilities.

The county's revenue model is anchored by a fixed property tax millage originally authorized by voters at 5.29 mills in 1982 and reduced to 3.2399 mills in 2025 due to Michigan's Headlee Amendment and Proposal A, supplemented by transactional sheriff service fees (e.g., Live Scan fingerprinting at $55-57, Ink & Roll at $15, gun registration, accident reports via LexisNexis BuyCrash) and periodic municipal bond issuances. A July 2026 $18 million bond offering with Raymond James as underwriter (TIC 4.2031%) is funding public infrastructure and community development. The county engages in targeted partnerships — Morgan Civil Process for outsourced civil process services since May 2023 and Lean & Green Michigan for PACE program administration — and an August 2026 General Operating Millage Ballot Proposal is pending to reset the general fund operating millage. Technology infrastructure consists of standard government systems (benzieco.net portal, online payments, FOIA processing, 911 dispatch, electronic agenda management) with no disclosed proprietary technology or AI capabilities.

Name

Benzie County, Michigan

Legal name

Benzie County, Michigan

Website

https://benzieco.net

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Benzie County, Michigan is a county government entity serving 17,800 permanent residents (50,000+ seasonally) in northwestern lower Michigan, providing law enforcement, judicial, emergency, and administrative services funded primarily by property tax millage.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Government Services

NAICS

Courts (922110), Police Protection (922120), Correctional Institutions (92214), Other Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities (922190)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial Courts & Judicial Administration (BPAIABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Local Transportation, Parking & Mobility Administration (BPAIACAM), State/Provincial Corrections, Probation & Parole Administration (BPAIABAF), State/Provincial Licensing, Permitting & Regulatory Administration (Cross-sector) (BPAIABAO)

Keywords

• Local government services
• Property records management
• Judicial court services
• Public safety administration
• Emergency management coordination

Headquarters

HQ city

Beulah

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Bond Issuance: County issues municipal bonds for public infrastructure and community development projects, with Raymond James serving as underwriter. Recent $18 million bond offering with TIC of 4.2031%.
2. Property Tax Millage: Primary funding from general operating millage (5.29 mills authorized 1982, reduced to 3.2399 mills in 2025 due to Headlee Amendment and Proposal A). Supports county and township services including Treasurer, Clerk, Register of Deeds, courts, prosecutor, public safety, sheriff's road patrol, and 911 dispatch.
3. Sheriff Service Fees: Fees collected for various sheriff services including fingerprinting (Live Scan $55-57, Ink & Roll $15), gun registration, accident reports, and civil process services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Benzie County, Michigan is a county government entity that delivers mandated public services to residents, property owners, and businesses within its jurisdiction. Its core offerings center on property and vital records recording, county-level judicial proceedings, election administration, public safety and emergency management coordination, and general county administration including taxation, treasury, and clerk functions.

Product overview

Benzie County, Michigan operates as a county government providing comprehensive public services to approximately 17,800 permanent residents (expanding to 50,000+ seasonally) across northwestern lower Michigan. The county's service portfolio encompasses public safety (Sheriff's Office with law enforcement, marine patrol, and snowmobile patrol divisions), judicial services (19th Judicial Circuit Court, 85th District Court, Probate Court), emergency response (911 dispatch, EMS/ALS), and administrative services (County Clerk, Treasurer, Register of Deeds). The county also offers specialized programs including the PACE Program for energy efficiency financing, Parks and Recreation Commission for recreational planning, Building Safety and Code Enforcement, and Animal Control. Sheriff's Office services include fingerprinting, gun registration, accident reports, FOIA processing, and civil process (via contracted provider). All departments are located at the Benzie County Government Center in Beulah, with additional facilities for Sheriff's Office and Animal Control.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Register of Deeds — Property Recording
• County Court Services
• Clerk and Vital Records
• Treasurer and Property Tax Administration
• Election Administration
• Emergency Management and 911 Dispatch
• GIS and Property Data Access

Quantifiable outcome

• 25 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline patrolled by Marine Division
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Morgan Civil ProcessminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEffective May 15, 2023, Morgan Civil Process handles civil process services previously provided by Benzie County Sheriff's Office. Contact: [email protected] or 231-655-3102.
• Lean & Green MichiganminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLean & Green Michigan developed a collaborative approach to PACE programs for local units of government, standardizing administrative and legal processes under Michigan Public Act No. 270 of 2010. Provides shared services model for Property Assessed Clean Energy programs.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Antrim County, Michigan: Northern Lower Michigan county with similar small population, lake-rich geography, and county statutory functions. Comparable peer for matching service offerings and seasonal-resource planning against Benzie County's footprint.
• Oceana County, Michigan: West Michigan lakeshore county with comparable permanent population, countywide sheriff services, courts, and materials management programs. Direct peer for comparing small-rural county service delivery and millage revenue dynamics.
• Grand Traverse County, Michigan: Neighboring northwest Lower Michigan county operating the same statutory county structure (Circuit/District/Probate courts, sheriff, dispatch, EMS, recycling). Comparable in jurisdictional mandate and tourism-tied seasonality; larger in population, providing a useful benchmark for service scaling.
• Charlevoix County, Michigan: Northwest Lower Michigan county with similar seasonal-tourism-driven service demand on Lake Michigan. Directly comparable statutory county service structure including sheriff, courts, recycling, and property-tax funding model.
• Manistee County, Michigan: Northwest Lower Michigan county with comparable permanent population scale (~25k), Lake Michigan shoreline, and rural county-government service mix including sheriff, courts, and corrections. Direct peer for benchmarking staffing, dispatch, and millage economics on Benzie-sized operations.
• Mason County, Michigan: Western Michigan county operating the full slate of statutory county functions under similar Headlee-driven millage rules. Similar population band and rural/tourist economic mix; useful peer for millage reset execution and small-county sheriff force sizing.
• Missaukee County, Michigan: Rural Northern Lower Michigan county with comparable small population and county-government service mix. Direct peer on countywide statutory service delivery and millage-tax funding economics.
• Kalkaska County, Michigan: Northern Lower Michigan county operating sheriff, courts, and dispatch services under a similar small-population millage-funding model. Useful direct peer for comparing small-county operational scaling and Headlee-driven millage management.
• Leelanau County, Michigan: Adjacent northwest Lower Michigan county with a similar small permanent population, large tourism/temporary population, extensive Lake Michigan shoreline, and full county government functions (sheriff, courts, EMS, recycling). Benzie County's operations most closely mirror Leelanau's mix of statutory county services plus lake-driven seasonal scale.

Regional players

• Door County, Wisconsin: Wisconsin peninsula county with a near-identical mix: small permanent population, large seasonal tourism surge, extensive Lake Michigan shoreline, multiple inland lakes, and a full county government. Comparable as a tourism-economy peer in a different state regulatory regime.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeYoutube.com/@BenzieCounty
• Facebookfacebook.com/BenzieCounty
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/benzie-county-government-ctr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Benzie County, Michigan