The special committee
on the Flint water crisis met Tuesday for the first time and targeted most of
their attention on the Auditor General’s report on the Office of Drinking Water
and Municipal Assistance. In the meeting, Auditor General Doug Ringler and
members of his team were interviewed.
Senate Minority
Leader Jim Ananich (D-Flint) posed the first question regarding the Flint Water
Treatment Plant (Flint WTP). In the initial report after making the Flint WTP
the primary water supplier, the Flint WTP tested the Flint River water, which
met standards, but did not test the water’s effect of the distribution system
at consumer tap locations. An email exchange between the Auditor General’s
office and former DEQ Director Dan Wyant indicated the report made some changes
based on information obtained. Mr. Wyant then forwarded the email to Governor
Snyder’s aide, Rich Baird, and Snyder’s former press secretary Dave Murray. Mr.
Ananich did not receive this email until about an hour after former Director
Wyant had.
Senator Ananich
questioned the auditor general’s office about allowing the Executive Office a
comment period here, which he didn’t feel was common practice. Mr. Ringler
responded their process is to make a report and give it to the agency in
advance for preliminary review, and he denied the edit was made in coordination
with the Executive Office. Several committee members had asked questions in
regard to the Department of Environmental Quality’s scope on the situation, to
which Elmer Hess with the auditor general’s office frequently deferred these
questions to the DEQ, stating they would not be able to comment on their
intent.
After the meeting concluded,
Senator Jim Stamas (R-Midland) commented he was not sure if the auditor general
would return for more questions, but the committee is looking forward to
continuing and getting their questions answered. Representative Ed McBroom
(R-Vulcan) echoed these feelings and noted the committee is a good start to
reasserting the Legislature’s oversight authority.
The U.S. House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee also met this week, interviewing
Susan Hedman, former chief of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region
5, and Darnell Earley, Flint’s emergency manager at the time of the crisis.
One of Ms. Hedman’s
region employees, Miguel Del Toral, confirmed the DEQ’s lack of corrosion
control treatment in its water, and the EPA’s failure to override this
decision. In light of this knowledge, committee members continually asked Ms.
Hedman if the EPA did anything wrong, to which she responded they could have
done more. Ms. Hedman also insisted Mr. Del Toral was not punished for
releasing the report about lead in the drinking water, despite an email from
Mr. Del Toral to a colleague, suspecting he was denied the opportunity to
attend a conference in Wisconsin.
Ms. Hedman commented
her decision to resign from her post was so she would not be a distraction to
resolving Flint’s water crisis. She believes her decision to step down was
honorable. Several of the members questioned this, and continued to question
why Ms. Hedman had reacted so slowly to this crisis. U.S. Representative Ted
Lieu (D-California) went on to say her actions were negligent bordering on
deliberate indifference.
Mr. Early in his
testimony maintained two reasons for his actions; one, he was implementing the
actions of previous officials in power and two, he was not a water expert and
was merely following advice. U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland)
retorted back it should not take an expert to realize water that was too
corrosive for GM parts is not safe for drinking. U.S. Representative Justin
Amash (R-Cascade Township) also questioned how an emergency manager felt his
duties were to follow orders, and not question or validate any actions. U.S.
Representative Brenda Lawrence (D-Southfield) criticized Mr. Earley for his
lack of a public meeting for Flint residents to voice their concerns.
Look to next weeks’
PAAdvisory for coverage of Governor Rick Snyder’s testimony before the U.S.
House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.