From:  
To:  
James Gallant  
MDOS-Elections-PublicComment; MOAHR-Rules; jcar@legislature.mi.gov; MDOS-Canvassers;  
senemcbroom@senate.michigan.gov; Rep. Jenn Hill (District 109); Rep. Joe Tate (District 10);  
sensecretary@senate.michigan.gov; Paul Burns; Secretary Jocelyn Benson; Benson, Jocelyn (MDOS); Brater,  
Jonathan (MDOS); Michigan Attorney General; director@legislature.mi.gov; gurewitzme@michigan.gov;  
Houskamp, Richard (MDOS-Contractor); Daunt, Anthony (MDOS-Contractor); Bradshaw, Jeannette (MDOS-  
Contractor); Fracassi, Adam (MDOS)  
Subject:  
Date:  
Re: Public Comment_Pending Ruleset #2024-35 ST (Board State Canvassers)_10-01-2024  
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 11:19:11 AM  
CAUTION: This is an External email. Please send suspicious emails to  
[email protected]  
MDOS-Elections-Public Comment_Pending Ruleset #2024-35 ST. (10-01-2024)  
JCAR Chair, Heather Meingast(MI-AG), & MI Dept. of State - Regulatory Affairs Officer,  
Please require the MI Board of State Canvassers (BSC) to cancel their upcoming Public  
Hearing on 10-11-2024 for including apparent false statements on their application for Ruleset  
2024-35 ST [AND] require them to reschedule a Public Hearing after amending their  
application to correct their statements that they 'are not' changing any of the current rules,  
when in fact they are attempting to change the Public Comment portion (Rule#5) to eliminate  
the current opportunity for "Public Comment" during 'every item on the agenda' - including a  
General Public Comment.  
Also, the Open Meetings Act (OMA) requires an opportunity for "reasonable" Public  
Comment under approved rules and the Discretion of the Chair or any other vague language  
"is not" an approved rule for a specific amount of time to provide Public Comments.  
The BSC stated they're only updating rules because of current statutory language, new contact  
addresses, timeframe for filing some paperwork, etc.  
I believe the BSC deliberately filed false statements on the application to deny any specific  
Public Comments about these rules changes and to deceive the Pubic & JCAR concerning the  
currently approved Public Comment Rules at BSC Public Meetings.  
Thank you, James Gallant, Marquette County Suicide Prevention Coalition  
On Thu, Sep 26, 2024, 3:03 PM MDOS-Elections-PublicComment <MDOS-Elections-  
[email protected]> wrote:  
Hello Mr. Galant,  
The Administrative Rules Division of the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and  
Rules indicated you contacted their office with some questions and asked that we reach out  
to you regarding Pending Ruleset #2024-35 ST. Please send any questions you have about  
the public hearing, and any public comments about the rules themselves, to this email  
address.  
Thank you.  
From:  
To:  
James Gallant  
MDOS-Elections-PublicComment; MDOS-Canvassers; Michigan Attorney General; jcar@legislature.mi.gov; Doyle,  
Michael (MDOS); Brater, Jonathan (MDOS)  
Cc:  
senemcbroom@senate.michigan.gov; Rep. Jenn Hill (District 109); Rep. Joe Tate (District 10);  
sensecretary@senate.michigan.gov; Paul Burns  
Subject:  
Date:  
MI BSC_Ruleset#2024-35ST Public Hearing_Public Comment_10-11-2024  
Thursday, October 10, 2024 3:15:15 PM  
Attachments:  
9_17_20_AM_ICRC_Meeting_Transcript_HR.PDF  
CAUTION: This is an External email. Please send suspicious emails to  
[email protected]  
MI Board of State Canvassers,  
Please consider amending your current application for Administrative Rules Making (Ruleset  
#2024-35ST) by including the Common Law - Parliamentary Procedures for the ethical  
conduct of business at Public Meetings under the Michigan Constitution as determined by Dir.  
Legal Services for MDOS, Mike Brady, on 09-17-2020 (MI Independent Citizens  
Redistricting Commission (MICRC) transcript attached Pg. 25-28).  
While Secretary of State Benson was presiding over the MICRC (before electing a Chairman),  
Mike Brady instructed them and her that they must follow the Roberts Rules of Order (RRNR)  
- citing four (4) specific fundamental principles as a high level overview (a.k.a. Common Law  
- Parliamentary Procedure);  
1.) A "Motion" with a proper "Second" brings the Business before the Public Body_Then  
comes Full Debate & Discussion (and) Then members can Vote. (RRNR Pg. 366/Ln. 8: Rules  
Incident to Debate).  
2.) Members have a right to "Point of Order" (RRNR Pg. 233).  
3.) Members have a right to "Point of Information" (RRNR Pg. 275).  
4.) Members have a right to "Point of Personal Privilege". (RRNR Pg. 212).  
Please consider approving a formal written request for the MI State Personnel Director to  
create a State of Michigan approved training for the BSC and other Public Bodies that's  
consistent with Roberts Rules of Order, Newly Revised (2020) to clarify the parts of RRNR  
that currently "apply" and "do not apply" to Public Bodies in Michigan under the Constitution  
as "Common Law - Parliamentary Procedure".  
Also,  
* Please "do not" change the current Public Comment rules that allow Public Comments on  
every agenda item and an additional general comment.  
* Please set the Public Comment time limit at four (4) minutes per person - per comment. That  
seems reasonable!  
* Please formally request MI Attorney General, Dana Nessel, to issue a formal written legal  
opinion concerning Robert's Rules of Order being required at Public Meetings of Public  
Bodies in Michigan while considering Mike Brady's statements to Secretary Benson and  
MICRC on 09-17-2020 and other Parliamentary Law resources, including RRNR & Mason's  
Rules.  
Thank you, James Gallant, Marquette County Suicide Prevention Coalition  
09/17/2020  
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12· ·MICHIGAN REDISTRICTING COMMISSION MORNING SESSION  
13· · · · · · · · SEPTEMBER 17, 2020  
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·1· ·Remote meeting  
·2· ·Held on September 17, 2020  
·3· ·Morning Session  
·4  
·5· · · · ·  
10· · · · · · · ·Good morning to the commissioners and the  
11· ·public watching.· If you can give us one second to get  
12· ·our slides to show not in the presenter mode, but just  
13· ·in the kind of normal mirror mode, we will get started.  
14· ·While we're doing that, let me just quickly say that my  
15· ·name is Sally Marsh, and I am the director of special  
16· ·projects as the Michigan Department of State.· And, you  
17· ·know, I want -- this is a perfect point to say that we  
18· ·appreciate your patience and understanding as we operate  
19· ·this public meeting virtually for the first time.· I'm  
20· ·sure there will be hiccups, as we're experiencing right  
21· ·now, just to make sure we can make everything, you know,  
22· ·view and work correctly.· But we will do our best to  
23· ·adjust and accommodate members of the public and the  
24· ·commission as we go.  
25· · · · · · · ·Before Secretary Benson officially calls  
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·1· ·this meeting to order and while we are figuring out how  
·2· ·to best view our Power Point slides, I will go over a  
·3· ·few virtual logistics for this meeting for the public  
·4· ·who is watching today.· We will briefly review the  
·5· ·agenda and answer any remaining administrative  
·6· ·questions.· This may take anywhere around ten minutes,  
·7· ·but just want to be thorough and make sure everyone is  
·8· ·able to participate today.  
·9· · · · · · · ·So, first of all, a couple of notes about  
10· ·the livestream.· This Zoom webinar is being livestreamed  
11· ·to Facebook and to YouTube.· That looks great, Cathleen.  
12· ·Awesome.· So for anyone in the public watching, if you  
13· ·would prefer to view via a different platform than what  
14· ·you're currently using, please visit our social media  
15· ·@RedistrictingMI or our website  
16· ·redistrictingmichigan.org to find the link for either  
17· ·viewing on YouTube or Facebook.  
18· · · · · · · ·Our livestream today includes closed  
19· ·captioning.· You may already see that we have an ALS  
20· ·interpreter and ALS interpretation available for this  
21· ·meeting.· If you're a member of the public who would  
22· ·like easier viewing options for the ASL interpreter on  
23· ·your screen, please email us at  
24· ·[email protected], and we will provide you with  
25· ·additional viewing options.· If we could go to the next  
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·1· ·screen -- the next slide.· Similarly, members of the  
·2· ·public who are limited English speaking and who would  
·3· ·like to access translation services during this webinar  
·4· ·can also email us at [email protected] for  
·5· ·details on how to access language translation services  
·6· ·for this meeting.· They are available in both Spanish  
·7· ·and Arabic.· Please email us and we will provide you  
·8· ·with a unique link and call in information.  
·9· · · · · · · ·This meeting is being recorded and will be  
10· ·available as redistrictingmichigan.org for viewing at a  
11· ·later date.· This meeting is also being transcribed, and  
12· ·those transcriptions will be made available and posted  
13· ·on redistrictingmichigan.org along with public comment  
14· ·submissions.· Members of the media who may have  
15· ·questions before, during, or after the meeting should  
16· ·contact Tracy Whimmer (sic) and direct those questions  
17· ·to her, the media relations director at the Department  
18· ·of State.· You all should have her contact information,  
19· ·if you're a member of the media.  
20· · · · · · · ·So briefly before Secretary Benson convenes  
21· ·the meeting, we'll talk through the agenda for the next  
22· ·few days so that people know what's coming.· And,  
23· ·Commissioners, you'll have the opportunity to ask any  
24· ·administrative questions before we move on.· Yeah.  
25· ·Thank you.· If we can go to the next slide -- perfect.  
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·1· ·So the full agenda can be viewed at  
·2· ·redistrictingmichigan.org.· Today and tomorrow you will  
·3· ·hear from academic and elections experts about some of  
·4· ·the key concepts and tasks ahead of you.· This is an  
·5· ·introduction and an orientation.· Hopefully it's helpful  
·6· ·as you begin your work.· You'll begin making decisions  
·7· ·as a group and getting to know one another.· So just  
·8· ·briefly to touch on each of these sessions this morning.  
·9· ·Once Secretary Benson convenes the meeting, we will  
10· ·listen to public comment.· You will take the oath of  
11· ·office.· You'll introduce yourself to one another and  
12· ·elect and acting chair, someone to lead the group  
13· ·through the remainder of the two-day session.  
14· · · · · · · ·This afternoon you will begin an  
15· ·introduction and dialogue about your role as a  
16· ·commissioner and the requirements of the constitution.  
17· ·Tomorrow morning you will hear more about the basics of  
18· ·redistricting and transparency expectations outlined in  
19· ·the amendment.· And then, finally, tomorrow afternoon  
20· ·you'll make your initial decisions as a group on how to  
21· ·proceed with initial next steps, including when you will  
22· ·meet next.  
23· · · · · · · ·Don't worry, although these are two packed  
24· ·days, you'll have off-camera breaks throughout.· We hope  
25· ·to have breaks in today's agenda, as indicated on the  
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·1· ·slide that you can see in front of you.· We'll be  
·2· ·flexible with that as we move forward.· You'll have  
·3· ·breaks generally in between presentations to stretch  
·4· ·your legs and refresh your coffee, and that goes for the  
·5· ·members of the public as well.  
·6· · · · · · · ·So you'll see on this agenda and on the  
·7· ·agenda for the upcoming sessions as well that at the  
·8· ·beginning and the end of each day, there will be a  
·9· ·period of public comments.· So a few notes about public  
10· ·comments for this two-day session.· Because this is a  
11· ·virtual meeting, members of the public had to sign up in  
12· ·advance to submit public comment to the commission.  
13· ·Many members of the public submitted written public  
14· ·comment, and some signed up to address the commission  
15· ·live during this meeting.· Written public comment will  
16· ·be included as part of the permanent record of this  
17· ·convening.· If you would like to submit your thoughts to  
18· ·the commission and you haven't yet, or participate in  
19· ·public comment in an upcoming session, you can fill out  
20· ·a form that's posted on your social media sites  
21· ·@RedistrictingMI on Facebook and on Twitter.· You can  
22· ·also email our office [email protected] with  
23· ·the subject line, "Public Comments," and we will provide  
24· ·your written thoughts to the commission and part of the  
25· ·record of this convening.· There are a total of four  
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·1· ·sessions of live public comment.· So if you didn't sign  
·2· ·up for this morning session, the good news is you still  
·3· ·have time to sign up for a later date.  
·4· · · · · · · ·Now, I'd like to address meeting attendees  
·5· ·who will participating in live public comment today, or  
·6· ·people who are considering participating in live public  
·7· ·comment in future sessions.· Let me just tell you  
·8· ·briefly what to expect.· Our staff the at the Department  
·9· ·of State will unmute each member of the public for up to  
10· ·90 seconds each on a first-come, first-serve basis.  
11· ·That's in the order for which people sign up to address  
12· ·the commission.· Once the public comment portion of the  
13· ·meeting starts, I will call your name and our staff will  
14· ·unmute you.· If you're on a computer, you will be  
15· ·prompted by the Zoom application to unmute your  
16· ·microphone and speak.· If you're on the phone, a voice  
17· ·will say that the host would like you to speak and  
18· ·prompt you to press star six in order to unmute.· I will  
19· ·call on you by name or by the last four digits of your  
20· ·phone number.  
21· · · · · · · ·Also, please note that if you do have audio  
22· ·issues and we don't hear from you for three to five  
23· ·seconds, we will then move on to the next person in  
24· ·line, and then return to you once they are done speaking  
25· ·to see if you are able to speak at that point.· But if  
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·1· ·your audio still doesn't work, you can email us again at  
·2· ·Redistricting@Michigan.gov.· We will help you  
·3· ·troubleshoot.· And the good news is that today and this  
·4· ·morning, this is the first day, so there are still  
·5· ·opportunities in the future if you -- if your audio  
·6· ·doesn't work the first time.  
