Michigan Rep. Samantha Steckloff supports bringing the governor's office and Legislature under FOIA. Her platform also covers data centers, Medicaid funding, education, health care and water infrastructure.
House Bills 6299 and 6300 were introduced in Michigan on Aug. 27, 2026. The proposal would bring the governor's office and Legislature under the state's Freedom of Information Act.
Michigan residents still cannot use the state FOIA law to examine records from either office. Samantha Steckloff supports changing that system. She says public access to government records is needed for trust in state decisions and spending.
The Farmington Hills representative also links transparency to education affordability, health care access, infrastructure investment and tighter rules for economic development incentives. Those issues affect residents who rely on public schools, municipal services, roads, utilities and regional health programs.
FOIA bills remain stalled
Michigan is often described as one of only two states where both the state Legislature and the governor's office remain outside the state FOIA system. The law, codified at MCL 15.231 et seq., generally gives requesters access to most public records held by public bodies after a written request, according to the Michigan Attorney General. The Legislature and governor's office remain notable exemptions.
The bills are stalled in the House Government Operations Committee. Related legislation passed the Michigan Senate in 2025. The stalled status means the proposed expansion has not changed how residents, journalists or advocacy groups seek records from state lawmakers and the governor's office.
Steckloff supports covering both offices. Residents, she argues, should be able to examine how public decisions are made and how tax dollars are spent. Farmington Hills residents regularly engage with local boards and city government. The issue raises a wider question about access to public information at every level.
That question also reaches financial disclosure. Voters approved disclosure requirements for state office holders and candidates, and Steckloff considers the change meaningful. She is open to refining the law so disclosures remain clear, useful and accessible while preserving the vote's intent.
Guardrails for data centers
Steckloff supports attracting large-scale data centers to Michigan only when projects follow environmental and energy rules and work with the communities where they would be built. She would tie incentives to protections against higher electric rates, safeguards for water resources and measurable local benefits.
Local governments would keep siting authority under her approach. Steckloff does not support removing local control over land-use decisions. Each project should meet Michigan standards before moving forward. Zoning, site-plan review and public participation would remain with the municipalities that assess development proposals.
The same test applies to economic development policy. Steckloff supports incentives that help Michigan compete for businesses. She wants clear public reporting and measurable returns, including good-paying jobs, long-term investment and stronger local economies. She also points to the skilled workforce when the state weighs whether a project delivers value for taxpayers.
The standard is simple.
Medicaid funding and health care
Michigan faces major federal Medicaid funding pressures after the 2025 adoption of President Trump's Big Beautiful Bill. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer proposed higher taxes on tobacco and vape products, along with a tax on digital advertising. Legislators did not act on those proposals.
Steckloff has supported responsible revenue measures in the past. She says she would consider similar options if they protect Medicaid access. Her preference is to examine fair and sustainable revenue sources rather than reduce services for people who rely on care. Any changes would affect the state budget, health systems and county-level services that help residents navigate coverage.
Health care is one of her three leading priorities. She wants to advance drug-price transparency legislation, expand access to fertility care, reduce pharmaceutical costs and protect Medicaid and Medicare from cuts. Her work with the Michigan Fertility Alliance and Gilda's Club of Metro Detroit is part of a public profile that also includes local party organizations.
The Medicaid debate also connects to public accountability. As earlier water reporting has shown, essential systems can cost more to maintain than one budget cycle can cover. Steckloff's platform puts health care and infrastructure in that same category of long-term public responsibility.
Education and infrastructure priorities
Education is another top priority. Steckloff wants to build on Michigan's free community college program by closing affordability gaps and increasing support for dual enrollment and career and technical education. She also supports continuing free breakfast and lunch programs and investing in the services students need.
At the local level, the Farmington Public Schools Board remains an important public forum for questions about student services, district finances and the implementation of state education policy. Steckloff's proposals would require legislative action and funding. Local school boards would continue handling district decisions within state requirements.
Her infrastructure agenda focuses on water systems and the modernization of community networks. The available material does not identify a specific project or funding amount. It does establish water infrastructure as the central focus of her proposed investments. Local governments, the Oakland County administration and regional utility partners would remain involved in planning and financing work that crosses municipal boundaries.
Residents in the City of Farmington and the City of Farmington Hills deal with separate municipal governments. Each has its own public meetings, records and local decision-making processes. State-level FOIA expansion would not replace those systems. It could set a more consistent transparency standard for records held by the governor's office and Legislature.
Steckloff accepted the certified results of the 2020 presidential election. State and federal authorities verified those results, and courts upheld them. She views respect for the results as necessary to maintaining confidence in democratic institutions.
Steckloff's public record
Steckloff holds a bachelor's degree in political science. She serves in the Michigan House after previously serving on the Farmington Hills City Council. She presents more than a decade of public service as evidence that she helped secure investments in education, expand health care access and obtain road funding.
Her record and agenda give voters a specific choice rather than a general promise of reform. That choice includes opening the Legislature and governor's office to FOIA requests, keeping local governments involved in data-center siting and requiring economic incentives to produce measurable benefits. Her education, health care and infrastructure priorities are substantial. They still depend on legislative action and funding.
Access and results are closely linked in Steckloff's argument. A government asking taxpayers to support incentives, Medicaid decisions, school programs and water investments should also accept meaningful scrutiny of those choices. Her platform is strongest where it pairs new spending or revenue with public disclosure and measurable obligations. The stalled FOIA bills show that the transparency she supports remains unfinished business in Michigan.
