Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich (D-Flint) and state Representative Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) released the following statements after the Auditor General’s report on the Department of Environmental Quality’s Office of Drinking Water and Municipal Assistance was released this morning:
“This report solidifies that the MDEQ, with the primary responsibility to ensure safe water, failed us,” Sen. Ananich said. “We must find out how directives from the governor’s office to reduce enforcement and reorganize the department impacted the MDEQ’s ability to do its job. Oversight is a core function of government, one that Michigan’s sorely been lacking.”
“Now that we have the Auditor General’s report, we can see more clearly that Flint families are the victims of policy failures and a botched implementation of a new water source,” Rep. Irwin said. “But, there are still unanswered questions and it is imperative that our legislative committee acts thoroughly and with haste. The families of Flint deserve answers and justice. It is my hope that we learn from this crisis and that our investigation leads to increased democracy, transparency and accountability.”