Oakland County law committee debates codifying RLA requirements, 48‑hour notice and committee hearings

The Oakland County Legislature’s Law Committee discussed three governance items at its most recent meeting: a proposal from Legislator Conway to codify what programmatic information departments must supply in Requests for Legislative Action (RLA); a separate proposal from Legislator Graham (Resolution 92) to require 48 hours’ advance notice of materials for votes and to add a time‑pressured abstention clause; and a broader conversation about whether committees should hold longer or formal public hearings on select topics.

Legislator Conway, the designated prime sponsor of the RLA codification proposal, told the committee he drafted short standard requirements after meeting with County Executive staff and argued the change would “codify our practices and make it easier for us to make decisions.” He said departments currently vary widely in how much background they provide and that formal guidance would give legislators “critical information” going into committee.

The proposal drew opposition from the committee’s majority office. The committee’s Majority Counsel said the office amends the RLA form as needed and “does not want to be constrained by any codification of it because currently, we can ask for any information we want at any time we want.” Reedy (Legislator Reedy) also urged colleagues to oppose the measure, saying the majority’s office ensures efficiency and that…