Joined at Grace Emmanuel Church in Flint by state Rep. Sheldon Neeley and other state and local officials and community members, Gov. Rick Snyder last Friday signed legislation to ensure Michigan residents are notified more quickly if lead levels in their public water supply exceed safety requirements.
“These bills help ensure that all Michigan families are promptly notified in situations where lead levels in public water supplies exceed safe levels for drinking and cooking,” Snyder said. “This is an important step in our ongoing efforts to strengthen Michigan’s water quality and infrastructure.”
House Bill 5120, sponsored by state Rep. Sheldon Neeley, requires a municipal water supply to notify customers of a lead action level exceedance within three business days. A public water supply must still provide public educational resources as currently required. This improvement for public health was also part of Snyder’s proposed reforms to the Lead and Copper Rule presented in Flint last April. It is now Public Act 478 of 2016.
Snyder also signed 21 additional bills:
HB 4235, sponsored by state Rep. George Darany, requires physicians or health facilities to report all maternal deaths to help Michigan reduce the number of these deaths. It is now Public Act 479 of 2016.
HB 5422, sponsored by state Rep. John Chirkun, expands the elements of fourth-degree vulnerable adult abuse to include an intentional act by a caregiver posing unreasonable risk of harm or injury regardless of whether physical harm resulted. It is now Public Act 480 of 2016.
HBs 5626, 5628 and 5629 and SB 924, sponsored by state Reps. Thomas Hooker, Hank Vaupel and Mike McCready and state Sen. Rick Jones, respectively, prohibit parents or guardians from the practice of informal custody transfers that are for 180 days or more. SB 924 revises current penalties for those who advertise or recruit parents or guardians for adoption. The measures are now Public Acts 481, 482-483 and 484 of 2016.
HBs 5838 and 5839, sponsored by state Reps. Tom Barrett and Jason Sheppard, respectively, create a new crime category of providing travel services for purposes of prostitution or human trafficking. This legislation would also allow the court to order a fine for this crime. The measures are now Public Acts 485-486 of 2016.
Senate Bills 746 and 747, sponsored by state Sens. Tonya Schuitmaker and Dave Hildenbrand, respectively, impose a second degree child abuse penalty for licensed child care providers or organizations if they intentionally violate a licensing rule that results in the death of a child. The measures are now Public Acts 487-488 of 2016.
SBs 558 and 560, sponsored by state Sen. Rick Jones, abolish a surviving wife’s dower right. Michigan was the only state that still granted a right to dower exclusively to surviving wives, but not to surviving husbands. Most states have already eliminated the dower rights because the existence of a right available only to one sex has been held to be
unconstitutional under equal protection principle. The measures are now Public Acts 489 and 490 of 2016.
SB 1021, sponsored by state Sen. Jim Stamas, amends current law to allow confidential information about child abuse and neglect to be disclosed to a child advocacy center that is providing services to a victim of child abuse or neglect, or to the child’s family. It is now Public Act 491 of 2016.
SBs 1041-1044, sponsored by state Sen. Judy Emmons, allow information or records held by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs and the Department of Health and Human Services to be disclosed to each other regarding investigations of adult foster care and child care facilities, without having to submit a FOIA request. This package of bills was necessitated after Executive Order 2015-4 transferred the Adult Foster Care Facility and Child Care licensing functions to LARA and DHHS. Duties and responsibilities for adult and foster care oversight are split between the two departments. The measures are now Public Acts 492-495 of 2016.
SB 1090 and 1091, sponsored by state Sen. Judy Emmons, makes necessary amendments to the Juvenile Code to maintain compliance with federal law for the purposes of being eligible to receive federal funding. The measures are now Public Acts 496-497 of 2016.
SB 924, sponsored by state Sen. Rick Jones, revises current penalties for those who advertise or recruit parents or guardians for adoption. It is now Public Act 498 of 2016.
SB 270, sponsored by state Sen. Rick Jones, provides clarity and process for a probate court to take jurisdiction over matters for individuals with connections to Michigan. It is now Public Act 499 of 2016.
For additional information on this and other legislation, visit www.legislature.mi.gov.
––––––––––––––––––––
Subscribe to the Legal News!
http://legalnews.com/Home/Subscription
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Day Pass Only $4.95!
One-County $80/year
Three-County & Full Pass also available
