May 7, 2004 – Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth (DLEG) Director David C. Hollister announced during an overview to Michigan business leaders of the Michigan Timely Application and Permit Service (MiTAPS) that the program is on target to launch its initial phase of Web-based permits this summer. In June, MiTAPS will activate 14 Web-based, interactive permits and have links to 32 others from DLEG and the Department of Environmental Quality.

“Government shouldn’t be a barrier to business development in Michigan,” said Hollister. “MiTAPS is a work in progress, which ultimately will allow us to fulfill our role in creating a better business environment in Michigan, encourage the retention of existing jobs and foster the creation of new jobs.”

As announced in Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm’s State of the State address, MiTAPS will provide a one-stop shop 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for businesses seeking permits from state agencies. Michigan will be the first state to implement a streamlined, Web-based permitting process, which will ultimately reduce the permitting/licensing processing time.

“This single point of entry gains access to legacy systems already in place and provides a central point to bring together licensing and permitting information into a single, comprehensive station rather than the multitude of Web sites currently in our system,” said Henry L. Green, director of the Bureau of Construction Codes and Fire Safety and MiTAPS program director. “Defining a single site addresses the complexity of processes and the site offers users a more clearly articulated approach to researching needed permits and licenses.”

In its initial phase, MiTAPS will automate 32 different permits and licenses associated with a manufacturing facility, totaling a combined processing volume of 220,000 permits per year. The permits are related to initial construction, certificate of occupancy, and operations. After systematically mapping the process of permitting and licensing – documenting the flow of process applications by noting what comes first, overall timing and approval cycle, dependencies between permits, and approvals or review not directly governed by a permit – processing time for permits is 465 days. However, by applying MiTAPS, the same process will be reduced to 183 days.

Read more Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth news releases.