Ottawa County, MI Privacy & Surveillance: Recording & Consent Laws (2026)

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners adopted this surveillance ordinance under MCL § 46.11(j) on January 25, 2022, effective February 1, 2022, citing interference with county and court personnel from unauthorized videotaping, audio recording and harassment. Section 400.5.2.3 prohibits, directly or indirectly through a device such as a drone or phone, the photographing, video recording or audio recording of any work area, person or proceeding inside a County Building. Four exceptions apply: publicly noticed Board or committee proceedings held in the Chambers or a County Building conference room (400.5.2.3.1); official court proceedings where the Chief Judge has expressly authorized recording (400.5.2.3.2); other County Building proceedings the County Administrator has expressly authorized (400.5.2.3.3); and law enforcement or security activities on County Property (400.5.2.3.4).

The Board separately finds a privacy interest in all County Property except its Chambers during an open meeting, building lobbies and hallways, and outside park areas, when no unconsenting person is present, meaning recording those specific spaces without consent is treated as an invasion of privacy. The Ottawa County Clerk/Register must post the prohibitions at public entrances and on the grounds and parking areas of County Property, though a missing posting does not bar enforcement under § 400.5.3. The Ottawa County Sheriff and deputies enforce the ordinance and may call on local police departments or the Prosecutor for assistance; a deputy with probable cause of a violation issues an Appearance Ticket ordering the recipient into Ottawa County District Court under § 400.5.8.1. Continued violation is declared a nuisance per se under § 400.5.8.2, alongside the misdemeanor charge.