LANSING, Mich. – Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, has signaled that expanding the state’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to include top government offices is not a priority for him.  

Michigan is one of only two states that fully exempts the governor and lawmakers from public records requests. 

According to reporting from Bridge Michigan, Hall told reporters, “You’re not going to see fast action on the FOIA stuff from me in the House,” he said. “You’re just not.” 

His comments came a day after bipartisan bills were reintroduced in the Senate to expand Michigan’s FOIA law, which already applies to most other state and local officials, to include the governor’s office and the Legislature. 

The reintroduced legislation, sponsored by Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Southfield, and Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, aims to bring greater transparency to the state government. Last year, the Senate passed a similar version, but it stalled in the House under former Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit. 

Hall’s focus, he said, is on other transparency measures, such as requiring lawmakers to disclose earmarks before votes on budget bills, which would address the billions of dollars in “enhancement grants” often tied to controversial projects. He also emphasized his support for proposals to curb the “revolving door” of lawmakers turning into lobbyists and to prevent last-minute, unpopular votes during lame-duck sessions. 

For a look at what state public records laws apply to legislatures, check out this great research study by Ryan Mulvey and James Valvo, published in the Brechner FOI Project’s Journal of Civic Information. 

Posted: January 28, 2025
Category: Brechner News
Tagged as: Brechner FOI Project, Brechner Freedom of Information Project, FOI, FOIA, open records laws, Secrecy Tracker