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What to know as Michigan lawmakers debate subjecting themselves, governor’s office to public records laws Updated Mar 19, 2021; Facebook Share Unlike the vast majority of the U.S., Michigan has no legal mechanism compelling state lawmakers and the governor to fork over their records when asked. Government transparency advocates have long argued the state’s broad exemptions for the state Legislature and governor’s office in the Freedom of Information Act shrouds the actions of public officials in secrecy. Over the last decade, lawmakers have grown more amenable to changing the law, alth...

Michigan official wants governor, lawmakers subject to FOIA ANNA LIZ NICHOLS, The Associated Press/Report for America March 16, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan's secretary of state is aiming to have Michigan join most of the rest of the country in expanding public information requests to the governor and Legislature, she announced during a news conference Monday. Kicking off Sunshine Week by laying out a government transparency plan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson asked the Legislature to take up the measures. Michigan is one of two states that exempts the gover...

To qualify for a payout, departing employees must agree to a “release of all claims” against the state, past or present, meaning they could not sue the government for any reason.  Whitmer said the new policy will “ensure greater accountability and promote transparency” in state government, but critics contend it will do little to curb the kind of deals that have landed the governor in hot water.  “Michiganders should have confidence in the activities of state government, including the expenditure of public funds on separation agreements,” Whitmer said in a statement. “I am pro...

Letter from the Editor: Lots of talk about ‘sunshine,’ but Michigan’s elected leaders hang back in the shadows Updated Mar 11, 2021; Facebook Share “Trust, but verify.” That’s the Russian proverb President Ronald Reagan cleverly co-opted during nuclear disarmament talks with the Soviets in the 1980s. When you’re being asked to trust someone you don’t really know to do the right thing on your behalf, well, you might want to have the ability to inspect the process. Unfortunately, citizens in Michigan don’t get that opportunity with the people they’ve elected to lead their s...

The Michigan Legislature, where majority Republicans have blasted Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer over severance payments to top officials, has disclosed nearly $700,000 in separation agreements or legal settlements over the past decade.