State Representative Jon Hoadley says Governor Rick Snyder’s State of the State Address spelled out some first steps for getting clean drinking water to Flint, but the Kalamazoo Democrat says the governor’s speech didn’t get to the fundamental cause of the crisis.
Hoadley says getting water to Flint is critically important, but he says the elevated levels of lead in drinking water will be a health crisis for a generation of kids. Hoadley says the state should provide nutrition services and supplemental education. He says lead poisoning has life-long effects.
“And to say that we shouldn’t look at why we got to that point really insults the residents of Flint and the residents of our state.”
Governor Snyder says he will share e-mails related to the decisions in Flint. But Hoadley says the public will be reading whatever Snyder chooses to release. He says the Legislature should act to improve transparency. Hoadley says that includes making the governor’s office and the Legislature subject to Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act.
Hoadley says it’s another area where lawmakers should fix the “way Lansing works.” He says that includes term limits and how district lines are drawn. Hoadley says the process should be reformed while also addressing the humanitarian crisis in Flint.
