News Archive
PLSG Symposium Focuses on Flint Crisis and the Limits of State Governments
10/03/2016
The Program on Law and State Government 2016 Fellows considered the Flint drinking water crisis as part of a larger conversation about state governments’ relationship with its poorest cities during the annual symposium. The event took place on September 30 at Inlow Hall.
The 2016 Fellows are Ryan Heeb and April Keaton.
Heeb, an IU McKinney 3L, approached the issue through the lens of the federal government. He shared his remarks titled, “The Limits of the Federal Government: Rethinking the Reliance of States on the Federal Government in Times of Crisis.” Heeb’s research explored possible changes that could increase state governments’ ability to respond to crises independently of federal government.
Keaton, a 3L evening student at IU McKinney, concentrated her studies on the relationships between Michigan state government, Flint city government, and private service providers in addressing the city’s budget issues in responding to the water crisis. Keaton’s remarks were titled “The Evolution of Cities as Economic Engines and Service Providers.”
The day’s first panel discussion addressed the topic, “The Making of the Flint Water Crisis: What Happened and Why?” Taking part in the talk were Professor Hannah Apps, an economics professor at Kalamazoo College and the vice mayor of Kalamazoo, Michigan; Professor Michelle Wilde Anderson of Stanford University, and Professor David Konisky of the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs in Bloomington.
The afternoon panel delved into the topic, “Lessons from Flint: Learning from the Crisis.” The panelists were Communications Director Courtney Arango of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), Professor Kristen Barnes of the University of Akron School of Law, Drinking Water Branch Chief Mary Hollingsworth of IDEM, and Professor Carlton Waterhouse of IU McKinney. Professor Waterhouse is director of the law school’s Environmental Energy and Natural Resources Program.
In addition to participating in the first panel discussion, Professor Anderson also delivered the program’s keynote address, titled, “Rethinking Responsibilities: Local Government and the Built Environment.”
The program also featured remarks from Professor Cynthia Baker, director of the Program on Law and State Government. Her talk, titled, “How Relevant are State Governments in Times of Crisis?” concluded the day’s proceedings.
In the photo from left are Professor Anderson, Mary Hollingsworth, Ryan Heeb, Professor Apps, Professor Waterhouse, April Keaton, Professor Baker, Professor Konisky, and Professor Barnes.
