The Michigan House Oversight Committee recently witnessed a candid exchange as Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson addressed issues plaguing the new portal for financial disclosures by elected officials. Benson’s testimony highlighted the technical challenges her department faced in modernizing the system.
Benson, representing the Democratic Party, took responsibility for the portal’s early setbacks, stating, “There are sometimes bumps in the road and things don’t go as smoothly as I would have liked.” She emphasized the complexity involved in overhauling outdated systems, remarking, “Transformational change does not happen easily. It is the harder path. But just because things are hard and difficult at first doesn’t mean we run away or sit on our hands and do nothing.”
The process of upgrading involved integrating 24 million data points from a system dating back 25 years, which Benson noted, “existed on a floppy disk,” into a contemporary platform. Acknowledging the difficulties, Benson assured that improvements to the Michigan Transparency Network (MiTN) are expected by next month, with the contractor already issuing a partial refund for the previous malfunctions.
Committee Chair Representative Jay Deboyer (R-Clay Township) voiced concerns about the decision to switch systems before resolving existing bugs. He stated, “It does not work in a manner that’s acceptable to the users,” and suggested that user dissatisfaction was widespread. Benson countered, asserting that her department maintained communication with users throughout the transition.
This portal is a crucial component of Michigan’s compliance with a political transparency amendment ratified by voters in 2022, which also revised legislative term limits.
Tensions are evident between House Republicans and Benson, as they are engaged in a legal dispute over a subpoena for election materials. Benson cautions that releasing these materials without redactions could compromise election security.
—
Read More Michigan News
