Committee vote · prevailed · 17–0–0

Recorded committee decision

that the House Oversight Committee authorize the Chair of the committee to execute a subpoena for the testimony of Elizabeth Hertel, Director, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. 1. The information being sought is necessary to the work of the Committee because: The Legislature has a right to know information about the programs being implemented by the State of Michigan or one of its departments. Three subcommittees of the House Oversight Committee have been investigating a variety of issues regarding the operations of the Department of Health & Human Services. The Subcommittee on Child Welfare has spent several months investigating CPS-related issues and residential care issues. Despite many committee hearings on these issues, DHHS representatives have provided unsatisfactory answers to the House members’ questions, and have repeatedly stated that Director Hertel would be the better person to answer those questions. The Subcommittee on State & Local Assistance Programs has been investigating eligibility verification for assistance programs administered by DHHS. Representatives of DHHS have repeatedly stated that their current protocols for administering benefit applications are required by federal guidelines, but they have failed to identify which federal guidelines contain these requirements. DHHS representatives have also refused requests to testify before the subcommittee. Although those subcommittees have sought the cooperation of the DHHS in providing testimony and documents to the subcommittees, the DHHS has been resistant to adequate, timely, and transparent cooperation with the subcommittees. It appears that the DHHS is repeatedly stonewalling the House as its subcommittees seek to investigate these timely and important issues. 2. Previous efforts made to obtain the information being sought, without the issuance of a subpoena, are as follows: As I just stated, the subcommittees have repeatedly sought to engage with the DHHS without the issuance of a subpoena. In addition, Director Hertel was invited to testify on July 22, 2025. She responded that she was not available on July 22, or on July 29, 2025. She provided no date on which she would voluntarily make herself available to appear and testify before committee. 3. The party to be subpoenaed is Elizabeth Hertel, the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services. 4. The subpoena is for the witness to appear and testify before this committee on Tuesday, September 9, 2025.

Meeting date

Not recorded

Result

prevailed

Yeas

17

Nays

0

Validation

consistent

Related meeting

meeting-187

A committee motion is a proceeding-level decision. A named choice supports that individual vote only and does not establish continuous attendance.