Over a decade after cost-cutting measures implemented by white officials created a deadly water contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan, Republicans have canceled millions of dollars that had been allocated to addressing the enduring public health issue. Declaring the crisis “over,” Republicans cut funding for Flint as part of a larger round of budget cuts hitting the state.
Cutting services for children in Flint
Republicans in the Michigan House voted to block about $8.3 million in funding allocated to addressing the long-term impact of the water crisis that began in Flint in 2014. Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall justified the move by characterizing the money as wasteful and unnecessary. Hall said, “The Flint drinking water emergency is over. Even Gov. Whitmer has acknowledged that, but yet they continue to want to fund it and squirrel away money for it. That isn’t happening.” State Sen. John Cherry, a Democrat from Flint, said “House Republicans’ actions are cruel and downright shameful for the harmful consequences they will have on not just my community, but on people across the state.” Cherry said, “My constituents deserve better. Michiganders deserve better.”
Budget cuts for program benefiting pregnant women and infant children
The cuts to Flint funding impact services for students in Flint, such as counselors, nurses, psychologists and social workers. The lead contamination introduced to the Flint water supply has been shown to have led to a disturbing rise in miscarriages in the mostly Black Flint community, and it has left thousands of children in the city at risk of neurological injury. Republicans also cut $18.5 million allocated to Rx Kids, a program that started in Flint in 2024 but has since expanded to cover thousands of families throughout Michigan; the cuts to Rx Kids are to program locations outside of Flint. As described on the program’s website, “As the nation’s first-ever community-wide prenatal and infant cash prescription program, Rx Kids is providing life-changing financial security that is universal and unconditional.” For participants of this basic income program for pregnant women and infants, “Moms receive $1,500 during pregnancy, and babies receive $500 a month for a designated length of time that varies between 6-12 months.” The program is still set to receive $270 million in funding over the next year, but the cut of over $18 million raises immediate concerns for the program’s budget.
Republicans use political maneuvers to cancel approved funding in Michigan
The cuts to funding for Flint and the Rx Kids cuts for other areas of Michigan were portions of a larger GOP agenda to slash the Michigan budget. Altogether, Republicans in the Michigan House canceled nearly $645 million in funding that had been previously approved by the state’s legislature. The Michigan House GOP enacted the massive cuts by using a rare procedural rule that allows the House to lapse funding. By doing so, the House bypassed the Democratic-controlled Senate in order to unilaterally cut funding for a variety of initiatives and programs, including the Make It In Michigan Competitiveness Fund, an economic development program championed by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; a program to address and investigate sexual assault; and funding for a Holocaust Memorial Center. Hall suggested some of the funding could be restored in the future, saying the cuts would “force a discussion about what is the best way to get value for your tax dollars.” Democratic Rep. Jason Morgan responded to the Republican move by saying, “This is some corrupt bulls**t” and describing the move as “a completely untransparent process,” according to Bridge Michigan.
The cuts made by the Michigan GOP are reminiscent of moves made by Republicans in Washington, D.C., to massively slash spending and cut programs under the Trump administration. The Michigan cuts are shaping up to be similarly controversial among that state’s constituents, setting up continuing debates about responses to the long-term fallout of the Flint crisis and other important issues around the state.