(The Center Square) – When Michigan voters passed Proposal 1 in November 2022, they required the governor, the lieutenant governor, the attorney general, the secretary of state and each lawmaker to file an annual financial disclosure report with the Department of State.
The report must disclose assets, income sources, liabilities, positions held, gifts received, and more, a House Fiscal analysis says. But the Legislature must enact the provisions. If not enacted by Dec. 31, a Michigan resident could sue the Legislature and the governor in the Michigan Supreme Court to enforce the provisions.
Rosie Jones, the spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids, told The Center Square “the legislation will be completed within the timeline outlined by the proposal.”
It’s unclear what committee will form the rules.
Proposal 1 requires the financial disclosure report to be filed by April 15, 2024, and include asset descriptions, unearned and earned income sources and description of liabilities.
The officials must disclose positions currently held as an officer, director, trustee, partner, proprietor, representative, employee, or consultant of any organization, corporation, firm, partnership, or other business enterprise, nonprofit organization, labor organization or educational or other institution other than the state of Michigan.
The report includes future employment arrangements and leave of absence while working as a government official.
Rep. Tom Kunse, a Clare Republican and vice chair of the House Ethics and Oversight Committee, says they haven’t voted on any bills this year, including a transparency package referred to the committee in March.
One of the bills, House Bill 4262, aimed to subject the Michigan Legislature to the Legislative Open Records Act. The last bill aimed to ban lawmakers from receiving lobbying income.
“This is embarrassing,” Kunse said in a phone interview. “We haven’t heard testimony on a single bill all year. We haven’t voted on a single bill all year.”