·7· · · · · · · ·A reminder to all public comment  
·8· ·participants, whether written or live speaking comment,  
·9· ·this is an opportunity to address the commission on the  
10· ·record.· Commissioners will listen and take notes.· This  
11· ·is not a Q and A, but it is an opportunity to provide  
12· ·your thoughts and your feedback.· Again, please note you  
13· ·will have no more than 90 seconds to address the  
14· ·commission.· And I will let you know when your time has  
15· ·lapsed and ask that you quickly conclude or finish your  
16· ·sentence before moving on.  
17· · · · · · · ·At approximately 9:30 we will transition to  
18· ·public comments.· Again, if you'd like to submit your  
19· ·thoughts to the commission either in writing or via live  
20· ·public comment, you can find the form at  
21· ·@RedistrictingMI on Facebook and on Twitter.· You can  
22· ·also email our office, once again at  
23· ·[email protected] and we will -- with the  
24· ·subject line, "Public Comment," and we will provide your  
25· ·written thoughts to the commission.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·Are there any questions from the  
·2· ·commissioners about these administrative logistics?  
·3· · · · · · · ·If you could go on to the next slide.· Just  
·4· ·to recap for those who may just be joining us in the  
·5· ·public, wanted to be sure I mentioned this one more  
·6· ·time, that we have closed captioning available for this  
·7· ·livestream.· And, again, if you're viewing on a  
·8· ·livestream platform and you'd prefer a different one, we  
·9· ·are live streaming to both Facebook and to YouTube.· You  
10· ·can find those links on our website or our social media  
11· ·platforms @RedistrictingMI.· And then similarly we --  
12· ·you may notice that we have ALS interpretation available  
13· ·for this meeting.· If you're a member of the public  
14· ·watching who would like easier viewing options for the  
15· ·ASL interpreter on your screen, please email us and we  
16· ·will provide you with additional information on how to  
17· ·access those viewing options.· Members of the public who  
18· ·are limited English speaking and who would like to  
19· ·access translation services during the webinar can email  
20· ·us, [email protected], for details on how to  
21· ·access language translation services.· They are  
22· ·available in both Spanish and in Arabic.· Let me just  
23· ·check now.  
24· · · · · · · ·Again, to members of the public watching,  
25· ·very much appreciate your patience and -- and your  
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·1· ·understanding as we endeavor to have this first meeting  
·2· ·publically via Zoom and with all of these options  
·3· ·available.· And if there are -- are there any questions  
·4· ·from the commissioners?· Wonderful.· Okay.· Let me see.  
·5· ·I think we might have some technical difficulties  
·6· ·getting Secretary Benson on the line, but let me look  
·7· ·here.· And for those who might be utilizing the Spanish  
·8· ·translation line, we are verifying right now to make  
·9· ·sure that you can still -- you can hear us and that you  
10· ·can hear the translation.· So if everyone can just give  
11· ·me a moment there, that would be great.· Again,  
12· ·appreciate your patience.  
13· · · · · · · ·And while we're waiting to make sure we have  
14· ·all of the technology working and that everyone is able  
15· ·to join us, I'll just briefly talk again for those who  
16· ·might just be joining us about what's on the agenda this  
17· ·morning.· Again, the full agenda orientation materials  
18· ·and resources, many different resources, are available  
19· ·at redistrictingmichigan.org.· This morning's session  
20· ·will include a call to order from Secretary Benson, who  
21· ·will officially call the meeting to order shortly.· It  
22· ·will include covering some meeting logistics.· The  
23· ·commissioners will able to take their oath of office.  
24· ·Then, the commissioners will have the opportunity to  
25· ·introduce themselves to each other and to the public.  
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·1· ·And then the commission will have the community to elect  
·2· ·an acting chair for the remaining portion of the two-day  
·3· ·session to help facilitate their -- the remainder of  
·4· ·their agenda.· And just seeing that attendees can hear  
·5· ·the Spanish translation line if they select that option  
·6· ·once they get into the Zoom webinar.· So that is good to  
·7· ·hear.· Sounds like it's working.  
·8· · · · · · · ·And I think we should -- we're having brief  
·9· ·technical difficulties.· Just give me one second.  
10· ·Thanks again to everyone in the public who is watching  
11· ·and who is bearing with us as we figure this out this  
12· ·morning.· We are, I think, all familiar with the -- with  
13· ·the advantages, and also the challenges of these virtual  
14· ·meetings in this era, so if you can just give us one  
15· ·moment.· Want to make sure that -- it looks like we  
16· ·might be able to -- all right.· I think --  
17· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Hi, everyone.  
18· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Hi, Secretary Benson.· Can you  
19· ·see us and hear us?  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· I can.· Thank you,  
21· ·everyone, for your patience.· Wonderful to see you all.  
22· ·Hi.· Sally, let me know when I can -- if you want me  
23· ·to --  
24· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· You're ready to go.· Good to go.  
25· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Well, good morning and  
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·1· ·thank you for being part of this really extraordinary  
·2· ·moment in our state's history.· It's wonderful to see  
·3· ·you all and welcome you to the inaugural meeting of  
·4· ·Michigan's first independent citizens redistricting  
·5· ·commission.· This is a historic day.· And it's such an  
·6· ·honor to be a part of it with all of you.· And I have  
·7· ·such gratitude for each of you who have stepped up,  
·8· ·who've been a part of this process already, and for the  
·9· ·work ahead.· You are a literally going to draw  
10· ·Michigan's future, and the decisions you will make in  
11· ·the next year throughout your tenure will impact every  
12· ·citizen in this state for years to come.· So thank you  
13· ·for your willingness to serve and be a part of a moment  
14· ·that will have great, positive rewards, not just for our  
15· ·state, but for our entire country.  
16· · · · · · · ·As the secretary without a vote on the  
17· ·commission and in accordance with the constitutional  
18· ·obligations set forth in Article IV Section 6 of -- in  
19· ·subsection seven of the Michigan state constitution, I  
20· ·call this first convening to order.· And I would like to  
21· ·first formally welcome each of the 13 commissioners  
22· ·convened virtually here today.· You will hear from me  
23· ·this morning, but by the end of our session this  
24· ·morning, you will make your first decision as a team and  
25· ·select your chair.· The acting chair will be elected by  
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·1· ·all of you.· And you will also then make a series of  
·2· ·decisions as a team at the end of this two-day meeting  
·3· ·to guide the direction of your work moving forward.· And  
·4· ·with that said, it's an honor to be the first to say  
·5· ·directly to all of you convened today that you have not  
·6· ·just an incredible opportunity ahead of you, but also an  
·7· ·extraordinary responsibility.· This process has been  
·8· ·citizen led from start to finish in a really tremendous,  
·9· ·extraordinary way.· And each of you now have the eyes of  
10· ·the State on you, the millions of citizens who organized  
11· ·to create this commission to make it a reality.· And  
12· ·with the aspiration that 13 people just like you would  
13· ·be selected to serve in these critically important  
14· ·positions at this critically important moment.· You have  
15· ·been, as you know, randomly selected through multiple  
16· ·processes out of a pool that ultimately had close to ten  
17· ·thousand Michigan citizens from across the state.· And  
18· ·your work will fulfill the calls for fair districting  
19· ·that led millions of citizens to vote to create this  
20· ·commission in 2018.· And so with that responsibility, to  
21· ·draw the district lines for your fellow citizens, the  
22· ·congressional level, at the state legislative, at the  
23· ·state Senate level, I know that you are up to the task  
24· ·and you will continue this task in a fair, transparent,  
25· ·nonpartisan and bipartisan way.· I know and we know from  
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·1· ·talking with each of you that you've seen the importance  
·2· ·of the independence of your work, the citizen focus of  
·3· ·your work in the weeks ahead you will be, and I'm sure  
·4· ·you already have been, inundated with information and  
·5· ·requests, and hopefully a lot of citizen input to help  
·6· ·guide the decisions you'll be making.· And, of course,  
·7· ·you will be expected to engage and involve the public in  
·8· ·the decisions you make and do it all in the sunlight of  
·9· ·open meetings.· So through your work in the coming year,  
10· ·you will create and set an example, not just for how  
11· ·citizen-led redistricting will occur in Michigan this  
12· ·decade, but how it will occur for years to come.· Every  
13· ·action you take, every vote you make, every decision  
14· ·that you enter into will ultimately create a precedent  
15· ·for every future independent citizen for redistricting  
16· ·commission as well.· And so I impress that upon you that  
17· ·certainly been something that's been part of our work as  
18· ·we work to get to this point knowing that the decisions  
19· ·we make are not just about this year or this moment or  
20· ·this decade, but about how this commission will operate  
21· ·for years to come.  
22· · · · · · · ·And then with that, I'll also underscore  
23· ·that this goes beyond Michigan.· Other states,  
24· ·particularly in the Midwest, will be watching the work  
25· ·that you do and will work to ensure that you are being  
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·1· ·an example to all of them as they seek to decide whether  
·2· ·to go down this path as well for citizen-led  
·3· ·redistricting as an antidote to the, frankly, you know,  
·4· ·quite toxic hyper partisan political environment that we  
·5· ·all find ourselves in, in many ways.· So this is a  
·6· ·momentous opportunity for you all to demonstrate to the  
·7· ·country that fair citizen-led redistricting can be a  
·8· ·antiseptic and an antidote to the moment that we're in,  
·9· ·and can -- through engaging and empowering citizens of  
10· ·every background, on every perspective, all political  
11· ·sides, we can collectively through, deliberation and  
12· ·collaboration, come up with a decision that in this  
13· ·instance will lead to the creation fair maps for our  
14· ·state legislature and our members of Congress.  
15· · · · · · · ·And I'll close by just emphasizing that, as  
16· ·you know, Michigan's only the second state in the nation  
17· ·to do something like this, to have randomly selected  
18· ·citizens draw district lines.· And one of only a few  
19· ·state legislators are not involved in the process and  
20· ·not responsible for drawing district lines.· And so it  
21· ·is not a hyperbole to say the eyes of the nation will be  
22· ·on you.· The eyes of our citizens certainly already are.  
23· ·And I'm just so grateful that each of you stepped up to  
24· ·serve in light of all that willingness to be a part of  
25· ·history, and also embrace the importance of your role,  
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·1· ·the historic part -- the historic importance of your  
·2· ·role in the weeks and months ahead.  
·3· · · · · · · ·So my role moving forward, again, is very  
·4· ·much the secretary without a vote.· The Michigan  
·5· ·constitution states that the secretary of state is the  
·6· ·secretary of the commission without a vote.· And in that  
·7· ·capacity, I shall furnace, under your direction, all  
·8· ·technical services that you deem necessary.· My staff  
·9· ·and I are committed to serving and supporting your  
10· ·efforts through providing secretarial administrative  
11· ·assistance to simply enable you all to do your work.· We  
12· ·will work only at your direction here on out.· You are  
13· ·all autonomous.· You are independent.· You are  
14· ·independent governing body.· And you are able to make  
15· ·decisions without approval beyond the consensus of your  
16· ·fellow commissioners and colleagues.· You do not have to  
17· ·be importantly experts and to know all -- or are you  
18· ·expected to know all of the answers to the questions  
19· ·discussed today or tomorrow or in the weeks ahead.  
20· ·Michigan voters called for this change where  
21· ·intentionally redistricting experts and political  
22· ·insiders are not the decision makers you are.· And I'm  
23· ·sure if you have a question or concern, at least one of  
24· ·your fellow commissioners or your fellow Michigan  
25· ·citizens watching will have that same question or  
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·1· ·concern, so speak up on their behalf.· Raise that  
·2· ·question, raise that concern, ask for clarification, and  
·3· ·engage the voices that you choose to engage on behalf of  
·4· ·the citizens, the millions of citizens throughout the  
·5· ·state that you now represent.  
·6· · · · · · · ·In just a moment, we're going to transition  
·7· ·to public comment.· And after hearing from the public,  
·8· ·you will take the oath of office to serve as a public  
·9· ·official in the State of Michigan and a commissioner on  
10· ·our first citizen redistricting commission.· We'll then  
11· ·discuss a few additional housekeeping pieces.· We'll  
12· ·have a quick break.· And then you will have the  
13· ·opportunity to introduce yourselves to one another and  
14· ·to the public and elect an acting chair.· But, first,  
15· ·we're going to take roll call.  
16· · · · · · · ·So I will at this point read out the  
17· ·purposes of public watching and for public record our  
18· ·Department of State staff will take note of the  
19· ·commissioners present.· And so I'm going to turn it back  
20· ·to Sally Marsh to conduct the roll call.· When your name  
21· ·is called, please unmute and say present.  
22· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you, Secretary Benson.  
23· ·Okay.· Anthony Eid.  
24· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Here.  
25· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Brittni Kellom.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Present.  
·2· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Cynthia Orton.  
·3· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Present.  
·4· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Douglas Clark.  
·5· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· Present.  
·6· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Erin Wagner.  
·7· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WAGNER:· Present.  
·8· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· James or Ed Decker.  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· Present.  
10· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Janice Vallette.  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER VALLETTE:· Present.  
12· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Juanita Curry.  
13· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CURRY:· Present.  
14· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· MC Rothhorn.  
15· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Present.  
16· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Rhonda Lange.  
17· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LANGE:· Present.  
18· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Richard Weiss.  
19· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WEISS:· Present.  
20· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Steven Lett.  
21· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Present.  
22· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· All commissioners are present.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Wonderful.· And we'll now  
24· ·open the floor to public comment for members of the  
25· ·public who signed up to participate for today's section.  
