Whitmer signs financial disclosure bills, weaker than she previously called for

Lansing — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law Friday bills that will require state officeholders to submit annual financial disclosures despite the fact the measures fell well short of the standards the governor called for as a candidate.

For years, Michigan had been one of just two states nationally where lawmakers didn't have to file any type of report on their personal finances to screen for conflicts of interest. But voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure in November 2022 changing legislative term limits and forcing lawmakers, the governor, the lieutenant governor, the attorney general and the secretary of state to begin submitting annual disclosures.

The House and Senate had until the end of 2023 to enact specific requirements for the reports.

The bills Whitmer approved Friday meet the minimum standards of the ballot proposal — known as Proposal 1 — by mandating officeholders and candidates release some information on their employers, assets, liabilities and sources of income.

"State government must be open, transparent, and accountable to the people it serves," Whitmer said Friday in a statement. "Since taking office, we’ve taken action to improve transparency and accessibility for Michiganders, and I’m proud to sign this good government legislation that implements Proposal 1 into law."

Whitmer announced the bills' signing in a press release without holding an event where questions could be asked by reporters about the policies.

As a candidate for governor in 2018 and then, during her reelection campaign in 2022, Whitmer voiced support for legislation that would require Michigan officeholders to submit the same forms used by federal lawmakers. Those federal forms are different from and more detailed than what Whitmer signed into law Friday.

"I will work with the legislature to require all candidates running for statewide office and the Michigan Legislature to submit the federal financial disclosure form," said Whitmer's 2018 "Michigan Sunshine Plan."

Four years later, when she was seeking a second term, Whitmer stood by the statement in an October interview with The Detroit News. Asked if she still wanted the federal disclosure form if Proposal 1 passed, Whitmer responded simply, "Yes."

Members of the U.S. House have to report detailed information about sources of outside income and their assets in certain value ranges. The Michigan disclosure laws require listing only the names of employers and assets valued at over $1,000.

Likewise, members of the U.S. House have to broadly report gifts and travel payments they benefit from. Michigan lawmakers required themselves to release only information that is already reported by registered lobbyists. So trips paid for by nonprofit organizations lawmakers control — entities that can accept money from interest groups in secret — or organizations that aren't registered to lobby will remain concealed under the new policies.

More:Secret payments flowed in Lansing before launch of Michigan's medical marijuana industry

Groups that aren't registered lobbyists currently fund many of the trips provided to lawmakers in Lansing, avoiding disclosure.

As a candidate for governor in 2018, Whitmer also vowed to call on all of her "department directors, appointees and key advisers to submit financial disclosures as well, because we owe it to Michiganders to be transparent and ethical in our decision making."

The bills Whitmer signed Friday don't cover department directors, appointees or key advisers.

Some lawmakers, from both sides of the aisle, have touted the new disclosure laws as victories for transparency while others, from both sides of the aisle, have contended the standards failed to meet the plan voters intended.

In November, Rep. Mike Harris, R-Waterford, said the disclosure bills were "half-baked legislation."

"The bills simply do not require state officials to disclose very detailed information about their finances, and potential conflicts of interest will go unnoticed as weak ethics rules go unenforced," Harris said.

Likewise, Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, said last month, the bills were a "mockery" of what voters in Michigan wanted.

But Sen. Sam Singh, D-East Lansing, said the disclosure laws were "a critical step to ensure the voices of Michigan residents take precedence in our state's governance."

"This is just the beginning — an essential move towards preserving democracy, fostering transparency and keeping the public well-informed about our state government and elected officials," Singh said Friday in a statement.

Singh and others have promised to take up additional transparency bills next year.

cmauger@detroitnews.com