Dear Reader,
One of the most effective questions in a journalist's toolbox is “why?” When asked enough times, they can usually dig below the surface of an issue far enough to find nuggets of truth.
And when the digging hits obstacles, you employ another time-tested technique: Follow the money.
MLive environmental reporters Garret Ellison and Sheri McWhirter did both in the Curious Case of the Disappearing Landfill/Recycling Legislation. There are many interesting facets of the proposed regulatory reform, which would modernize solid waste management and boost recycling in Michigan.
So many unusual thingscame together in its formation that it was called “unicorn legislation” by Simon Schuster of the Michigan Campaign Finance Network.
“This legislation actually had origins in the (Gov. Rick) Snyder administration,” Schuster said. “This was a long, iterative process where there were more than 70 stakeholders involved. To reach consensus with this many people at the table … on a bipartisan basis … is pretty unique in Michigan's Legislature.”
Indeed, MLive earlier this year detailed how bipartisanship is on life support in Michigan, so an eight-bill package passing the House with support of Democrats and Republicans is something to behold. Just as fascinating as how it came together is how it got sidetracked into a holding pen in the Senate.
“In talking to some of the key players who were interested in seeing recycling improve in Michigan, there was a lot of concern about the legislation seemingly grinding to a halt,” McWhirter said. “So, it was a matter of finding out ‘why?’”
Ellison and McWhirter dug in, and, since a money trail often tends to reveal insight, they teamed up with Schuster from the Campaign Finance Network. What they found, through donation records and through interviews, was that Sen. Aric Nesbitt, R-Lawton, had requested that the legislation be routed through the Senate committee on regulatory reform, which he chairs.
The trio also learned:
- Nesbitt received three $10,000 donations to his Leadership political action committee four days after the landfill/recycling package cleared the House Natural Resources Committee, as well as some smaller donations afterward from landfill employees or PACs.
- The donations were from three members of a family in southwest Michigan that operates landfills and waste-hauling businesses.
- Nesbitt asked for the legislation to be steered to his committee after the bills overwhelmingly passed the House in April 2021 because, he said, “there’s lots of questions on these bills.”
- A year later, Nesbitt has not held any committee hearings on the proposed reforms.
It should be noted that Michigan has one of the lowest rates of waste being recycled – less than 20 percent. And the more solid waste that goes to recycling, the less that goes to landfills. And landfills charge by weight. But there’s even more in the bills that landfill owners find troubling, Ellison said.
“The bills as written would give local governments more control than they currently have over landfill hours of operation, design and aesthetics,” he said. “The waste management landfilling industry opposes that – they weren't happy that it survived the House process.”
In interviews with MLive, Nesbitt denied that donations played any role in him sitting on the legislation. Rather, he said, he has questions about “mandates and fees” that deserve attention.
OK, then – when and how will those questions be asked, debated and resolved? Only Nesbitt can say, and he isn’t saying publicly. And the bills will die when the current legislative session ends Dec. 31, so inaction in the Senate means this bipartisan reform effort is back to square one.
“It's one of those situations where you look at the outcome and you look at the facts involved,” Ellison said. “Here’s what everybody says, here's what happened, here's what the facts are. And that's essentially what we're trying to do with our story. Where it goes from here is hard to say.”
Until then, we’ll keep asking “why” questions, tracking money and trying to connect the dots.
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🎧 On this episode John Hiner and Eric Hultgren talk with Sheri McWhirter and Garret Ellison from MLive and Simon Schuster from MCFN about a recycling bill being held up by lobbyists. Listen here on Spotify.
John Hiner is the vice president of content for MLive Media Group. If you have questions you’d like him to answer, or topics to explore, share your thoughts at editor@mlive.com.