By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com


The state legislative and executive branches would be subject to heightened transparency under a new plan being spearheaded by a local lawmaker.

State Representative Ann Bollin of Brighton Township, on Thursday, testified to the Michigan House Oversight Committee on the bipartisan effort. Michigan is one of few remaining states that still exempts its governor and lieutenant governor from sunshine laws, and Bollin’s solution would remove those exemptions.

According to a release, the transparency plan will subject the Legislature to a new Legislative Open Records Act (LORA), and the governor and lieutenant governor to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). While LORA mirrors FOIA in many ways, there are exemptions for constituent inquiries to ensure personal information is protected and private. Other communications that lawmakers have with state departments and lobbyists would become subject to public review.

Bollin stated that the governor and state legislators are elected by the people to do the people’s business, and the public should have access the work they are doing. She added that the people of Michigan deserve better and she is fighting to give residents the tools they need to hold all their elected officials accountable.

House Bills 4383-92 remain under consideration by the House oversight Committee.