State Rep. Rachelle Smit, R-Martin, on Tuesday released the following statement after the Michigan Department of State (MDOS) released another round of documents in response to a subpoena for information by the House Oversight Committee. Materials requested in the subpoena were due in full today. While some of the information appears to be new, it’s clear the new document dump does not come close to fulfilling the requests made within the subpoena:

“While we acknowledge the Department of State released new information today, there is no reason why Secretary Benson and her staff cannot fulfill the House’s subpoena in full today. For some baseless reason, they continue to release small batches of information and tout them as huge wins in transparency. It’s not transparency, it’s embarrassing.

“There are thousands of clerks in Michigan who have access to this information. Chair (Jay) DeBoyer and I had access to this information just a few years ago, yet Secretary Benson refuses to hand it over.

“This is nothing more than a delay tactic being used by someone who seems to be petrified the public will actually find out how she’s been training our clerks. The Legislature has a responsibility to review these materials to ensure our clerks are being properly trained. Any attempts to prevent that core legislative function amounts to nothing more than clear obstruction.”

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