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·1· ·And for anyone just joining us, a few reminders about  
·2· ·the public comment for this two-day session.· There will  
·3· ·be multiple opportunities for public comment.· And to  
·4· ·those members of the public participating in public  
·5· ·comment, please note that you will have no more than 90  
·6· ·seconds to address the commission this morning.· Because  
·7· ·this is a virtual meeting, members of the public had to  
·8· ·sign up in advance to address the commission.· And if  
·9· ·you would like to submit your thoughts to the commission  
10· ·or participate in public comment in an upcoming session,  
11· ·and, again, there will be three more opportunities in  
12· ·the next two days for public comment, you can fill out  
13· ·the form posted at redistrictingmichigan.org, or go to  
14· ·Facebook or Twitter and go @RedistrictingMI and complete  
15· ·a form there.· You can also email  
16· ·[email protected] to submit your interest in  
17· ·public comment.· And we will provide your written  
18· ·submission to the commission.  
19· · · · · · · ·Now, I would like to recognize Sally Marsh  
20· ·again who will call on members of the public to address  
21· ·the commission.  
22· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you, Secretary Benson.  
23· ·Individuals who signed up and indicated they would like  
24· ·to provide live public commentary to the commission can  
25· ·now -- will now be allowed to do so.· For this initial  
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·1· ·period of public comment, there is one member of the  
·2· ·public who would like to address the commission live. I  
·3· ·will call on your name in just a moment.· So first in  
·4· ·line to provide public comment is Nancy Weng.· Please  
·5· ·allow a moment for our staff to unmute you.  
·6· · · · · · · ·You are now unmuted and invited to address  
·7· ·the commission for 90 seconds.  
·8· · · · · · · ·MS. WENG:· Hello.· Congratulations and thank  
·9· ·you.· I'm Nancy Weng, executive director and one of the  
10· ·original Voters Not Politicians.· We were the Grassroots  
11· ·group of regular Michiganders who came together,  
12· ·starting in 2017, to find a solution, a nonpartisan  
13· ·solution, to end the decades of extreme partisan  
14· ·gerrymandering that's wrapped our state.· And, you know,  
15· ·we started with 33 town halls and 33 days, which is the  
16· ·handful of Michiganders who traveled the state to talk  
17· ·with others who shared our concern, and see what kind of  
18· ·solution we could craft for the State of Michigan that  
19· ·was tailored to us and that would give us, you know, the  
20· ·ideal of fair and impartial transparent citizen-led  
21· ·redistricting.· And now to see our vision come to  
22· ·fruition in you and all of you is really -- it's an  
23· ·indescribable feeling and it's a dream come true.· We  
24· ·know that you have a great task ahead of you that you've  
25· ·been charged with drawing our district election lines  
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·1· ·through a very fair and impartial and commissioned -- a  
·2· ·community-driven process.· But we want you to know that  
·3· ·you're not alone.· Voters Not Politicians has been  
·4· ·working with hundreds of community organization  
·5· ·throughout 2018 and 2019.· And we know that there are  
·6· ·communities all throughout Michigan that are so excited  
·7· ·to be giving their input to tell you about the  
·8· ·boundaries of their communities so that they can be kept  
·9· ·intact.· And their input is prioritized in the  
10· ·constitutional amendment to help you, you know, craft  
11· ·the district lines that really will make every  
12· ·Michiganders' vote count, to make every voter feel that  
13· ·they have an active part in this truly, what should be,  
14· ·you know, democratic, again, you know, public  
15· ·voter-driven redistricting process.· So I -- again, I  
16· ·thank you so much.· I can't wait to see all of you do  
17· ·your work and to see us coming into the 2022 elections  
18· ·with districts that make all of our votes count and our  
19· ·voices heard.· So thank you again.  
20· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you so much.· That  
21· ·concludes your portion of public comment.· And that  
22· ·concludes our public comments this morning.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· And, again,  
24· ·there will be another opportunity for public comment  
25· ·later today and two tomorrow.· And before we move to a  
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·1· ·ten-minute break -- or are we doing -- I think, a short  
·2· ·break a few minutes, we have one important thing to  
·3· ·address now and that is taking the oath of office.· So  
·4· ·Commissioners, you will all take the oath of office  
·5· ·together.· In order to administer this oath remotely, I  
·6· ·will ask you all to unmute your microphones, raise your  
·7· ·right hand, and repeat after me.· You can take a moment  
·8· ·to look at the oath on your screen, but our team will  
·9· ·also take it down shortly so that the members of the  
10· ·public watching can all see you.· Again, please unmute  
11· ·your microphone.· Looks like you all have.· Raise your  
12· ·right hand.· Repeat after me.· I do solemnly swear or  
13· ·affirm.  
14· · · · · · · ·ALL:· I do solemnly swear or affirm.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· That I will support the  
16· ·constitution of the United States.  
17· · · · · · · ·ALL:· That I will support the constitution  
18· ·of the United States.  
19· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· And the constitution of  
20· ·this state.  
21· · · · · · · ·ALL:· And the constitution of this state.  
22· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· And that I will  
23· ·faithfully discharge the duties.  
24· · · · · · · ·ALL:· And that I will faithfully discharge  
25· ·the duties of the office.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Of the office of  
·2· ·commissioner.  
·3· · · · · · · ·ALL:· Of the office of commissioner.  
·4· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Of the Michigan  
·5· ·Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission.  
·6· · · · · · · ·All:· Of the Michigan Independent Citizens  
·7· ·Redistricting Commission.  
·8· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· According to the best of  
·9· ·my ability.  
10· · · · · · · ·ALL:· According to the best of the my  
11· ·abilities.  
12· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Congratulations.· We're  
13· ·all commissioners.· With that, we're going to take a  
14· ·quick break.· And, Commissioners, if you choose to step  
15· ·away from your computer during this time, please turn  
16· ·off your cameras and mute your microphones at the bottom  
17· ·left hand corner of your screen.· We will see you back  
18· ·here at -- what time, Sally?  
19· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· About 9:50.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· 9:50.· So you have about  
21· ·eight minutes.· See you back here at 9:50 for  
22· ·introductions and a few more housekeeping.· Thank you.  
23· · · · · · · ·(Brief break.)  
24· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Commissioners, when you're back,  
25· ·if you could turn on your cameras so we know that you're  
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·1· ·there, that would be great.· Thank you.  
·2· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· And a reminder to be on  
·3· ·mute for -- welcome back, everyone.· We want to  
·4· ·reiterate that people who want better ASL viewing  
·5· ·options can also email us at Redistricting Michigan --  
·6· ·@Michigan.gov for ASL Arabic or Spanish translations.  
·7· ·You can also email us at Michigan --  
·8· ·Redistricting@Michigan.gov.  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Sorry, Secretary  
10· ·Benson.· I hate to interrupt.· I'm sorry.· My -- it says  
11· ·my -- I can't start my video on.· This is MC.· I can't  
12· ·start my video.  
13· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· MC, we'll try to troubleshoot  
14· ·with you offline.· Thanks.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· So the process  
16· ·continues.· Thank you all for coming back.· Next on our  
17· ·agenda are introductions.· But, first, before we do  
18· ·that, we have a couple remaining housekeeping and  
19· ·logical items.· I'm going to turn back to staff for the  
20· ·Department of State to address a few remaining  
21· ·housekeeping items.· And then we'll move to commissioner  
22· ·introductions.  
23· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you, Secretary Benson.· So  
24· ·you all have met me, but I'm going to let my colleague,  
25· ·Mike Brady, introduce himself as well.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·MR. BRADY:· Good morning.· My name's Mike  
·2· ·Brady.· I'm the chief legal director here at the  
·3· ·Michigan Department of State.· Pleasure to be here with  
·4· ·you this morning.  
·5· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thanks, Mike.· So,  
·6· ·Commissioners, before we move on to introductions.· We  
·7· ·just wanted to briefly mention Robert's Rules of Order  
·8· ·and really answer the question what is it and, you know,  
·9· ·why was it included in your orientation material.· So we  
10· ·can go to the Robert's Rules of Order slide.· Thank you  
11· ·so much.  
12· · · · · · · ·So it's -- basically, Robert's Rules of  
13· ·Order is a framework and a tool.· For those would of you  
14· ·who haven't used it before, it's a framework and a tool,  
15· ·to utilize in this meeting and moving forward, to help  
16· ·organize conversation, debate, and decisions.· That's  
17· ·really what it is.· It's an opportunity for a public  
18· ·body or a group as large as yours to be able to focus  
19· ·the conversation and make sure everyone's on the same  
20· ·page about what you are talking about.· So we're going  
21· ·to briefly run through the high level basics just so  
22· ·that you're able to participate fully.· Highlight a  
23· ·couple of key motions and points.· And I want to direct  
24· ·you to Pages 29 through 35 of your orientation  
25· ·materials.· Certainly don't want Robert's Rules of  
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·1· ·Order, Commissioners, to be something that limits your  
·2· ·participation in this meeting.· It's really meant to be  
·3· ·a tool to enable it and to better, you know, organize  
·4· ·the conversation for all of you.  
·5· · · · · · · ·So you'll see on the screen right now, it's  
·6· ·really two types of important actions that you can take  
·7· ·with Robert's Rules of Order.· There's a motion and then  
·8· ·a point.· A motion is essentially something to take  
·9· ·action.· I move to do X.· I think we should do X.· And  
10· ·then a point is typically used to request attention or  
11· ·ask a question.· You can see a more comprehensive list  
12· ·of this in your orientation materials.  
13· · · · · · · ·But I want to particularly flag for all of  
14· ·you the point of order is an opportunity to ask a  
15· ·question about procedure or the running of the meeting.  
16· ·So if you're confused as to where you are or what you  
17· ·should say in order to do what you want to do, point of  
18· ·order is a great thing to say and then be able to  
19· ·explain what your question is.· And then point of  
20· ·personal privilege is similarly something that's really  
21· ·useful.· If you want to ask for accommodations, muting  
22· ·background noise, things like that, you can say point of  
23· ·personal privilege and raise that issue.· So we can go  
24· ·on to the next slide.  
25· · · · · · · ·MR. BRADY:· So I'm going to highlight a few  
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·1· ·actions where you may want -- that you might want to  
·2· ·take and how you can begin utilizing Robert's Rules to  
·3· ·make them.· One of those would be to introduce a new  
·4· ·topic or action.· As Sally said, you know, this would  
·5· ·start with a motion.· So you would say, I move to the  
·6· ·agenda.· I move to adjourn the meeting, et cetera, et  
·7· ·cetera.· With that, when one person moves to do  
·8· ·something in order for the question to come before the  
·9· ·full commission, someone else needs to second the  
10· ·motion.· So just a different commission will say, I  
11· ·second the motion.· And if there's a second, then the  
12· ·chair will call, All in favor?· All opposed?· And  
13· ·proceed accordingly.· If there's not a second, then it's  
14· ·not called to question.  
15· · · · · · · ·To end debate in order to make a decision,  
16· ·someone could say, I move to previous question, and that  
17· ·would also require a second.· One person can say, you  
18· ·know, I move to end debate.· I move to, you know,  
19· ·previous question.· Then someone else would second, and  
20· ·then the chair will say, All in Favor?· All opposed?  
21· ·And do a roll call vote at that point.  
22· · · · · · · ·Similarly with the -- since the vote make  
23· ·the decision, the chair would then, you know, state, Now  
24· ·we will vote on, and then we'll restate the motion so  
25· ·it's clear again what exactly is being voted on.· And  
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·1· ·then ask all in favor, all opposed.  
·2· · · · · · · ·Again, this is a high level code review.  
·3· ·Many specifics you might have questions about, and  
·4· ·naturally those will come about as you all get into the  
·5· ·work -- as you all get into the work of the commission.  
·6· ·The point right now is simply to start using the set of  
·7· ·rules as a tool to organize the meeting and keep  
·8· ·everyone focused.· You don't have to be an expert.· We  
·9· ·certainly all aren't either.· With that said, any  
10· ·questions from any of you at this point?· Or know that  
11· ·you can ask the questions, of course, as the meeting  
12· ·goes on.  
13· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thanks, Mike.· Secretary Benson,  
14· ·that concludes our overview of Robert's Rules.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· And our next  
16· ·item on our agenda are introductions.· You will all be  
17· ·working with each other quite a bit in the year ahead,  
18· ·in the next several months.· And so we set aside some  
19· ·time for you to introduce yourself to each other and the  
20· ·members of the public who are watching in the audience.  
21· ·We've allotted about an hour for this or just about,  
22· ·which is the equivalent about four minutes for each  
23· ·commissioner.· You're, of course, welcome to use  
24· ·whatever time that you like.· But, you know, we, of  
25· ·course, want to keep things moving.· To make things  
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·1· ·easy, I call on you one by one to introduce yourselves.  
·2· ·You can mention whatever you'd like.· Here are some  
·3· ·suggestion:· Your name, where you're from, your past or  
·4· ·current professional or life experience, what you like  
·5· ·to do in your spare time, what brings you here, in other  
·6· ·words, why did you apply, and anything else you'd like  
·7· ·to share with your fellow commissioners and colleagues.  
·8· ·The commissioners I'm going to call in alphabetical  
·9· ·order by first name.· And we're going to start with  
10· ·Anthony Eid.  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Hey.· Can everyone hear  
12· ·me?· Cool.· Hi, everyone.· My name's Anthony Eid.· Let's  
13· ·see.· I'm 28 years old.· I'm from Orchard Lake,  
14· ·Michigan.· So a little southbound by -- right by West  
15· ·Bloomfield.· Currently I split time between there and  
16· ·midtown Detroit.· I am an aspiring orthopedic surgeon.  
17· ·I received two bachelor's degrees.· One in biology and  
18· ·one in psychology back in 2015.· Then I received a  
19· ·master's degree in medical science in 2017.· And since  
20· ·then, I've completed two years of medical school.· I'm,  
21· ·you know, surprised to be selected for this commission.  
22· ·And I'm, you know, looking forward to working with all  
23· ·of you to, you know, give back to the people of our  
24· ·state.· Some things I like to do in spare time are  
25· ·volunteer, especially now during the COVID crisis.· My  
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·1· ·colleague and I have been doing a lot of volunteer  
·2· ·around the city for underserved population to make sure  
·3· ·they can get the safety and sanitary, you know,  
·4· ·requirements to help stop the spread of this, you know,  
·5· ·unfortunate pandemic that we all find ourselves in. I  
·6· ·also like to read.· I like sports.· I try to work out  
·7· ·every single day.· Football started last week and I got  
·8· ·a win in my fantasy football team, so I'm happy about  
·9· ·that.· Kind of a nerd.· I like video games.· You know, I  
10· ·like statistics and evidence.· Done a lot of research in  
11· ·my life.· Stuff like that.  
