What to know as Michigan lawmakers debate subjecting themselves, governor’s office to public records laws
Updated Mar 19, 2021;
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Unlike the vast majority of the U.S., Michigan has no legal mechanism compelling state lawmakers and the governor to fork over their records when asked.
Government transparency advocates have long argued the state’s broad exemptions for the state Legislature and governor’s office in the Freedom of Information Act shrouds the actions of public officials in secrecy. Over the last decade, lawmakers have grown more amenable to changing the law, although efforts to do so haven’t yet made it to the governor’s desk.