4th Of July 2024 Fireworks Laws: What’s Legal In MI

MICHIGAN — Home fireworks aren’t just for the 4th of July in many parts of the country, but before you start procuring pyrotechnics, be sure you know Michigan’s laws on consumer fireworks.

Fireworks have been significantly deregulated in the past two decades. Some types of fireworks are legal everywhere, except in Massachusetts. Many states also allow the use of fireworks on the days on either side of the 4th of July and other major holidays.

In Michigan, here’s what you need to know:

The Michigan Fireworks Safety Act of 2011 allows the sale and use of consumer-grade fireworks in Michigan. The law was amended in 2018 to give local government entities, including villages, townships, and cities, the right to restrict the days and times residents can use consumer fireworks through the usage of a local ordinance.

State law requires the usage of fireworks to be allowed after 11 a.m. on these days:

• Dec. 31 until 1:00 a.m. on Jan. 1
• The Saturday and Sunday before Memorial Day, until 11:45 p.m.
• June 29 to July 4, until 11:45 p.m.
• July 5, if it falls on a Friday or Saturday, until 11:45 p.m.
• The Saturday and Sunday before Labor Day, until 11:45 p.m.

Michigan law requires that consumer-grade fireworks only be ignited from personal property. It is illegal to ignite fireworks on public property (including streets and sidewalks), school property, church property, or another person’s property without their express permission.
It is also illegal to set off fireworks while intoxicated or under the influence of drugs.

When fire-related incidents involve consumer, low impact, or illegal fireworks resulting in property damage, injury or death of another person, individuals are subject to a misdemeanor or felony punishable by imprisonment of not more than five years and fines of up to $10,000 or both.

Last year, an exploding firework killed a 43-year-old woman and injured nine other people late on July 3 in Ottawa County, according to officials.

The permissive atmosphere around fireworks regulation isn’t universal, though. In states that permit consumer fireworks, cities and counties may adopt stricter codes and ordinances. And in extreme drought or high-wind conditions, local fire officials may prohibit any use of fireworks. And three states — Hawaii, Nevada and Wyoming — leave it to each county to decide where and what categories of fireworks are legal.

The strictest fireworks laws are in California, according to a map and list of state fireworks laws curated by Reader’s Digest. The law allows a limited window for fireworks use, from noon on June 28 through noon July 6,; restricts their use to people 16 and older; and also limits the kinds of fireworks people can buy.

Indiana has some of the most lenient laws. Anyone 18 or older can purchase and use fireworks whenever they want, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on non-holidays and later on holidays. All types of fireworks are legal as long as they meet U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission construction and labeling regulations.

States with stricter fireworks laws have cited data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission that shows thousands of people are injured in fireworks-related accidents every year, with multiple deaths reported as well. Some 10,200 people were injured and 11 died in fireworks accidents in 2022, according to the latest available data from the CPSC.

Also according to that report:

• Nearly three-fourths (73 percent) of 2022 injuries occurred in the weeks before and after the July 4 holiday.
• About 1,300 people were injured by fireworks and approximately 600 by sparklers.
• About 38 percent of people who were injured sustained burns, most often (29 percent) to the hands and fingers, but also the head, face and ears (19 percent), eyes (16 percent) and trunk or other part of the body (12 percent).

If you’re getting fireworks to celebrate Independence Day, follow these safety tips:

• Don’t allow young children to play with fireworks, including sparklers.
• Keep a bucket of water or garden hose nearby so you can douse a fire quickly.
• Light fireworks one at a time, then quickly step back.
• Never attempt to re-light or pick up a firework that did not ignite correctly.
• Don’t use fireworks if impaired by alcohol or drugs.

Fireworks have always been part of Independence Day celebrations. After the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, that Independence Day “ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shews, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more.”

The first Independence Day fireworks display occurred on July 4, 1777. They came in only one color — orange — back then, according to the Smithsonian Institution. Today, they light up the sky with red, white and blue, the color of the U.S. flag, but also other colors.

At the turn of the century, about a third of fireworks displays were professional shows, according to Scientific American.

The gradual deregulation of fireworks occurred partly to tap lost tax revenue from residents crossing state lines to buy fireworks in states with more-lenient laws, but also because of lax enforcement.