12· · · · · · · ·What brings me here, you know, it's kind of  
13· ·an interesting question.· When I was in undergrad and in  
14· ·my master's program, I was the president of the student  
15· ·body at Wayne State and that kind of got me into  
16· ·advocacy and getting my feet wet with, like, the  
17· ·political process.· So I thought this commission would  
18· ·be a wonderful way to kind of, you know, continue with  
19· ·that, give back to the people of our state, and, you  
20· ·know, try to do it in a really fair, unbiased, and, you  
21· ·know, evidence based way.· So that's why I applied, you  
22· ·know.· I want to be able to give back and do it fairly.  
23· ·And, yeah, that's about all I got.· Hope we can all see  
24· ·each other in person soon.  
25· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Let's hope.· Thank you  
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·1· ·very much.· Brittni Kellom.  
·2· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Good morning,  
·3· ·everyone.· As Mrs. Benson said, my name is Brittni  
·4· ·Kellom.· I am an a native Detroiter.· I'm absolutely in  
·5· ·love with the city and the moxie impulse that Detroit  
·6· ·has.· It's truly -- Detroit hustle hard, absolutely,  
·7· ·Anthony.· There's no other place like the city of  
·8· ·Detroit, so I really appreciate that uniqueness of the  
·9· ·city.· My past or current professional or life  
10· ·experience, that's a loaded one.· I am a trauma  
11· ·practitioner.· I am a survivor of childhood trauma.· And  
12· ·I walk with that identity, because I believe that more  
13· ·folks should be in those spaces and be able to have  
14· ·impact.· I am currently an advocate at the Survivor Law  
15· ·Clinic where I assist those victims that are surviving  
16· ·violent crimes.· So to be able help them navigate the  
17· ·legal system is an amazing experience, as well as I am  
18· ·the executive director and lead consultant for just --  
19· ·and the B+ METHOD we I implement trauma informed  
20· ·practices and programming inside of schools and help  
21· ·adults along side children.· So I'm extremely passionate  
22· ·about youth rights, education, and things that can  
23· ·impact those areas in that way.· I am a lover of culture  
24· ·and music.· I have a dog, Hendrix, that I truly, truly  
25· ·adore, who is my first son, because I don't have any  
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·1· ·children yet.· And I really enjoy a lot of self-care  
·2· ·yoga mindfulness.· Any type of pampering time and time  
·3· ·with my friends is extremely important to me, especially  
·4· ·as we're now gaining these unusual circumstances right  
·5· ·now in society.· So my spare time and my time with  
·6· ·myself and my loved ones, my tribe, as I call them, is  
·7· ·extremely important.  
·8· · · · · · · ·I came to be a commissioner by chance, like  
·9· ·the rest of us.· But I really think it's an honor and  
10· ·there's a reason why all of us are here together. I  
11· ·have always been a believer that those members of a  
12· ·community should have an impact and a choice and  
13· ·awareness as to what goes on.· I'm a big proponent of  
14· ·advocacy and giving folks a voice.· So this role, to me,  
15· ·there's no other way to kind of define those core values  
16· ·and standards that I live by to be able to represent our  
17· ·peers and to do things in a way that could be more just  
18· ·and fair moving forward to set the tone for a great  
19· ·political environment in the state of Michigan.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Brittni.  
21· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· You're welcome.  
22· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Cynthia Orton.  
23· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Hi, everyone.· I'm  
24· ·Cynthia.· I feel that my two fellow commissioners that  
25· ·have spoken before very eloquent and educated, and I'm  
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·1· ·just an average person, I feel like.· I was born and  
·2· ·raised in Oregon, but lived in Michigan for the past 16  
·3· ·years.· And I have lived in various places in Michigan.  
·4· ·So I've lived in Grass Lake and Jackson and Brighton and  
·5· ·Mattawan, and now we live in Battle Creek.· And Michigan  
·6· ·is a beautiful state with many wonderful people. I  
·7· ·really like Michigan.· I think, as with my fellow  
·8· ·commissioners, it's an honor to have been randomly  
·9· ·chosen for this commission and to come together with  
10· ·each of our group and to work with the citizens of  
11· ·Michigan and be able to represent our fellow citizens.  
12· · · · · · · ·A little bit about me.· I'm college student,  
13· ·online college student.· I'm majoring in administrative  
14· ·assistance.· I, for most of my adult life, have been a  
15· ·stay-at-home mom.· I have three college age children.  
16· ·And I -- previous to my children, I was a hair stylist.  
17· ·So that's about me personally.· I have also lived  
18· ·outside the country.· I lived in the Netherlands and  
19· ·Japan for several years, and so I speak those the  
20· ·languages.· And I love traveling and other cultures.  
21· ·Learning about other people and other ideas.· And so I  
22· ·think that's it.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Cynthia.  
24· ·Wonderful to have you.· Douglas Clark.  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· Good morning.· I'm  
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·1· ·Douglas Clark, and please call me Doug from here on in.  
·2· ·I'm from Rochester Hills, Michigan and I've lived here  
·3· ·since 1977.· I came here after graduating from graduate  
·4· ·school in Washington D.C.· And prior to that, I served  
·5· ·four years in the military and left the Army as a  
·6· ·Captain, which I got a lot of good experience from that.  
·7· ·I enjoyed that and see it as one of the bright spots of  
·8· ·my life.· After getting out of graduate school, I moved  
·9· ·to Michigan and I've had management positions in General  
10· ·Motors, Electronic Data Systems, and Hewlett-Packard.  
11· ·And I retired approximately ten years ago from  
12· ·Hewlett-Packard and retired a little early.· In my spare  
13· ·time, I like to golf and I like to travel.· I have two  
14· ·daughters.· One in Texas.· One in Huntington Beach,  
15· ·California.· And I like to travel and go see them when I  
16· ·get an opportunity.  
17· · · · · · · ·What brings me here is I wanted to help  
18· ·ensure that we have a fair and impartial redistricting  
19· ·process.· And I thought that I could be able to bring  
20· ·some positive things to the table to help make that  
21· ·happen.· I think I have some strong personal  
22· ·characteristics, objective in the things that I do and  
23· ·the ability to work with others through my experience  
24· ·through the years.· So I'm looking forward to it.· I see  
25· ·it as a great honor, and I'm going to be happy to meet  
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·1· ·the others in person.· So thank you.  
·2· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Doug.· And  
·3· ·thank you for your service.  
·4· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· Thank you.  
·5· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Dustin Witjes.· Did I say  
·6· ·that right?  
·7· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· It's Witjes.· Green  
·8· ·people on brooms flying around.· A bit of a way to --  
·9· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Got it.  
10· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· So hi.· My name is  
11· ·Dustin Witjes.· I am from Howell originally. I  
12· ·currently reside in Ypsilanti where I am going to school  
13· ·for a master's degree in mathematics.· I currently work  
14· ·for Thomson Reuters.· I am a onboard specialist in myPay  
15· ·Solutions, which is a payroll processing company.· So I  
16· ·set up new accounts and make sure that their employees  
17· ·get paid on time and accurately, as well as helping  
18· ·maintain or make sure that all their tax filings are  
19· ·done correctly with the nice help of people.· As far as  
20· ·my spare time right now goes, I really don't have much,  
21· ·because it's -- this work and a lot of homework almost  
22· ·every day, so -- but I do enjoy disk golf quite a bit.  
23· ·Being outdoors.· And I know Cynthia and I are going to  
24· ·be friends, because I also used to live in the  
25· ·Netherlands, so good way for me to practice my Dutch, I  
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·1· ·suppose.  
·2· · · · · · · ·As far as why I'm here, I voted for the  
·3· ·measure back in 2018.· I thought it was interesting and  
·4· ·an interesting concept.· So because of that reason, I  
·5· ·actually applied.· I wasn't really expecting to make it,  
·6· ·but now that I'm here, I'm honored and humbled.· And I  
·7· ·want to just make sure that everything is done fairly  
·8· ·for not only the next ten years, but also for future  
·9· ·generations to come.· That's it for me.  
10· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· Erin Wagner.  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WAGNER:· Hello.· My name's  
12· ·Erin.· I am from Charlotte, Michigan, which is about 17  
13· ·minutes, it depends how fast you drive from, Lansing --  
14· ·south of Lansing.· I started out pursuing a medical  
15· ·degree, and then promptly got married and we have six  
16· ·children, five boys and one girl.· So I'm kind of used  
17· ·to being in the middle of squabbles between the kids. I  
18· ·homeschooled everyone until they got to an age they  
19· ·wanted to be in public school.· I have one son who is a  
20· ·senior this year.· And then they all fall within a year  
21· ·of each other after that.· I was so looking forward to  
22· ·putting them all into public school this year, but one  
23· ·chose to virtual school instead, so three are in school  
24· ·and one is not.· What I like to do.· I read a lot. I  
25· ·research anything I do not understand.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·And what brought me here was I understood  
·2· ·there weren't a whole lot of -- I was under the  
·3· ·impression there was not a whole lot of people that had  
·4· ·applied for this, so I went ahead and threw my  
·5· ·application in there thinking, you know, there was never  
·6· ·going to be any chance I would actually sit on the  
·7· ·commission, and happened to catch the YouTube of the  
·8· ·drawing and saw my name pop up.· And so I had been doing  
·9· ·a lot of reading in the orientation materials since it  
10· ·was delivered.· And I'm really looking forward to this  
11· ·had auspicious occasion.· Thank you.  
12· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Erin.· James  
13· ·Decker.  
14· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· Please call me Ed.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Ed.  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· Yes.· My father called  
17· ·me James.· And when he did, i was usually in trouble, so  
18· ·I prefer Ed.· I was born in Detroit, raised in  
19· ·Ypsilanti.· Graduated from Eastern Michigan.· And I  
20· ·currently am a laboratory test engineer for General  
21· ·Motors.· And in a previous life, I also worked for  
22· ·Electronic Data Systems as a network engineer.· So  
23· ·lifelong resident of Michigan obviously.· And I have two  
24· ·wonderful children.· And I raised them to -- you know,  
25· ·you can sit around and complain about things that you  
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·1· ·don't like, or you can get involved and try and make a  
·2· ·difference.· So I'm honored to be here as part of this  
·3· ·commission and I'm -- you know, I just wanted to see if  
·4· ·I could do something good and try to help out our state  
·5· ·during these very divisive and very challenging times.  
·6· ·So that's me.  
·7· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Ed.· Janice  
·8· ·Vallette.  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER VALLETTE:· My name is Janice  
10· ·Vallette.· I've lived in Michigan my whole life. I  
11· ·currently live in Highland, Michigan -- Highland  
12· ·Township.· My -- I worked 20 years in the banking  
13· ·industry.· I started in accounting and moved over to the  
14· ·banking centers where I retired about three years ago as  
15· ·assistant manager.· In my spare time, I like to read and  
16· ·do some crafts.· My husband and I are always searching  
17· ·for a place we haven't been to in Michigan.· So if  
18· ·anybody's got any suggestions, I'm more than open.· I,  
19· ·too, never thought that I would go through the process  
20· ·and get here.· So I just want voting to be free and fair  
21· ·and want to give back to my community.· That's it.  
22· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Janice.  
23· ·Juanita Curry.  
24· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CURRY:· Yes.· My name is  
25· ·Juanita Curry.· I am from Michigan -- Detroit, Michigan.  
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·1· ·My past, current, professional life experiences are  
·2· ·many.· One of them, I attended Wayne State University  
·3· ·and studied public relations and journalism, which I'm  
·4· ·just a few classes from getting bachelor's degrees in  
·5· ·both of them.· I did get a two-year degree in associates  
·6· ·arts at Wayne County Community College.· I also was a  
·7· ·specialized foster parent for the State of Michigan  
·8· ·where I dealt with children.· I have a passion for  
·9· ·children.· I love children.· Helping them and raising  
10· ·them and trying to get them on the right path in life,  
11· ·and many of them have succeeded.· I'm kind of done with  
12· ·that right now.· And I have a passion for souls. I  
13· ·enjoy church work.· In my spare time, I like to relax  
14· ·and read a book or watch a good movie.  
15· · · · · · · ·What brings me here, I want to do something  
16· ·that would help Michigan and help our districting.· So I  
17· ·took a chance and applied for this particular job and  
18· ·was very surprised that I made it, but I'm glad and want  
19· ·to do the best that I can.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Juanita.· MC  
21· ·Rothhorn.  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Yeah.· My name is  
23· ·MC.· I'll start with my name has a story.· I am the  
24· ·first born here in the U.S.· both my parents are from  
25· ·Germany.· My mom's from the north, my dad's from the  
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·1· ·south.· They say they come from a mixed marriage.· And,  
·2· ·like I said, I'm first born in the U.S.· MC is not a  
·3· ·Germany name, but it does relate to my father's story  
·4· ·with the Marine Corps.· My name does not stand for  
·5· ·Marine Corps, but there's another story there, so I'll  
·6· ·just leave as far as my name.· And I should also say  
·7· ·that Rothhorn is a combination of my bachelor name Roth,  
·8· ·which is the German part.· And myself spouse, my  
·9· ·partner, her name was Horner, so we mushed them  
10· ·together.· So there's two Hs -- that's why there's two  
11· ·Hs, because it's Roth and horn mushed together.· I was  
12· ·born and raised in Ann Arbor where my parents met each  
13· ·other.· And I went to Michigan State.· And I've been in  
14· ·Lansing since then.· I met my spouse and we traveled  
15· ·quite a bit overseas.· We both speak German fluently.  
