Flint, Michigan, held in contempt by federal judge for missing deadlines to replace lead pipes at center of water crisis

A federal judge has held the city of Flint, Michigan, in civil contempt for failing to meet deadlines imposed last year in a court order outlining steps to replace lead service lines that contributed to city residents being exposed to dangerously high levels of lead.

A federal judge has held the city of Flint, Michigan, in civil contempt for failing to meet deadlines imposed last year in a court order outlining steps to replace lead service lines that contributed to city residents being exposed to dangerously high levels of lead. The ruling Tuesday comes nearly seven years after the city entered into a settlement agreement, which included a commitment to replace the lead lines to Flint residences by 2020 and to repair property damage to sidewalks, curbs and driveways caused by the work. The city, however, has repeatedly failed to meet deadlines, prompting US Judge David Lawson to issue an order finding the city had not complied with a February 2023 order to enforce the agreement, citing evidence presented at a June court hearing and in subsequent filings. “Based on the evidence, it is apparent that the City has failed to abide by the Court’s orders in several respects, and that it has no good reason for its failures,” Lawson wrote. “The City has demonstrated belated compliance since the hearing, but even now, it has not actually replaced all of the lead service lines, which it originally promised to replace by March 28, 2020. The City is in civil contempt of the Court’s order.” The judge’s order Tuesday allows the plaintiffs – including such groups as Concerned Pastors for Social Action, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan and the Natural Resources Defense Council – to recover attorneys fees and other expenses stemming from the contempt proceedings.