Subcommittee presses House fiscal analyst on boilerplate deletion that affects state employees who contact legislators

Members of the House General Government Subcommittee questioned the House Fiscal Agency analyst about deletion of boilerplate language (section 206) that, when included, prohibits departments from penalizing state employees for communicating with legislators or their staff.

Rep. Maddock and other members asked for clarity about whether state employees are required to record contacts with lawmakers and why the governor would seek to delete the provision. Michael Kassen said the deletion is an annual executive recommendation in the current-exec 'exact recheck' (executive request) and that the governor had deemed the section unenforceable; he said that some sections are deleted for that reason and the legislature has historically restored some boilerplate provisions.

When pressed about whether state employees must file reports after speaking with lawmakers (a constituent example was offered by a member who said Michigan State Police officers had told them they had to record legislator contacts), Kassen said he was not certain about the personnel reporting requirement and deferred to the executive branch for the statutory or administrative detail. Rep. Snider asked whether past governors had also declared the section unenforceable; Kassen said he did not believe past governors had always done so.

Members asked staff to follow up with executive-branch officials to clarify the intent behind the deletion and the practical effect on state employees’ interactions with lawmakers.

The subcommittee approved the minutes and adjourned.