16· ·And, yeah.· I've spent good deal of time traveling, I  
17· ·suppose, overseas.· But we have found ourselves in  
18· ·Michigan, and we're both -- I'm a life long Michigander.  
19· ·I'm currently -- when we came back from overseas, we  
20· ·wanted to live in a neighborhood where people wanted to  
21· ·live in a neighborhood.· So we founded an intentional  
22· ·community called cohousing and that has been a real  
23· ·blessing.· It's sort of -- it feels like a neighborhood  
24· ·where you sort of hear about it where the, you know, the  
25· ·kids played out on the street until the streetlights  
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·1· ·went on and people would take care of their -- you know,  
·2· ·help parent and help, yeah, care for each other.· So  
·3· ·that's -- it's a little bit what we were looking for and  
·4· ·it's a lot of what we received.· There's always  
·5· ·challenges.· That's one of the reasons I applied for  
·6· ·this.· I do enjoy the challenge.· What I find is that I  
·7· ·have -- my spouse and I have two kids and we -- yeah.  
·8· ·My greatest learning is really through them.· So it's  
·9· ·sort of the -- I get to learn about myself and some of  
10· ·the -- let's say some of the good things that I've  
11· ·learned along the way as an adult, and some of the  
12· ·things I want to change before it gets to the end.  
13· · · · · · · ·So I suppose the reason I'm here is because  
14· ·I do feel like public service is something that helps me  
15· ·grow.· I do -- I live in an intentional community. I  
16· ·also work with a cooperative -- I'm -- I work in the  
17· ·accounting and, I guess, the maintenance pieces of that  
18· ·cooperative.· There are about 17 houses and 250 members  
19· ·of that cooperative.· And there's a lot of meetings and  
20· ·a lot of listening and a lot of -- like I said, it helps  
21· ·me understand how to bring some of things I learned back  
22· ·into the my family and ultimately -- yeah.· I guess,  
23· ·hopefully be a good citizen.· I feel like I'm a good  
24· ·listener.· I like -- I've worked in many groups, many  
25· ·people have said volunteer work.· I have studied, I  
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·1· ·guess, the accounting profession.· But right now I'm  
·2· ·working on understanding what it means to actually have  
·3· ·a less biased and a less -- have more, let's say,  
·4· ·radical hospitality.· How to include people in radical  
·5· ·ways, that's including in my professional world, in my,  
·6· ·I guess, my cohousing world, my neighborhood.· And I  
·7· ·suppose that could apply to this commission as well. I  
·8· ·think that's it.  
·9· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, MC.· Rhonda  
10· ·Lange.  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LANGE:· Good morning.· My  
12· ·name's Rhonda.· I'm from Green City, Michigan.· Town is  
13· ·so small.· You blink, you miss it.· We're very rural.  
14· ·My current occupation, I'm a real estate broker.· In the  
15· ·past, I was a certified medical assistant.· I'm also a  
16· ·U.S. Navy veteran.· In my spare time, I guess I like to  
17· ·do what most people in the rural country settings do,  
18· ·camping, fishing, hunting, you name it.· Anything  
19· ·outdoorsy.  
20· · · · · · · ·The reason I applied for the commission, I  
21· ·really didn't know a lot about it.· You read little bits  
22· ·and pieces.· But I thought it would be a way, the more I  
23· ·found out about it, to serve the community.· Especially  
24· ·being in a rural community, sometimes you feel like your  
25· ·voices aren't heard.· Also being so spread out.· So I  
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·1· ·just figured the best way to find things out, new  
·2· ·adventure, I guess, is to put my hat in the ring, try  
·3· ·it, and here I am.· I'm also kind of a very private  
·4· ·person, so this is stepping out of my comfort zone just  
·5· ·a little bit.  
·6· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Well, thank you, Rhonda.  
·7· ·Thank you very much for joining us.· Richard Weiss.  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WEISS:· Morning to all my  
·9· ·talented and interesting commissioners.· My name is  
10· ·Richard Weiss.· I'm from Saginaw, Michigan.· I served  
11· ·two years in the military at a younger age.· I worked 30  
12· ·years for General Motors.· Retired.· I have a daughter  
13· ·and two wonderful grandsons.· In my spare time, I took  
14· ·up doing handyman stuff to kind of keep me busy and keep  
15· ·me out of trouble.· I make wine, also, on the side.  
16· · · · · · · ·I guess what brings me here is I just figure  
17· ·it's my duty to do this.· I did jury duty here about a  
18· ·year ago and, of course, I'm a little bit above the age  
19· ·that I have to do it, so it's kind of one of the reasons  
20· ·I decided to do this.· I think I should do this.· So --  
21· ·and appreciate that I got chosen to do it.· So thank  
22· ·you.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Richard.· And,  
24· ·finally, we have Steven Lett.  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· (Microphone muted.)  
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·1· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Oh, Steven, you're muted.  
·2· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Try it again.· As the  
·3· ·secretary said, my name is Steve Lett.· And I am  
·4· ·celebrating the 23rd anniversary of my 50th birthday.  
·5· ·Previously or currently, I am a lawyer.· My practice was  
·6· ·primarily labor law and now I am a mediator and an  
·7· ·arbitrator.· I do quite a few mediations and I do a lot  
·8· ·of them -- well, we do them all on Zoom now.· I grew up  
·9· ·in Lansing and worked there my entire career until I  
10· ·moved to Interlochen.· I was in the Army during Vietnam  
11· ·era.· I graduated from MSU.· I'm now married and have  
12· ·two daughters.· One who lives in Detroit, and the other  
13· ·who lives in Boston.· I moved up here to Interlochen in  
14· ·2017 and that's probably why I got picked, 'cause I'm  
15· ·the furthest north.· I did apply when the applications  
16· ·first came out.· I thought it would be, number one, very  
17· ·interesting to be on the commission, and, number two, it  
18· ·would be an opportunity to hopefully set the course for  
19· ·Michigan and redistricting for the decades to come.· And  
20· ·one of the things that you need to be careful of, I  
21· ·guess, and I wasn't, was be careful what you wish for,  
22· ·because I got picked and now I'm here.· Thank you.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· Thank you,  
24· ·Steven.· Thank you all.· And we have one last item on  
25· ·our agenda for our morning session and that is selecting  
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·1· ·an acting chair.· But before we get to that, I just  
·2· ·wanted to remark on, you know, with great gratitude that  
·3· ·each of you were selected and that you have stepped up  
·4· ·to serve.· As we built this process from the ground up  
·5· ·beginning last spring, there was so much uncertainty  
·6· ·into how it would play out.· Would a lot of people  
·7· ·apply?· Would the people ultimately selected want to do  
·8· ·the jobs?· Would they take seriously their role?· And to  
·9· ·see all reflect the best of Michigan, the best of those  
10· ·aspirations, and the values of those who drove and led  
11· ·this reform is really just incredibly inspiring.· And in  
12· ·my time in public office, I've seen that good  
13· ·governance, actually making things work for people,  
14· ·depends on having both a good institution and good  
15· ·people comprising that institution.· The citizens of  
16· ·Michigan built a good institution.· They built a  
17· ·citizens of redistricting commission and a plan to  
18· ·create it.· But you always have the question of who is  
19· ·then going to populate that institution.· You all bring,  
20· ·you know, everything to the table that I believe the  
21· ·drafters and those creating the institution, the  
22· ·citizens, commission, hope to see.· And it gives me  
23· ·great confidence that you all will succeed, because you  
24· ·are thoughtful, you are diverse, you are inquisitive,  
25· ·and each of you in your stories have an underlying  
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·1· ·emphasis on service.· Of course, military, myself from a  
·2· ·military family as well, I know how that service ethos  
·3· ·pervades everything you do.· So it is not surprising to  
·4· ·me that we see so many veterans and former service  
·5· ·members amongst the ranks.· But also each of you in  
·6· ·describing your work, your passion, whether it's as a  
·7· ·parent, as a community member, as a public servant, you  
·8· ·all have built lives around serving others.· And that  
·9· ·is, you know, precisely the type of ethos that we hope  
10· ·to see now as you take on this great service in  
11· ·furtherance of the citizens of the State of Michigan.  
12· ·And the hope and the trust that they have placed  
13· ·inadvertently in all of you, though as a random  
14· ·selection process, certainly the trust that the process  
15· ·itself would yield with such success.· All of you is,  
16· ·you know, I think something that we all are greatly  
17· ·proud of.· And I'm just so thrilled and excited to see  
18· ·the work that you'll all accomplish together.· So thank  
19· ·you again for your willingness to serve your state, your  
20· ·families, your communities throughout your lives.· And,  
21· ·of course, in this moment as well.  
22· · · · · · · ·And now that you all have officially  
23· ·convened as commissioners, it is important that you  
24· ·elect a temporary acting chair.· Tomorrow afternoon you  
25· ·will have the opportunity to discuss a more permanent  
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·1· ·structure.· But for the remainder of this initial  
·2· ·meeting, both today and into tomorrow, you can elect an  
·3· ·acting chair to call the meeting to order, facilitate  
·4· ·discussion and decisions on agenda items, and then close  
·5· ·the meeting at the end of each day.  
·6· · · · · · · ·So does anybody have any questions first  
·7· ·about the role of the acting chair that will, again, be  
·8· ·just in this two-day meeting, at which point you all can  
·9· ·decide whether to elect a permanent chair on to the  
10· ·leadership of that acting chair later on tomorrow?· Are  
11· ·there any questions about the role itself?  
12· · · · · · · ·Sally, I'll depend on do you see any hands  
13· ·raised in the chat?  
14· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· I do not.· Commissioners, any  
15· ·questions?  
16· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· Well, then, first,  
17· ·I will ask for volunteers.· Anyone interested, please  
18· ·indicate your interest through raising your hand in the  
19· ·chat or visually and -- and/or visually.· And then when  
20· ·all who are interested have volunteered, we'll give each  
21· ·volunteer the opportunity to speak for a few minutes  
22· ·about why you'd like to serve as acting chair.· And then  
23· ·there will be an opportunity for discussion between you  
24· ·all about this decision and who you want to vote for.  
25· ·And then once you're ready to vote, one of you will need  
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·1· ·to move to previous question, another will second.· And  
·2· ·then if a majority wants to vote, you can then vote on  
·3· ·the acting chair.· So who would like to volunteer to  
·4· ·serve as acting chair for this initial meeting?  
·5· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· I'd like to put my  
·6· ·name forward humbly.  
·7· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· And that was -- sorry, I  
·8· ·don't see.  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Dustin Witjes.  
10· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Dustin.· Okay.· So we  
11· ·have one volunteer.· Dustin Witjes, thank you.· Others?  
12· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· And I'd like to second  
13· ·Dustin's request.· And I'd also like to throw my name in  
14· ·the running.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Sorry.· Who was that?  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Anthony.  
17· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.  
18· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Steve Lett, I would put  
19· ·my name in.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· So we have Steve.· Sally,  
21· ·are you keeping track of this?  
22· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Yes.  
23· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· And then Brittni,  
24· ·Brittni Kellom.  
25· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Other volunteers?· And  
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·1· ·then, Sally, you'll read the full list of volunteers  
·2· ·before we invite each to speak.  
·3· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Yes.· So, Commissioners, I have  
·4· ·Steven, Anthony, Dustin, and Brittni.· Are there any  
·5· ·other volunteers at this time?  
·6· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· Seeing none. I  
·7· ·will invite each to speak.· We'll begin -- we'll go  
·8· ·backwards now.· We went forwards on alphabetical order  
·9· ·to begin with, and now we'll go backwards starting with  
10· ·Steven.  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Yes.· I would be honored  
12· ·to serve as the temporary chair at this time.· I have,  
13· ·in my career, chaired a number of meetings, as well as  
14· ·being familiar with Robert's Rules of Orders, such as  
15· ·that may or may not be important.· Also, as in my  
16· ·profession as a labor attorney, I sat at the main table  
17· ·bargaining for a lot of sessions, so I'm familiar  
18· ·with -- unaccustomed as I am to public speaking, I think  
19· ·I could probably do a good job.· Thank you.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Steven.· Next,  
21· ·we have Dustin Witjes.  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· I've also had to chair  
23· ·a couple meetings a couple -- a few times, making sure  
24· ·that we stay on points, that we don't get side tracked.  
25· ·I don't necessarily have as much experience as Steven  
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·1· ·does, but I have done it before, and I'll do my best  
·2· ·here to ensure that we stay on track and everyone's  
·3· ·voices are heard and that the rules of order are  
·4· ·followed correctly.  
·5· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you, Dustin.  
·6· ·Brittni Kellom.  
·7· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Hi, everybody, again.  
·8· ·I am interested in being the acting chair, because I  
·9· ·have some experience being the executive director of a  
10· ·nonprofit, of holding meetings, not as the chair, but  
11· ·being very familiar how to keep the flow of the meeting  
12· ·going, and to make sure there is a collaborative spirit  
13· ·in the group, as well as everyone gets to have their  
14· ·say.· And I am very comfortable with speaking, as well  
15· ·as having that 30 seconds of silence to make sure those  
16· ·that are a little bit more anxious or thinking that  
17· ·someone else is going to respond gets their turn to  
18· ·share.· I am familiar -- I have a working knowledge with  
19· ·Robert's Rules, but I think this would be an excellent  
20· ·opportunity for me to learn more about the commission,  
21· ·as well as running the structure of a meeting from an  
22· ·acting chair position.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· And Anthony  
24· ·Eid.  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Hi, everyone.· I also  
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·1· ·would be honored to serve as temporary chair of this  
·2· ·commission until we set a more permanent structure. I  
·3· ·think the role of a chairperson for a committee like  
·4· ·this is to facilitate structure and order so we can  
·5· ·conduct the business that is on our agenda.· I'm very  
·6· ·familiar with Robert's Rules of Order.· When I was  
·7· ·president of the student senate at Wayne State  
·8· ·University, I chaired dozens upon dozens of meetings.  
