The four main groups that raise money to elect Michigan lawmakers are reporting record amounts of money for the start of an election year.
Between the four committee groups which raise money for Democrats and Republicans in the state house and senate there is a total of seven point six million dollars. The previous high, in 2014, was four point four.
Craig Mauger is with the Michigan Campaign Finance Network. He said it’s important to ask how large donations impact legislative decisions.
“If a donor is giving 40-thousand dollars to these committees whey is the donor doing that, who is that donor, what policies could that donor be interested in? These are all things people who are watching money in politics have to monitor.”
Mauger said part of the large stockpile of money may have to do to changes to campaign donations in 2013 which raised the maximum donation allowed to 40 thousand dollars.
“These groups are raising more money than normal and these groups are stockpiling more money than we’ve seen previously.”
Mauger said the highest donations have come from members of the DeVos family who have contributed a total of 240 thousand dollars towards towards both the Senate and House republican committee groups.
He said with donations of that size it’s important for Michiganders to ask how those donations influence the lawmakers who receive them.