This week, the Joint Committee of the Flint Water Emergency issued their final report.  Prior to issuing the report, the committee held six hearing and heard testimony from over sixty participants and stakeholders.  The final report details thirty-six policy proposals for consideration by the Legislature, fourteen of those are short-term goals.  Currently there is legislation introduced to move forward with some of the short-term goals outlined in the report.  “Several of the proposals in the plan would make changes to state government with the goal of decreasing the likelihood that a similar crisis could occur again,” stated Tony Des Chenes of MLC.

One of the recommendations would reform the contentious Emergency Manager Act to move from the sole Emergency Manager structure to a three-person Financial Management Team.  The team would consist of a financial expert, a local government operations expert, and a local ombudsman.  Additionally, the committee proposes an emergency manager would be prohibited from changing a public drinking water source without approval of a majority of the electors within the community.  Their report also calls for emergency managers to be held liable for certain harms caused to the public.

Other recommendations within the report include:

• Create a new Ombudsman for state employees to protect whistleblowers
• Enhanced criminal penalties for misconduct in office resulting in injury to the public
• Create a commission to run the Department of Environmental Quality, instead of the current structure of one Director
• Create a public health emergency alert system
• Modernize and update the Public Health Code
• Move the Office of Drinking Water & Municipal Assistance from the Department of Environmental Quality to the Department of Health and Human Services
• The creation of a statewide Advisory Commission on Drinking Water Quality
• Strengthen the state’s Lead and Copper Rule
• Expand financing opportunities to facilitate the replacement of lead service lines
• Pass legislation to help spur economic development in Flint
• Allow the Health Endowment Fund to be used to provide health related services in Flint

To read the full report, please click here.

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