·9· ·And during my time in medical school, I also chaired  
10· ·dean searches, budget and finance committees, curriculum  
11· ·committees, and just a whole other assortment of  
12· ·committees that I was the chair of.· So I think I do  
13· ·have the experience for the role.· And if you guys would  
14· ·have me, I'd be honored.· Thank you.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· We have our four  
16· ·potential acting chairs.· And, Commissioners, you now  
17· ·have your first public deliberation and public vote.  
18· ·And, again, this is simply acting chair.· The term will  
19· ·conclude, you know, if you all choose at the end of  
20· ·tomorrow's session, at which point you'll have an  
21· ·opportunity to, at the acting chair's direction, elect a  
22· ·permanent chair of the commission.· For now, you can  
23· ·discuss, ask any questions, or make a motion to vote.  
24· ·I'll open it up for questions and discussion.· And,  
25· ·Sally, since you can see who raises their hands, I'll  
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·1· ·let you recognize commissioners as they indicate their  
·2· ·interest in asking a question.  
·3· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Absolutely.· MC, I see a hand.  
·4· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Yeah.· I'm wondering  
·5· ·if does it matter what sort of experience we might have  
·6· ·in terms of Zoom hosting facilitating?· Just curious if  
·7· ·any of the candidates think if that's going to be an  
·8· ·issue related, yeah, if they could speak to that or if  
·9· ·that seems relevant or not.  
10· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· I'll give each person an  
11· ·opportunity to respond to the about your experience with  
12· ·Zoom and convening meetings via Zoom.· And who would  
13· ·like to go first?· Brittni.  
14· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Yeah.· I'll just --  
15· ·since I unmuted myself.· I'm very comfortable with Zoom.  
16· ·I just finished facilitating a training for the  
17· ·University of Chicago on Friday.· And I had to navigate  
18· ·breakout rooms and, you know, hand clapping features, or  
19· ·raising hand features, so I'm comfortable with Zoom and  
20· ·patient with Internet connection challenges and things  
21· ·that come with trying to navigate a virtual space.  
22· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Dustin?  
23· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Sorry about that.· I'm  
24· ·muted.· Yep.· Sorry about that.· Well, I mean, since all  
25· ·the classes on universities decided to go online, I've  
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·1· ·been using Zoom for, oh, I don't know, the last year.  
·2· ·And then with me working with a technology company,  
·3· ·we've used many, many, many different kinds of virtual  
·4· ·meeting platforms, Jabber, Microsoft Teams.· I think  
·5· ·we've used Zoom once, but it didn't really last very  
·6· ·long.· I think it was for a -- just a meeting with  
·7· ·myself and an accountant that I was working with.· So  
·8· ·familiar.· I know how to navigate basically any kind of  
·9· ·computer program in about five minutes so that would not  
10· ·be a problem.  
11· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· Anthony and  
12· ·then Steven.  
13· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Hey, everyone.· You know,  
14· ·honestly, I would assume that over the last six months,  
15· ·we've all become pretty proficient in, you know, video  
16· ·meetings, such as this.· I'm a tech guy.· I'm perfectly  
17· ·capable of running Zoom.· Can also do Microsoft team,  
18· ·Discord, GroupMe, WhatsApp.· Got quite the setup here.  
19· ·Yeah.· I'm very comfortable with that.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· And Steve.· Is it  
21· ·Steve or Steven?  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Take your pick.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· All right.· Steve or  
24· ·Steven.  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· I have no problem with  
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·1· ·Zoom.· I probably host between five and ten Zoom  
·2· ·meetings a month.· That's what I've been doing for the  
·3· ·last -- well, ever since Zoom started with mediations  
·4· ·and anything in the court -- court world.· So I've been  
·5· ·on those.· I'm always the host, so I'm very comfortable  
·6· ·using Zoom.  
·7· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· Other  
·8· ·questions for our potential acting chairs?· Or  
·9· ·discussion?· We will be doing a roll call vote.· We will  
10· ·need a motion.· If there are no questions or discussion,  
11· ·we'll need a motion to move to question, and then a  
12· ·second.  
13· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· I guess I have one  
14· ·more question.· Sorry.· I was hoping other commissioners  
15· ·might say something.· So I'm not necessarily, you know,  
16· ·comfortable with Zoom.· Honestly, I feel like there's a  
17· ·connection I'm missing.· And so what I'm asking, there's  
18· ·a part of me that knows I want my facilitator to bring  
19· ·energy and to be sort of, like -- yeah.· So I guess what  
20· ·I'm saying is I'm -- I'm wondering if you can speak to  
21· ·the what's the role of the facilitator in making we each  
22· ·do feel sort of, like, super included?· Like, is that  
23· ·a -- there a role or is it up to me?  
24· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· I think it's up to the  
25· ·person that is -- the other commissioners to chime in.  
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·1· ·But my personal perspective, when you're running a  
·2· ·meeting, particularly when it's virtual, you are  
·3· ·responsible for kind of keeping a pulse or a vibe.· And  
·4· ·it's important to visually -- sometimes you can play  
·5· ·with your virtual background as long as it's  
·6· ·appropriate, like mine.· I think those things add to the  
·7· ·space of us being comfortable, number one, trying to  
·8· ·adjust to the format, but then also getting to know each  
·9· ·other.· So I don't think -- yes, we have an individual  
10· ·responsibility, but it would also be my responsibility  
11· ·to make sure, MC, that you're comfortable and that you  
12· ·know what's going on, even if that meant that, like, we  
13· ·have a dialogue separately and I am walking you through  
14· ·how to get more comfortable and Zoom savvy.· Because  
15· ·we're all kind of figuring it out together admittedly.  
16· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Anyone want to take -- go  
17· ·next or I'll call on someone?  
18· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· I would comment that I  
19· ·think the facilitator on the Zoom meeting is to make  
20· ·sure that there is sufficient time given, that everybody  
21· ·can express their opinion or comment.· However, I think  
22· ·the facilitator also needs to keep track of who may be  
23· ·reticent to talk and speak up.· I would find that  
24· ·somewhat hard to imagine with the other 12 commissioners  
25· ·in this group.· But if that were the case, it would be  
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·1· ·my -- my job to make sure that they were participating  
·2· ·should they want to.· Some people may just not want to  
·3· ·and want to sit back and listen and see what everybody  
·4· ·else has to say.· But they certainly should know that  
·5· ·they are welcome to speak.  
·6· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Dustin or Anthony?  
·7· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Go ahead.  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Thank you, Dustin.· So I  
·9· ·kind of look on this in my little speech a couple  
10· ·minutes ago.· But I think the role of the facilitator  
11· ·position, you know, is to keep structure and try to keep  
12· ·the meeting moving forward to complete our agenda items.  
13· ·Traditionally, you know, a more of a parliamentarian  
14· ·role, would do this and do things like keeping the roll  
15· ·call, making sure that, you know, whoever raises their  
16· ·hand does get time to speak.· You know, and other  
17· ·actions such as that.· But I think, you know, we are on  
18· ·this committee.· If my understanding is correct, we have  
19· ·the authority to, you know, come up with whatever  
20· ·structure we want, and I think we'll do that tomorrow.  
21· ·So whatever we do today, you know, we should keep in  
22· ·mind it's temporary until we do decide on that more  
23· ·permanent structure.· But I do agree with Brittni that  
24· ·it is important that we facilitate a discussion between  
25· ·the 13 of us.· So thank you for that question, MC.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· And Dustin.  
·2· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Piggybacking off of  
·3· ·that, that is correct too.· We just -- I want to make  
·4· ·sure that everyone has a -- you know, their voice is  
·5· ·heard.· And if I start to potentially see that someone's  
·6· ·not, you know, coming or saying anything or quiet or  
·7· ·potentially shy, it is Zoom.· So I can ask a question  
·8· ·privately to the person saying, Hey, do you have any  
·9· ·input that you'd like to share?· And, yeah.· So on and  
10· ·so forth.· But my understanding is that we just  
11· ·facilitate to make sure that everything keeps moving  
12· ·forward and stay pace while all of our voices are heard  
13· ·at the same time.  
14· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you.· Are there any  
15· ·other questions for our potential acting chairs?  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· I'd like to motion to  
17· ·bring this to a vote.· Since there are four of us, I  
18· ·think we should do an initial vote, and then maybe redo  
19· ·the vote when it's down to two people.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Is there a second to that  
21· ·motion?· I think we have to -- Sally, correct me if I am  
22· ·wrong, but since that would be a two-tiered, do we have  
23· ·to vote on that motion to have a two-tiered election of  
24· ·absenting chair?  
25· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Yes.· You know, Commissioners, I  
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·1· ·think the main option, because this is a virtual  
·2· ·meeting, we'll have to do a roll call, though, as  
·3· ·Secretary Benson mentioned.· So, Anthony, could you  
·4· ·clarify is your motion to move to vote, or to move to  
·5· ·vote in the way that you just suggested?  
·6· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Well, I'm just wondering  
·7· ·what we will do if a majority is not reached upon the  
·8· ·first vote.  
·9· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· So your motion -- so you  
10· ·can make a motion to have one vote, and then the top two  
11· ·candidates go to a runoff.· Is that your motion?  
12· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Yes, that's correct.  
13· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· Is there a second?  
14· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· I second that.  
15· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· We have a second.  
16· ·All in favor of the motion for an initial vote of all  
17· ·four candidates, and then a runoff between the top two,  
18· ·you vote yes.· And we have to roll call, because it's a  
19· ·public meeting.· So each of you can vote yes or no, and  
20· ·Sally will go lieu the roll call.· And I believe  
21· ·candidates can also vote, correct?· You don't lose your  
22· ·ability?  
23· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Yes, yes.· There is a motion  
24· ·to -- yes.  
25· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· So Sally will now read  
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·1· ·through the names, and you can vote yes or no.· And,  
·2· ·again, the motion on the floor is to have a system where  
·3· ·we vote for -- you would vote for all four, and then the  
·4· ·top two vote getters would have a runoff and you have a  
·5· ·second vote at the time.· So go ahead.· We'll start in  
·6· ·alphabetical order by first name.  
·7· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Okay.· Thank you.· Anthony?  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Yes.  
·9· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Brittni Kellom?  
10· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Yes.  
11· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Cynthia Orton?  
12· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Yes.  
13· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Doug Clark?  
14· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· Yes.  
15· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Dustin Witjes?  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Yes.  
17· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Erin Wagner?  
18· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WAGNER:· Yes.  
19· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· James Decker?  
20· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· Yes.  
21· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Janice Vallette?  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER VALLETTE:· Yes.  
23· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Juanita Curry?  
24· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CURRY:· Yes.  
25· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· MC Rothhorn?  
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·1· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Yes.  
·2· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Rhonda Lange?  
·3· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LANGE:· Yes.  
·4· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Richard Weiss?  
·5· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WEISS:· Yes.  
·6· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Steven Lett?  
·7· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Yes.  
·8· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Wonderful.· All commissioners  
·9· ·have voted yes.  
10· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· The motion passes.  
11· ·Now, I'll entertain is there a call -- are there any  
12· ·additional motions or is there a call to question on the  
13· ·initial vote?· Or a motion to vote on the candidates and  
14· ·select an acting chair?  
15· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· A motion to vote --  
16· ·move to vote.  
17· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Move to vote.· Is there a  
18· ·second?  
19· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· Yeah.· I second that.  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· We'll now do a  
21· ·roll call vote on the four volunteers.· And, again,  
22· ·under the motion passed, the top two vote getters will  
23· ·then move on to a runoff.· Sally, I'll let you start  
24· ·again, alphabetical order by first name.· When your name  
25· ·is called, indicate the individual who you're voting  
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·1· ·for.  
·2· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you, Secretary Benson.  
·3· ·Again, I will go in alphabetical order by first name.  
·4· ·Anthony?  
·5· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· Yes.· I'd like to vote  
·6· ·for myself.  
·7· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Brittni?  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· I'd like to vote for  
·9· ·myself humbly.  
10· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Cynthia?  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Steve.  
12· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Douglas?  
13· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· I'd like to Steve Lett,  
14· ·please.  
15· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Dustin?  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· I also would like to  
17· ·vote for Steve Lett, please.  
18· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Erin?  
19· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WAGNER:· I vote for Steve Lett  
20· ·as well.  
21· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Ed?  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· I'd like to vote for  
23· ·Steve Lett as well.  
24· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Janice?  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER VALLETTE:· I'd like to vote for  
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·1· ·Brittni.  
·2· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Juanita?  
·3· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CURRY:· I'd like to vote for  
·4· ·Brittni.  
·5· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· MC?  
·6· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Also for Brittni.  
·7· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Rhonda?  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LANGE:· I'd like to vote for  
·9· ·Steve.  
10· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Richard?  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WEISS:· I'd like to vote for  
12· ·Steve.  
13· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· And Steve?  
14· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· I vote for myself.  
15· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Wonderful.· Okay.· So,  
16· ·Commissioners, we have -- let me just tally this. I  
17· ·have eight votes for Steve, four votes for Brittni.· And  
18· ·one vote for Anthony.· Which means that our two -- top  
19· ·two contenders are Brittni and Steve.· So --  
20· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· We'll now move to the top  
21· ·two vote.· I think we can go directly into that, because  
22· ·that's the method that was -- correct?· Or do we need  
23· ·another motion?  
24· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Your first motion was a  
25· ·two-step process.· Process number two.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Okay.· Got it.· So now  
·2· ·we'll move into the second -- the runoff vote.· And the  
·3· ·remaining volunteers for acting chair are Brittni Kellom  
·4· ·and Steve Lett.· And, again, I'll have Sally Marsh from  
·5· ·the Department of State do a roll call of the vote  
·6· ·beginning in alphabetical order by first name.  
·7· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thanks, Secretary Benson.  
·8· ·Anthony?  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER EID:· I would vote for Steve.  
10· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Brittni?  
11· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER KELLOM:· Voting for myself.  
12· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Cynthia?  
13· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Vote for Steve.  
14· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Doug?  
15· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CLARK:· I vote for Steve.  
16· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Dustin?  
17· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· I will vote for Steve.  
18· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Erin?  
19· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WAGNER:· I vote for Steve as  
20· ·well.  
21· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Ed?  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER DECKER:· I vote for Steve as  
23· ·well.  
24· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Janice?  
25· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER VALLETTE:· I vote for Brittni.  
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·1· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Juanita?  
·2· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER CURRY:· I vote for Brittni.  
·3· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· MC?  
·4· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ROTHHORN:· Brittni.  
·5· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Rhonda?  
·6· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LANGE:· I vote for Steve.  
·7· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Richard?  
·8· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WEISS:· I vote for Steve.  
·9· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· And Steve?  
10· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· I'll vote for me.  
11· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Thank you, Commissioners.  
12· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· The votes are in.· And,  
13· ·Sally, as you tally them and announce the acting chair,  
14· ·I'll note that, again, moving forward, you all can have  
15· ·a lot of latitude on the structures and officers as well  
16· ·and leaders that you structure the commission that you  
17· ·create moving forward.· And, again, as acting chair will  
18· ·serve until a permanent chair is selected.· So, Sally,  
19· ·would you like to reported the votes?  
20· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· Yeah.· It's a vote of 9 to 4.  
21· ·The commissioners have voted to make Steve Lett the  
22· ·acting chair.  
23· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Congratulations.· And  
24· ·thank you all for volunteering.· And we've now made it  
25· ·successfully through your first public vote as a  
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·1· ·commission.· So congratulations on that as well.· With  
·2· ·that, I will ask Steve Lett as acting chair to ask for  
·3· ·motions to adjourn the morning session with a reminder  
·4· ·we will reconvene as planned just before 2 p.m.  
·5· ·Commissioners will log on at 1:45 p.m. this afternoon to  
·6· ·begin the second portion of today's session.  
·7· · · · · · · ·So, Steve, as acting chair, I'll turn it  
·8· ·over to you again to entertain a motion to adjourn our  
·9· ·morning session.  
10· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Thank you, Secretary  
11· ·Benson.· I would now entertain such a motion to adjourn.  
12· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Second.  
13· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· We have to make a motion  
14· ·and then have a second.  
15· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Second.  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Cynthia, you're making a  
17· ·motion?  
18· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER ORTON:· Yes.· I move to  
19· ·adjourn.  
20· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· And was that Dustin that  
21· ·seconded it the first time?  
22· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Correct.  
23· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· Okay.· So we're  
24· ·seconding it the second time.· We've had a motion to  
25· ·adjourn and a second.· Are we doing a roll call on this,  
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·1· ·Sally?  
·2· · · · · · · ·MS. MARSH:· If you ask for the ayes and it's  
·3· ·overwhelming, you -- Mike Brady, correct me if I am  
·4· ·wrong, but I believe you can say that in the ayes of the  
·5· ·chair, the ayes have it.  
·6· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· All right.· We'll take a  
·7· ·voice vote on this.· All in favor, say aye.  
·8· · · · · · · ·ALL:· Aye.  
·9· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER LETT:· All opposed -- all  
10· ·opposed, the same sign.· Hearing none.· We are  
11· ·adjourned.· We will convene again this afternoon at  
12· ·2 p.m.· Thank you all for participating, and we'll look  
13· ·for you back at that time.  
14· · · · · · · ·SECRETARY BENSON:· Thank you all.· See you  
15· ·at 2:00 this afternoon.· Bye.  
16· · · · · · · ·COMMISSIONER WITJES:· Bye bye.  
17· · · · · · · ·(Brief recess.)  
18  
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·1· ·STATE OF MICHIGAN· · · · )  
·2· · · · · · · · · · · · · · )  
·3· ·COUNTY OF WASHTENAW· · · )  
·4  
·5· ·CERTIFICATE OF NOTARY PUBLIC AND COURT REPORTER  
·6· · · I, Caitlyn Hartley, do hereby certify that the  
·7· ·foregoing audio sent to me was duly recorded by me  
·8· ·stenographically and by me later reduced to typewritten  
·9· ·form by means of computer-aided transcription; and I  
10· ·certify that this is a true and correct transcript of my  
11· ·stenographic notes so taken.  
12· · · I further certify that I am neither of counsel to  
13· ·either party nor interested in the event of this cause.  
14  
15  
16· · · · · · · · · ·________________________________  
17· · · · · · · · · ·Caitlyn Hartley, RPR, CSR-8887  
18· · · · · · · · · ·Notary Public,  
19· · · · · · · · · ·Washtenaw County, Michigan  
20· · · · · · · · · ·My Commission expires:· August 15, 2021  
21  
22  
23  
24  
25  
09/17/2020  
·1  
actions 26:6 27:1 56:17  
active 21:13  
1
6
12 55:24  
6 12:18  
9 64:20  
add 55:6  
13 12:21 13:12 56:25  
16 33:2  
additional 3:25 9:16 17:11  
60:12  
9
address 6:14 7:4,11 8:9,13  
19:6,8,20 20:2,6 22:3 24:20  
17 2:2 36:12 41:18  
1977 34:3  
90 7:10 8:13 19:5 20:7  
9:30 8:17  
adjourn 27:6 65:3,8,11,19,25  
adjourned 66:11  
1:45 65:5  
9:50 23:19,20,21  
adjust 2:23 55:8  
2
administer 22:5  
@
2 65:4 66:12  
20 38:12  
administrative 3:5 4:24 9:2  
16:10 33:13  
@michigan.gov 24:6  
2015 29:18  
2017 20:12 29:19 44:14  
2018 13:20 21:5 36:3  
2019 21:5  
@redistrictingmi 3:15 6:21  
8:21 9:11 19:14  
admittedly 55:15  
adore 31:25  
adult 33:14 41:11  
adults 31:21  
A
abilities 23:11  
2020 2:2  
advance 6:12 19:8  
advantages 11:13  
adventure 43:2  
advocacy 30:16 32:14  
advocate 31:14  
affirm 22:13,14  
ability 23:9 34:23 58:22  
absenting 57:24  
2022 21:17  
23rd 44:4  
absolutely 31:4,6 52:3  
academic 5:3  
250 41:18  
28 29:13  
access 4:3,5 9:17,19,21  
accommodate 2:23  
accommodations 26:21  
accomplish 46:18  
accordance 12:17  
accountant 53:7  
29 25:24  
2:00 66:15  
afternoon 5:14,19 46:24 65:5  
66:11,15  
3
age 33:15 36:18 43:11,18  
agenda 3:5 4:21 5:1,25 6:6,7  
10:16,17 11:4 24:17 27:6  
28:16 44:25 47:4 51:5 56:12  
30 43:11 50:15  
33 20:15  
accounting 38:13 41:17 42:1  
accounts 35:16  
35 25:24  
agree 56:23  
ahead 5:4 12:9 13:6 14:3 16:2,  
19 20:24 28:17 37:4 56:7 59:5  
4
accurately 35:17  
acting 5:12 11:2 12:25 17:14  
45:1 46:24 47:3,7,10,22 48:3,  
4 50:8,22 51:16,18,21 54:8  
57:15 60:14 63:3 64:13,17,22  
65:2,7  
allotted 28:21  
allowed 19:25  
4 64:20  
5
alphabetical 29:8 49:8 59:6  
60:24 61:3 63:6  
50th 44:4  
action 14:13 26:9 27:4  
09/17/2020  
assistant 38:15 42:15  
·2  
ALS 3:19,20 9:12  
amazing 31:17  
amendment 5:19 21:10  
and/or 47:19  
Beach 34:14  
associates 39:5  
assortment 51:11  
assume 53:14  
attended 39:2  
bearing 11:11  
beautiful 33:6  
begin 5:6,14 27:2 49:7,9 65:6  
beginning 6:8 45:5 63:6  
behalf 17:1,3  
Ann 40:12  
anniversary 44:4  
announce 64:13  
answers 16:18  
attendees 7:4 11:4  
attention 26:10  
attorney 49:16  
audience 28:20  
audio 7:21 8:1,5  
auspicious 37:11  
authority 56:19  
autonomous 16:13  
average 33:1  
believer 32:11  
Benson 2:25 4:20 5:9 10:6,20  
11:17,18,20,25 17:22 18:23  
19:22 21:23 22:15,19,22 23:1,  
4,8,12,20 24:2,10,15,23  
Anthony 17:23 29:10,12 31:7  
48:16 49:4 50:23 53:11 56:6  
58:3 59:7 61:4 62:18 63:8  
28:13,15 30:25 31:3 32:20,22  
33:23 35:2,5,9 36:10 37:12,15  
38:7,22 39:20 42:9 43:6,23  
44:23 47:16 48:7,10,15,17,20,  
25 49:6,20 50:5,23 51:15  
52:10,22 53:11,20,23 54:7  
55:16 56:6 57:1,14,20 58:3,9,  
13,15,25 60:10,17,20 61:2  
62:20 63:1,7 64:12,23 65:11,  
13 66:14  
antidote 15:3,8  
antiseptic 15:8  
anxious 50:16  
anybody's 38:18  
application 7:15 37:5  
applications 44:15  
awareness 32:13  
Awesome 3:12  
aye 66:7,8  
applied 30:21 36:5 37:4 39:17  
41:5 42:20  
biased 42:3  
big 32:13  
ayes 66:2,4,5  
apply 29:6 42:7 44:15 45:7  
approval 16:15  
B
biology 29:17  
bipartisan 13:25  
birthday 44:4  
B+ 31:19  
approximately 8:17 34:11  
Arabic 4:7 9:22 24:6  
arbitrator 44:7  
bachelor 40:7  
bachelor's 29:17 39:4  
bit 28:17 33:12 35:8,22 40:15  
41:3 43:5,18 50:16  
back 17:19 23:17,21,24 24:3,  
16,19 29:18,23 30:19,22 36:3  
38:21 40:19 41:21 56:3 66:13  
Arbor 40:12  
bits 42:21  
areas 31:23  
blessing 40:23  
blink 42:13  
Army 34:5 44:10  
Article 12:18  
background 15:10 26:22 55:5  
backwards 49:8,9  
banking 38:12,14  
bargaining 49:17  
based 30:21  
Bloomfield 29:15  
body 16:14 25:18 30:15  
book 39:14  
arts 39:6  
ASL 3:22 9:15 24:4,6  
aspiration 13:12  
aspirations 45:10  
aspiring 29:16  
born 33:1 37:18 39:24 40:2,12  
Boston 44:13  
basically 25:12 53:8  
basics 5:17 25:21  
basis 7:10  
bottom 23:16  
assist 31:15  
boundaries 21:8  
assistance 16:11 33:14  
Battle 33:5  
09/17/2020  
camping 42:18  
·3  
boys 36:16  
check 9:23  
Brady 24:25 25:1,2 26:25 66:3  
break 17:12 22:1,2 23:14,23  
breakout 52:18  
candidates 52:7 58:11,17,21  
60:13  
Chicago 52:17  
chief 25:2  
capable 53:17  
capacity 16:7  
Captain 34:6  
childhood 31:11  
breaks 5:24,25 6:3  
children 31:21 32:1 33:15,16  
36:16 37:24 39:8,9  
briefly 3:4 4:20 5:8 7:8 10:15  
25:7,21  
captioning 3:19 9:6  
care 41:1,2  
chime 54:25  
bright 34:7  
choice 32:12  
Brighton 33:4  
career 44:9 49:13  
careful 44:20,21  
case 55:25  
choose 17:3 23:14 51:19  
chose 36:23  
bring 34:19 41:21 45:19 54:18  
57:17  
chosen 33:9 43:21  
