There’s major bipartisan support for new bills that would open the governor and the Legislature to public information requests.
Democratic state Representative Jeremy Moss says recent scandals like the Flint water crisis are helping drive support for the bills. But he and other lawmakers have been working on the issue for a long time.
“Long before the Flint water crisis came to light. So it has political consequences, but it’s not a political issue for us. It’s a good government issue for us.”
The Republican speaker of the state House called the legislation “a serious attempt to reform the policy.” “This is a complicated issue, and it will undoubtedly see revisions after public comment in committee,” said Speaker Kevin Cotter (R-Mt. Pleasant) in a statement. “But this is something we can work with, and it is the best proposal to reform (the state’s open records laws) I have seen to date.”
