Governor Rick Snyderis defending a move by a board he appointed to oversee Flint. The Receivership Transition Advisory Board (RTAB) has come under fire for revoking Flint’s ability to sue the state.
The Receivership Transition Advisory Board was created at the end of April 2015, after Flint was taken out of emergency management. The five-member board appointed by Governor Snyder is supposed to monitor the city.
Flint Mayor Karen Weaver filed a notice of intent to sue the state over the Flint water crisis back in March. She says she did not intend to sue the state at that point, but needed to file the notice to keep the ability.
But reports from the Detroit Free Press say the board swiftly moved to take away that ability. The report resulted in a wave of scrutiny on the board.
On Tuesday, Governor Snyder spoke out in defense of RTAB. “The RTAB is a part of the process, but it was really about reestablishing the normal sitting processes for approvals,” he said.
But Flint state Representative Sheldon Neeley says the decision prevents local leaders from having their day in court. He said, “Irrespective of when it happened I think we probably should look at what has happened and the voice of those residents in that community being squelched even further under this egregious emergency manager action.”
Governor Snyder said the board and its decision are “a part of the process” of moving Flint toward self-governance. He continued saying, “But it was really about reestablishing the normal sitting processes for approvals.”
Like 89.1 WEMU on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
—Cheyna Roth is a reporter for the Michigan Public Radio network. Contact WEMU News at734.487.3363 or email us at studio@wemu.org
