Governor Rick Snyder has signed a spending bill that includes more money to prosecute members of his administration for their roles in the Flint water crisis.
The $600,000 will go to state Attorney General Bill Schuette’s office. State Health and Human Services Department Director Nick Lyon and Chief Medical Executive Eden Wells are among those charged.
“It is paying for prosecutions," said Andrea Bitely with the attorney general’s office. "It is paying for expert witness fees. It is paying for travel expenses. It is paying for any number of things.”
The money comes from lawsuit settlements with the state.
Bitely says the attorney general’s office expects to spend as much as $7 million in total on the Flint investigation and prosecutions. That does not include money allotted for defense attorneys for Governor Snyder and other state officials.
“This is an open investigation involving the state of Michigan, and we want to make sure there is no question about the safety and security of the information that is being used in trial,” said Bitely.
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