On Sunshine Week, Michigan lawmakers consider FOIA reform

Bills making FOIA apply to lawmakers, governor, get second hearing

By James David Dickson | March 13, 2024

The Senate Government Oversight Committee on Wednesday will have a second hearing on two bills that would make Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act apply to lawmakers and the governor, just as it applies to local and county government boards and executives.

But the hearing won’t come fast enough for its sponsors to win a Sunshine Award. That award, granted annually by the Michigan Press Association, will not be given in 2024. Sunshine Week 2024 runs from March 10 to March 16.

John Elchert, president of the association, wrote in an op-ed that “there are no Sunshine Awards being given” this year.

Elchert, who is also publisher of the Leelanau Enterprise, added: “Michigan continues to linger in the basement statistically on matters of openness when compared to other states. Despite this fact, truly little has been done to shine the sun on government activity in our state.”

Up for consideration Wednesday is a two-bill package, Senate bills 669 and 670. The first hearing on the bills was in early February.

Senate Bill 670 was introduced last November by Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Waucedah Township.

Senate Bill 670 would not only make lawmakers and the governor’s office subject to FOIA law, it would also make House and Senate leaders appoint a FOIA coordinator for each chamber.

McBroom told Michigan Capitol Confidential he views the bill as a move that “empowers the people and disempowers the government,” a trend he says is in line with constitutional government, a trend he favors.

Senate Bill 670 is tie-barred with Senate Bill 669, which was introduced by Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Southfield. Both bills must be enacted into law for either to take effect. Bill 669 fine-tunes the law, adding cyber security protections. It also largely exempts from FOIA law notes board members take for personal use during public meetings.

Last month, the Mackinac Center’s Steve Delie testified on the FOIA package. Here’s what he said:

The committee will meet a 9 a.m. The hearing will be broadcast on Michigan Senate TV.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

Lansing’s $402M pension problem could become ours

City’s unfunded pension debt continues to grow, even with state help

March 12, 2024

The city of Lansing pays pensions to 1,790 former employees, but it lacks a fully funded pension system. If the city fails to fully fund its pension obligations, the burden will fall upon future taxpayers, says James Hohman, budget director at the Mackinac Center.

Lansing’s net pension liability was $402,497,602 as of June 30, 2023, according to the city’s latest annual report. That’s the gap between what the city owes the members of its workforce and what it has available (and expects to have available) to pay out. There are $238 million in unfunded liabilities for the fire and police department pension system and $164 million in unfunded liabilities for general city employee pensions.

Lansing saw an increase in its unfunded liability from 2022, even with an $11 million pension grant from state taxpayers. The city had $371,959,895 in net pension liability back then.

“City officials ought to be concerned about the rules that employees use to vest in pensions,” Hohman told Michigan Capitol Confidential.

State and local governments in Michigan have in the past allowed employees to use what is called double-dipping. This happens when someone can collect a pension while still working in some capacity for the same employer.

The city received $25 million in American Rescue Plan Funds during the COVID-19 pandemic. The federal government did not allow local governments to use the funds to pay down pension liabilities. But they were free to use the grants in ways that freed up other monies to pay down pension liabilities.

Hohman wrote in a blog post April 7, 2021, about the way local governments could use COVID relief funds to improve the status of their pension systems:

It may be tough to pay down pension debts with the stimulus checks, however, because Congress prohibited it. Further federal guidance may highlight ways local officials are allowed to use their stimulus checks to free up extra cash, which can then pay down pension debt. This would protect retirees and save taxpayers money in the long term, and help local governments get out of the pandemic stronger.

It is unclear if Lansing used the tactic Hohman describes. City officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Lansing’s shrinking population may present future challenges for the city’s pension systems. There were 126,932 people living in Lansing in 1990, according to the U.S. Census. That number now stands at 112,684.