Lawmakers hear push to give Great Lakes Water Authority police powers to protect water system

The House Committee on Regulatory Reform on Thursday heard testimony on a package of bills (HB 4352–4355) that would grant the Great Lakes Water Authority police powers to protect its drinking-water and wastewater facilities across southeast Michigan.

Supporters told the committee the authority oversees a geographically spread system that serves about 40% of Michigan residents for drinking water and about 30% for wastewater and that local law enforcement priorities and jurisdictional limits can leave critical infrastructure exposed.

William Wolfson, deputy chief executive officer of the Great Lakes Water Authority, told the committee, "we serve on the drinking water side approximately 40% of Michigan's population, 3,900,000 people that ingest in their bodies our product on a daily basis. On the wastewater side, we serve 2,800,000 people, approximately 30% of Michigan's population." Wolfson and other witnesses said the authority operates facilities across multiple counties, handles hazardous chemicals and conducts thousands of security patrols monthly; an advocate said the authority…