A bill on its way to Governor Gretchen Whitmer would require the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission to meet in public.
Media organizations have sued the commission for holding a closed-door meeting and refusing to release a recording of that meeting along with legal and other records. They also want a ruling that bars the commission from meeting in secret in the future. That case is before the Michigan Supreme Court. This bill on its way to the governor was adopted with substantial bipartisan majorities in the House and the Senate. It says the commission’s proceedings are covered by the same open meeting rules as other public bodies. The commission was created by voters in 2018 to draw new legislative and congressional lines. Its purpose is to put the process entirely in public view and take it out of the purview of the Legislature.
