The Ingham County Register of Deeds is taking on banks, mortgage servicing companies, and mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in state court.

"Major banks have used Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to avoid state tranfer tax in my office. We are talking millions of dollars to the county and tens of millions to the state," said Ingham County Register of Deeds Curtis Hertel Jr.

He says large banks have used Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to claim exemptions from real estate taxes as government entities. But Ingham County says the facts say otherwise.

"It's a fact. It's a fact that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are not government entities. They are government sponsored entities but the statute does not speak to GSEs," said the attorney representing Ingham County Register of Deeds, Dan Marsh of Daniel P. Marsh, PLLC.

The transfer tax in Michigan counties is $1.10 for every $1,000 of value transferred. So for a $100,000 home, the tax would be just over one hundred dollars. In the last 10 years, there have been thousands of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac foreclosures, meaning milllions of dollars for Ingham County.

Money that would have gone straight to Ingham County public services including health programs and public safety.

"Everyone in this neighborhood has been robbed," said Eric Schertzing, Ingham County treasurer. "For 10 years, we have had significant decline in revenue and budget cuts and it's worse this year than it has been in the past."

The tens of millions of dollars that would have been paid in state taxes would have gone to the school aid fund. But, county officials say they won't let the mortgage companies get away with it.

"Any place that we see a legal ability to go after those who have committed these injustices we're going to go after them," said Hertel.

Along with recovering the millions of dollars owed, the Register of Deeds wants to hold the people accountable.

This law suit comes two days after Oakland County filed a suit in federal court. The Ingham County Register of Deeds is urging other counties to check their own records, and expects dozens of them will file future suits.