church 39:13  
brings 29:5 30:12 34:17 39:15  
43:16  
catch 37:7  
Cathleen 2:6,7 3:11  
celebrating 44:4  
centers 38:14  
certified 42:15  
cetera 27:6,7  
circumstances 32:4  
Brittni 17:25 31:1,3 32:20  
48:23,24 49:4 50:6 52:13  
56:23 59:9 61:7 62:1,4,6,17,  
19 63:3,10,25 64:2,4  
citizen 12:12 13:8 14:2,5,15  
17:10 41:23  
citizen-led 14:11 15:2,7 20:20  
broker 42:14  
brooms 35:8  
brought 37:1  
budget 51:10  
built 45:4,16 46:8  
business 51:5  
busy 43:14  
citizens 12:4 13:10,17,19,21  
15:9,18,22 16:25 17:4 23:5,6  
33:10,11 45:15,17,22 46:11  
chair 5:12 11:2 12:25 17:14  
27:12,20,23 45:1 46:24 47:3,  
7,9,10,22 48:3,4 49:12,22  
50:8,10,22 51:1,12,18,22  
57:24 60:14 63:3 64:13,17,18,  
22 65:2,7 66:5  
city 30:2 31:5,7,9 42:12  
clapping 52:18  
clarification 17:2  
clarify 58:4  
chair's 51:21  
Clark 18:4,5 33:24,25 34:1  
35:4 59:13,14 60:19 61:13  
63:15  
bye 66:15,16  
chaired 49:13 51:8,9  
chairperson 51:3  
chairs 51:16 54:8 57:15  
challenge 41:6  
C
classes 39:4 52:25  
clear 27:25  
California 34:15  
call 4:8 7:13,19 10:20,21  
12:20 17:15,20 19:20 20:3  
27:12,21 29:1,8 32:6 34:1  
37:14 47:3 54:9 55:17 56:15  
58:2,18,20 60:11,12,21 63:5  
65:25  
challenges 11:13 41:5 52:20  
challenging 38:5  
chance 32:8 37:6 39:17  
change 16:20 41:12  
characteristics 34:22  
charged 20:25  
clicking 2:7  
Clinic 31:15  
close 13:16 15:15 47:4  
closed 3:18 9:6  
code 28:2  
called 16:20 17:21 27:14  
37:16 40:22 60:25  
coffee 6:4  
Charlotte 36:12  
cohousing 40:22 42:6  
collaboration 15:12  
calls 2:25 13:18  
chat 47:13,19  
cameras 23:16,25  
09/17/2020  
23:13,14,24 25:6 26:1 29:7,8  
32:24 33:8 43:9 46:23 47:14  
49:3 51:16 52:1 54:14,25  
55:24 57:25 60:8 62:16 64:11,  
21 65:5  
·4  
collaborative 50:12  
colleague 24:24 30:1  
colleagues 16:16 29:7  
collectively 15:11  
college 33:12,13,15 39:6  
combination 40:7  
comfort 43:4  
constitutional 12:17 21:10  
consultant 31:18  
contact 4:16,18  
contenders 62:19  
continue 13:24 30:18  
continues 24:16  
committed 16:9  
committee 51:3 56:18  
committees 51:10,11,12  
communities 21:6,8 46:20  
convene 66:11  
comfortable 50:14 52:15,19  
53:19 54:5,16 55:7,11,14  
convened 12:22 13:5 46:23  
convenes 4:20 5:9  
community 11:1 21:4 32:12  
38:21 39:6 40:22 41:15 42:23,  
24 46:7  
comment 4:13 5:10 6:12,14,  
15,19 7:1,5,7,12 8:7,8,20,24  
17:7 18:24 19:2,3,5,10,12,17  
20:1,4 21:21,24 55:18,21  
convening 6:17,25 12:20  
52:12  
community-driven 21:2  
company 35:15 53:2  
complain 37:25  
conversation 25:16,19 26:4  
Cool 29:12  
commentary 19:24  
cooperative 41:16,18,19  
core 32:15  
comments 6:9,10,23 8:18  
21:22  
complete 19:14 56:12  
completed 29:20  
commission 2:24 6:12,14,18,  
24 7:12 8:9,14,19,25 11:1  
12:5,17 13:11,20 14:16,20  
16:6 17:10 19:6,8,9,18,21,24  
20:2,7 23:5,7 27:9,10 28:5  
29:21 30:17 33:9 37:7 38:3  
42:7,20 44:17 45:17,22 50:20  
51:2,22 64:16 65:1  
corner 23:17  
comprehensive 26:11  
comprising 45:15  
Corps 40:4,5  
correct 56:18 57:3,21 58:12,  
21 62:22 65:22 66:3  
computer 7:14 23:15 53:9  
concept 36:4  
correctly 2:22 35:19 50:4  
count 21:12,18  
concepts 5:4  
concern 16:23 17:1,2 20:17  
conclude 8:15 51:19  
concludes 21:21,22 28:14  
conduct 17:20 51:5  
confidence 45:23  
commissioned 21:1  
country 12:15 15:7 33:18  
42:17  
commissioner 5:16 17:9,24  
18:1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17,19,  
21 23:2,3 24:9,21 28:23 29:11  
31:2 32:8,21,23 33:25 35:4,7,  
10 36:11 37:14,16 38:9,24  
39:22 42:11 43:8,25 44:2  
48:5,9,12,16,18,23 49:11,22  
50:7,25 52:4,14,23 53:13,22,  
25 54:13,24 55:18 56:7,8  
57:2,16 58:6,12,14 59:8,10,  
12,14,16,18,20,22,24 60:1,3,  
5,7,15,19 61:5,8,11,13,16,19,  
22,25 62:3,6,8,11,14,24 63:9,  
11,13,15,17,19,22,25 64:2,4,  
6,8,10 65:10,12,15,16,18,20,  
22,23 66:6,9,16  
County 39:6  
couple 3:9 24:18 25:23 49:23  
56:9  
court 54:4  
confused 26:16  
covering 10:22  
COVID 29:25  
craft 20:18 21:10  
crafts 38:16  
congratulations 20:8 23:12  
64:23 65:1  
Congress 15:14  
congressional 13:22  
connection 52:20 54:17  
consensus 16:15  
create 13:11,19 14:10,14  
45:18 64:17  
creating 45:21  
creation 15:13  
Creek 33:5  
constitution 5:16 12:19 16:5  
22:16,17,19,21  
commissioners 2:10 4:23  
8:10 9:2 10:4,23,24 12:21  
16:16,24 17:19 18:22 22:4  
09/17/2020  
Decker 18:8,9 37:13,14,16  
59:19,20 61:22 63:22  
·5  
crimes 31:16  
21:11  
crisis 29:25  
districting 13:18 39:16  
districts 21:18  
diverse 45:24  
deem 16:8  
critically 13:13,14  
culture 31:23  
define 32:15  
degree 29:19 35:13 36:15 39:5  
degrees 29:17 39:4  
deliberation 15:11 51:17  
delivered 37:10  
cultures 33:20  
divisive 38:5  
curious 52:6  
dog 31:24  
current 29:4 31:9 39:1 42:14  
curriculum 51:10  
Doug 34:1 35:2 59:13 63:14  
Douglas 18:4 33:24 34:1  
democratic 21:14  
demonstrate 15:6  
61:12  
Curry 18:12,13 38:23,24,25  
59:23,24 62:3 64:2  
dozens 51:8  
Cynthia 18:2 32:22,24 33:23  
35:23 59:11 61:10 63:12  
65:16  
Department 2:16 4:17 7:8  
17:18 24:20 25:3 63:5  
drafters 45:21  
draw 12:9 13:21 15:18  
drawing 15:20 20:25 37:8  
dream 20:23  
depend 47:12  
depends 36:13 45:14  
describing 46:6  
details 4:5 9:20  
D
drive 36:13  
D.C. 34:4  
drove 45:10  
dad's 39:25  
Detroit 29:16 31:5,6,8 37:18  
38:25 44:12  
Dustin 35:5,11 48:9,10,11  
49:4,21 50:5 52:22 56:6,8  
57:1 59:15 61:15 63:16 65:20  
Data 34:10 37:22  
date 4:11 7:3  
Detroiter 31:4  
daughter 43:12  
daughters 34:14 44:12  
dialogue 5:15 55:13  
difference 38:2  
Dustin's 48:13  
Dutch 35:25  
day 6:8 8:4 12:5 30:7 35:22  
47:5  
difficulties 10:5 11:9  
digits 7:19  
duties 22:23,25  
duty 43:17  
days 4:22 5:24 19:12 20:15  
deal 40:16  
direct 4:16 25:23  
direction 13:3 16:7,12 51:21  
directly 13:5 62:21  
E
dealt 39:8  
early 34:12  
dean 51:10  
director 2:15 4:17 20:9 25:2  
31:18 50:9  
easier 3:22 9:14  
Eastern 37:19  
easy 29:1  
debate 25:16 27:15,18  
decade 14:12,20  
decades 20:13 44:19  
decide 15:1 47:9 56:22  
decided 43:20 52:25  
discharge 22:23,24  
Discord 53:18  
Ed 18:8 37:14,15,18 38:7  
61:21 63:21  
discuss 17:11 46:25 51:23  
discussed 16:19  
educated 32:25  
education 31:22  
efforts 16:10  
decision 12:24 14:13 15:12  
16:22 27:15,23 47:24  
discussion 47:4,23 51:24  
54:9,10 56:24  
decisions 5:6,20 12:10 13:2  
14:6,8,18 16:15 25:16 47:4  
disk 35:22  
Eid 17:23,24 29:10,11,12  
48:12,16 50:24,25 53:13 56:8  
district 13:21 15:18,20 20:25  
09/17/2020  
essentially 26:8  
·6  
57:16 58:6,12 59:8 61:5 63:9  
fairly 30:22 36:7  
faithfully 22:23,24  
fall 36:20  
elect 5:12 11:1 17:14 46:24  
47:2,9 51:21  
estate 42:14  
ethos 46:2,9  
elected 12:25  
everyone's 25:19 50:2  
evidence 30:10,21  
excellent 50:19  
familiar 11:12 49:14,17 50:11,  
18 51:6 53:8  
election 20:25 57:23  
elections 5:3 21:17  
Electronic 34:10 37:22  
eloquent 32:25  
families 46:20  
family 41:22 46:2  
fantasy 30:8  
excited 21:6 46:17  
executive 20:9 31:18 50:9  
expect 7:8  
email 3:23 4:4,7 6:22 8:1,22  
9:15,19 19:15 24:5,7  
fast 36:13  
father 37:16  
expectations 5:18  
expected 14:7 16:18  
expecting 36:5  
embrace 15:25  
father's 40:3  
emphasis 46:1  
favor 27:12,20 28:1 58:16 66:7  
features 52:18,19  
feedback 8:12  
emphasizing 15:15  
employees 35:16  
empowering 15:9  
enable 16:11 26:3  
experience 29:4 31:10,17  
34:6,23 49:25 50:9 51:13  
52:5,11  
feel 21:12 32:24 33:1 41:14,23  
42:24 54:16,22  
experiences 39:1  
experiencing 2:20  
expert 28:8  
end 6:8 12:23 13:2 20:13  
27:15,18 41:12 47:5 51:19  
feeling 20:23  
feels 40:23  
feet 30:16  
endeavor 10:1  
experts 5:3 16:17,21  
explain 26:19  
energy 54:19  
fellow 13:21 16:16,24 29:7  
engage 14:7 17:3  
engaging 15:9  
32:24 33:7,11  
express 55:21  
figure 11:11 43:16  
figured 43:1  
extraordinary 12:1 13:7,9  
extreme 20:13  
engineer 37:20,22  
English 4:2 9:18  
enjoy 32:1 35:22 39:13 41:6  
enjoyed 34:7  
figuring 3:1 55:15  
filings 35:18  
extremely 31:21 32:3,7  
eyes 13:9 15:21,22  
fill 6:19 19:12  
F
ensure 14:25 34:18 50:2  
enter 14:14  
finally 5:19 43:24  
finance 51:10  
Facebook 3:11,17 6:21 8:21  
entertain 60:11 65:8,11  
entire 12:15 44:9  
environment 15:4 32:19  
equivalent 28:22  
era 11:14 44:11  
9:9 19:14  
find 3:16 8:20 9:10 15:5 20:12  
30:5 41:6 43:1 55:23  
facilitate 11:3 47:3 51:4 56:24  
57:11  
finish 8:15 13:8  
finished 52:16  
first-come 7:10  
first-serve 7:10  
fishing 42:18  
facilitating 52:6,16  
facilitator 54:18,21 55:19,22  
56:10  
Erin 18:6 36:10,12 37:12  
59:17 61:18 63:18  
fair 13:18,24 15:7,13 20:20  
21:1 30:20 32:18 34:18 38:20  
09/17/2020  
·7  
flag 26:13  
36:8  
greatest 41:8  
greatly 46:16  
Green 35:7 42:12  
grew 44:8  
flexible 6:2  
G
floor 18:24 59:2  
flow 50:11  
gaining 32:4  
fluently 40:15  
flying 35:8  
games 30:9  
ground 45:4  
General 34:9 37:20 43:12  
generally 6:3  
group 5:7,12,20 20:11 25:18  
33:10 50:13 55:25  
focus 14:2 25:18  
focused 28:8  
folks 31:13 32:14  
football 30:7,8  
form 6:20 8:20 19:13,15  
formally 12:21  
format 55:8  
Groupme 53:18  
groups 41:24  
grow 41:15  
generations 36:9  
German 40:8,15  
Germany 39:25 40:3  
gerrymandering 20:14  
getters 59:4 60:22  
girl 36:16  
guess 41:17,22 42:1,6,16  
43:2,16 44:21 54:13,19  
guide 13:3 14:6  
guy 53:16  
forward 6:2 13:3 16:3 25:15  
29:22 32:18 34:24 36:21  
37:10 48:6 56:12 57:12 64:14,  
17  
give 2:11 10:10 11:9,14 20:19  
29:23 30:19,22 38:21 47:20  
52:10  
guys 51:13  
H
giving 21:7 32:14  
glad 39:18  
forwards 49:8  
foster 39:7  
hair 33:16  
halls 20:15  
golf 34:13 35:22  
found 40:17 42:23  
founded 40:21  
framework 25:13,14  
frankly 15:3  
good 2:5,10 7:2 8:3 11:6,24,25 hand 22:7,12 23:17 47:18  
25:1 31:2 33:25 34:6 35:25  
38:4 39:14 40:16 41:10,23  
42:11 45:12,14,16 49:19  
52:3,18,19 56:16  
handful 20:16  
hands 47:12 51:25  
handyman 43:14  
happen 34:21  
happened 37:7  
happy 30:8 34:25  
hard 31:6 55:24  
hat 43:2  
governance 45:13  
governing 16:14  
graduate 34:3,8  
graduated 37:19 44:11  
graduating 34:3  
grandsons 43:13  
Grass 33:4  
free 38:20  
Friday 52:17  
friends 32:3 35:24  
front 6:1  
fruition 20:22  
fulfill 13:18  
full 5:1 10:17 27:9 49:1  
fully 25:22  
hate 24:10  
Grassroots 20:10  
grateful 15:23  
hear 5:3,17 7:22 10:9,10 11:4,  
7,19 12:22 29:11 40:24  
furnace 16:7  
gratitude 12:7 45:2  
heard 21:19 42:25 50:3 57:5,  
12  
furtherance 46:11  
furthest 44:15  
future 7:7 8:5 12:10 14:15  
great 2:5 3:11 10:11 12:14  
20:24 24:1 26:18 32:18 34:25  
45:2,23 46:10  
hearing 17:7 66:10  
Held 2:2  
09/17/2020  
humbled 36:6  
·8  
helpful 5:5  
independent 12:4 14:15  
16:13,14 23:5,6  
helping 35:17 39:9  
helps 41:14,20  
humbly 48:6 61:9  
hundreds 21:4  
hunting 42:18  
Huntington 34:14  
husband 38:16  
hustle 31:6