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You knew it wouldn't last, didn't you?
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer
Despite early claims that all anyone wants to do is work together for the benefit of Michigan voters, the Republican-dominated legislature on Wednesday voted against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order reorganizing the state's environmental-protection agencies. The vote broke down on party lines. If the similarly GOP-led Senate does the same thing when it takes up the matter, Whitmer would be back to square one.
On Monday, the governor signed an order that would have restructured the existing Department of Environmental Quality into the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, prioritizing safe drinking water for state residents. The Free Press reports:
Lawmakers said they...strongly oppose the governor's decision to abolish industry-dominated panels that would review environmental rules and permit decisions under a law passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature and signed by then-Gov. Rick Snyder just last year.
The panels, which have the power to overrule decisions by the department director, were dismissed as "polluter panels" by environmental activists.
House leaders offered to accept the executive order if the part overturning the 2018 state law was removed, and if bipartisanship has been damaged, it's on Whitmer, Cole said.
But Whitmer said the panels are of questionable legality and had barely held any meetings, showing they are not essential.
"If the real concern is ensuring that business has an opportunity to be heard, I can work with that," Whitmer said at a hastily called news conference in her ceremonial Capitol office.
Other voices, including the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and the Michigan Environmental Council, are also squabbling over the panels, along predictable lines. But with Republicans still holding majorities in the legislature, for now the power resides with them.
