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Snyder legacy badly tarnished by Flint water crisis

Although it took more than a year after the Flint water crisis bubbled to the surface, Gov. Rick Snyder late last week signed into law a bill that represents the first substantive policy change relating to the mess.

The new law, as reported by The Associated Press and other news outlets, mandates that utilities more quickly warn customers if there is too much lead in their water. The new deadline is three business days instead of 30 days.

Snyder, whose administration was swept up into the controversy, signed the measure in a Flint church. Snyder apologized — again — for the role his administration played in the crisis. Twelve people died from Legionnaires’ disease that also has been blamed on improperly treated water from the Flint River, AP reported.

An ongoing investigation has led to charges against 13 current or former government officials.

“This is an important step in our ongoing efforts to strengthen Michigan’s water quality and infrastructure,” said Snyder, on the occasion of the signing. We agree and would only observe that it’s a pity the state didn’t move faster to protect its citizens, once it was known that elevated levels of lead were present in the Flint water supply.

The purpose of this writing isn’t to rehash the sequence of events in Flint or restate charges and claims made against the state and governor as a result. It’s simply to observe that Snyder’s legacy, which was probably mixed at best in some people’s minds, has been forever tarnished by what happened in Flint.

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