Senate passes the procedural half of the FOIA expansion package

Michigan's plan to bring the Legislature and the governor's office under the state freedom of information act took its second step on the same day the first one cleared the Senate.

The bill (SB 2), carried by Sen. McBroom, sets out the procedures and timelines that would govern records requests once SB 1 puts those offices under the act. It updates the sections of the existing FOIA law that handle response times, fees, and appeals, and adds a new section tailored to legislative records. Supporters call SB 2 the working machinery that makes the broader transparency promise enforceable.

The Senate introduced the bill on January 7, reported it favorably from the Committee of the Whole on January 22, and passed it 33 to 2 on Roll Call No. 2 on January 28. Two senators were excused. A proposed substitute was defeated.

The bill is tied to SB 1, which the House is also weighing in the Committee on Government Operations. Neither bill becomes law without both.