All Oversight Committee Democrats Invoke House Rules to Demand Testimony from Governor Snyder and Aides on Flint Water Crisis

Feb 3, 2016
Press Release

All Oversight Committee Democrats Invoke House Rules to Demand Testimony from Governor Snyder and Aides on Flint Water Crisis

 

Democrats Also Request Key Documents from Snyder and Other State Officials

 

Washington, D.C. (Feb. 3, 2016)—Today, all 18 Democratic Members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform sent a letter to Chairman Jason Chaffetz officially invoking their right under House rules to demand a minority day of hearings on the drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan.

The Democrats are seeking testimony from Michigan Governor Rick Snyder because Republicans declined multiple Democratic requests for the Committee to invite him to a hearing on this topic today.  They also seek testimony from three key emergency managers that Snyder appointed to govern Flint since 2011:  Edward Kurtz, Jerry Ambrose, and Darnell Earley.

“Although we have made multiple requests for you to invite the Governor, to date you have neither invited him to testify nor provided a timeframe by which you might do so,” the Members wrote.  “Instead, it appears that you intend to try to limit our Committee’s investigation to the actions of the federal government.  We believe we have a moral obligation to the people of Flint to examine this matter comprehensively, hearing from state officials as well as federal officials, and obtaining documents from all sources rather than only from the EPA.”

The Members also renewed their request that the Committee obtain relevant documents from the state – and not just the EPA – in order to conduct a comprehensive investigation of this crisis.

“We agree that the Committee must examine the actions of officials at the EPA, but in order to conduct a comprehensive investigation of this crisis, we must also examine the actions of the Governor and other state officials,” the Members wrote. “If we do not, the Committee’s credibility will be impaired and subjected to accusations of partisanship that will undermine our work.”

Click here to read today’s letter.

Issues: 
114th Congress