Fer cryin’ out loud, was THAT so hard???
The Michigan Board of State Canvassers met today in Lansing and followed the order given to them by the state Supreme Court to put the repeal of Public Act 4 – our state’s anti-democratic Emergency Manager Law – on the November ballot.
While you would think that this is the final piece in the Republican Stall Machine, it’s not. Although PA 4 is now officially suspended until the election to determine if it’s repealed or upheld, there is now certain to be a court battle over what happens in the interim.
As I wrote about yesterday, using circuitous arguments and pretzel logic, Attorney General Bill Schuette claims that Public Act 72 is now back in place. As I talked about, the law in Michigan, MCL 8.4 specifically, says that laws repealed by a new law cannot be resurrected if the new law goes away. Schuette says that PA 4 — which DID repeal PA 72 — is not repealed yet, just suspended, so the MCL 8.4 doesn’t apply. However, if PA 4 is still on the books, then PA 72 is still dead and cannot rise from the dead like a zombie law to walk the earth among the living.
Here’s the simple flowchart I put together, one so simple even a tea party Attorney General like Bill Schuette can understand it. Well … maybe …
At any rate, Governor Snyder and his minions are busy reappointing existing Emergency Managers around the state as Emergency Financial Managers as they are called in PA 72 or appointing new ones.
Flint is threatening to sue the state if one is appointed because they believe the city no longer meets the criteria for having one.
This will go to court and this will get ugly and it’s all just more delay tactics to distract those who want PA 4 repealed from mounting the spirited campaign that will be necessary to repeal this odious law.
In the coming weeks, I will be writing quite a bit more about why it is essential to repeal this law and what can be done to solve the problems that are putting our municipalities and schools in these emergency situations.
Stay tuned.
UPDATE: As I mentioned, the Snyder administration got right to work appointing/reappointing Emergency Financial Managers:
Ed Kurtz will return as the city of Flint’s new emergency financial manager today after being appointed by the state’s Local Emergency Financial Assistance Loan Board.Kurtz formerly served as emergency financial manager in Flint during the city’s first state takeover from 2002-04. {…}
The Loan Board also reappointed emergency managers in three other Michigan cities, Benton Harbor, Ecorse and Pontiac, which were under Public Act 4 before the Board of Canvassers vote today.
In Flint, City Council President Scott Kincaid has said he will challenge any new appointment of an emergency financial manager under Public Act 72.
In Muskegon Heights, Donald Weatherspoon was reappointed as the Emergency Financial Manager.
