WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) joined a coalition of Democratic and Republican members of Michigan’s Congressional delegation to send a letter to House and Senate appropriations leadership requesting consistent funding for the Flint Registry to be included in the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bill.
The Flint Registry was created and funded by Congress in 2016 to respond to the Flint water crisis, identifying residents who were exposed to lead and connecting them with health care and other resources. Over time, the Flint Registry has become a model for addressing lead exposure and has assisted other affected communities across the country. The Registry has supported efforts to address the long-lasting behavioral and physical challenges Flint families face due to severe lead exposure – including cardiovascular and endocrine conditions, learning difficulties, and developmental deficits.
The letter to the U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committees is led by Congresswoman Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08) and signed by Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI).
The letter reads, in part, “The Flint Registry is a powerful tool to improve the lives of those exposed to lead-contaminated water. Flint’s water crisis is not an anomaly, it is a warning to other communities that we must get more serious about removing lead from our communities. As a built public health infrastructure asset, the Flint Registry continues to serve as a recovery model for impacted communities across the country that suffer disparately from preventable lead exposure.
“The CDC has described the Flint Registry as an “innovative, one-of-a kind Lead Exposure Registry, creating the model for the nation’s first lead-free city.” Since FY 2022, Congress has consistently provided $5 million in annual operations funding for the Flint Registry. Maintaining this level of funding in FY 2026 will ensure the Flint Registry can effectively deliver its existing programming and continue supporting the Flint community’s recovery from the water crisis.”
A copy of the letter can be found here.
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