On this Thanksgiving episode of MichMash, we take a look at how the Michigan Legislature falls short in their oversight of government. Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow sat down with Jim Townsend, the director of the Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy, to find out why. 

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In this episode:

• Does Michigan have the resources for thorough oversight?
• How legislators can ensure oversight even when a member of their own party is governor
• Does the Michigan Legislature need to be restructured?

Gorchow says for the past 25 years of covering state government in Michigan, the Legislature hasn’t been robust in their oversight. Townsend added that isn’t because of a lack of resources. 

“Michigan stands out among many states as having more resources than any other legislature…the legislature is for all intents and purposes a full-time legislature,” said Townsend. “Unfortunately, Michigan does not take the opportunity to do in-depth oversight.” 

He went on to say it’s just not a priority for the government and that it isn’t a priority because attention is diverted to other things. Townsend also emphasized the imporance of reaching across the aisle to ensure government oversight is conducted in a fair and partisan way.

“The best oversight investigations are bipartisan oversight investigations,” he said. “The credibility will be higher when both parties are involved.” 

More from WDET:

• Wayne State University program aims to help legislatures conduct oversight
• Michigan Legislature approves $126M school spending bill
• MichMash: Potential ‘difficult lame duck session’ looms for Democrats