For Detroit’s Sen. Stephanie Chang, the long and winding road to statewide drinking water affordability legislation continues with the finish line, hopefully, in sight.
Chang, a Democrat representing Michigan’s 3rd district, first focused on the affordability issue as a newly minted representative in 2015. At the time, she heard stories about the effects of water shutoffs and related health issues. Since then, she has put a spotlight on affordability as a statewide issue, not just a Detroit problem as it is often portrayed.
In February 2023, Great Lakes Now spoke with Chang when the issue was starting to gain traction. Legislation was formally introduced in October 2023 and in early 2024, and advocates expressed optimism that the bills would become law by May. It didn’t happen and the legislature is now in summer recess.
Great Lakes Now recently spoke with Chang in a wide-ranging interview on the need for affordability legislation and its status.
Making the case
Making the case for a statewide affordability plan is a collaborative process, Chang said. It involved a working group that included water providers, advocates the Department of Health and Human Services, the United Way and community action agencies, according to Chang.
The goal was to develop a comprehensive solution to the affordability issue through a process that worked through the details. Advocates have also been speaking at forums and town halls around the state in an effort to explain the need for the legislation, Chang said.
In the legislature, she said efforts have been ongoing to help her Republican colleagues understand the affordability issue and said Sen. John Damoose, representing a northern Michigan district, is “onboard and talking to his Republican colleagues.”
Chang said a Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) spreadsheet that illustrated the hundreds or even thousands of people struggling with water bills in the districts of legislators from across the state, got the attention of those lawmakers who may not have been aware of the problem.
“When you show people the numbers of people impacted in their district, it helps them understand,” Chang told Great Lakes Now.
Progress
After the bills were introduced, committee hearings in the House and Senate followed and they included compelling testimony from the various groups, Chang said.
“The affordability issue has never had a committee hearing previously,” according to Chang. Committee hearings are a critical step in the legislative process.
Chang said she had conversations with a number of Republicans in addition to Sen. Damoose and “there are quite a few who are open and we hope to continue the conversations to turn those open folks into yes votes.”
Slow walking legislation
In January 2023, Democrats took control of government for the first time in 40 years, holding the governor’s office and gaining majorities in both the Michigan House and Senate. Great Lakes Now pointed out to Chang that after winning the political “trifecta” as it’s known, the Democrats weren’t shy about passing priority legislation without Republican support. So why the slow walk on affordability, an equity issue that should be an easy win for the Dems?
Chang responded that “in some ways the (affordability) issue is very easy to understand and in other ways it is complicated with a million details. That’s why it’s important to talk with everyone and make sure they have information.”
Some on leadership teams in both the House and Senate see the issue as a priority, Chang said, but cautioned that there are a lot of issues on the agenda after 40 years of not having the trifecta. However, water affordability is one of the issues that many people hope does get done before the end of the year, she said.
Great Lakes Now asked Chang where Gov. Gretchen Whitmer stands on advancing affordability legislation. While campaigning for office in 2018, Whitmer published a comprehensive “Get it Done” water agenda which included ending shutoffs and implementing an affordability plan. Since taking office, except for one off budget proposals, Whitmer has had little to say on the issue.
Chang declined to speculate on Whitmer’s views on publicly promoting the affordability issue but said, “what matters most is her signature on the bills when they get to her desk and I have no reason to believe that she wouldn’t sign.”
Chang said she has been keeping Whitmer’s team up-to-date on the progress to advance the legislation and that the governor “has a lot of priorities” she has to consider.
“She’s the governor of a big state with a lot of issues and it’s our job as legislators to deliver those policy solutions to her desk and that’s where the focus is now,” Chang said.
Michigan’s checkered past
The current safe drinking water and affordability issues don’t exist in a vacuum in Michigan. It was 2014, when the United Nations came to Detroit to document the harm caused by shutoffs for the inability to pay. That was followed by the Flint and Benton Harbor crises that had a huge negative impact on these economically disadvantaged communities.
Yet, while progress on affordability inches along, the trifecta government moved rapidly to provide large subsidies to corporations to spark economic development.
Great Lakes Now asked Chang to reconcile the disparity.
Chang reiterated what she said on the subsidy issue in February 2023, that she has “consistently voted no over time on a number of different subsidy bills.” But said that the legislature is at the point where economic development reform is a priority.
“There has been a huge shift in the way the majority of Democrats look at these issues because we recognize that the way we need to do things is not just give money to corporations, but actually invest in our communities and people,” Chang said.
Motivation
Sen. Chang’s work on water affordability now spans nearly a decade and Great Lakes Now asked what keeps her motivated.
“We’ve got a lot of struggling families in Michigan and water is a necessity and it shouldn’t be something where there’s a question about having access to water they can afford. It’s a basic financial stability issue and human services issue and something I firmly believe in,” Chang said. “There are people counting on us to get this done.”
Chang said she’s heard that affordability legislation could advance in the House late in the year, but she is unsure about a Senate timetable. She cautioned that there’s a lot going on including the election in November.
The interview with Sen. Chang was recorded, transcribed and her comments were edited for length and clarity.
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Featured image: Senator Stephanie Chang. (Photo Credit: Senate Majority Communications Staff)
