The Michigan House and Senate each provide a live-streaming service for committee meetings and sessions. There’s also an archive dating back to 2015.
While the general public may not consider this “must-see TV”, they are important and under-used resources for animal advocates. Committee hearings are the primary opportunity to advocate for animal welfare bills (and to oppose bad legislation). Being able to view a hearing in real time, and see what happened in past hearings on bills of interest to you is essential to prepare for testifying yourself.
Our goal is to help you be a more informed, better prepared, and more confident animal advocate.
The legislature meets most Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, with House committees generally in the mornings, and Senate committees generally in the afternoons. That’s because House sessions are in the afternoons, while Senate sessions are in the mornings. You can watch these sessions, too.
We expect a variety of animal welfare bills to be introduced in the 102nd which has just begun. AFA will notify you of legislation being introduced through our social media and the monthly Legislative Tracker™. Once you identify the committee to which a bill of interest has been assigned, you can begin to watch those committee hearings to get a feel for how it is run.
You can look back at past hearings as well, both from the current session (currently, from January and February 2023) and past ones all the way back to 2015. What is the point of watching a hearing from years before when committee membership and composition has changed, and the bill being considered is no longer pending?
First, it may require several legislative sessions for a bill to finally make it over the finish line and become law. Take for example Teddy’s bill which would require research facilities in the state to partner with shelters so that animals have a chance to be adopted into loving families after the experiments are completed. This bill was introduced in both the 100th and 101st sessions and we expect it to be re-introduced in the 102nd. Teddy’s bill was heard by the House Regulatory Reform Committe on February 22, 2022 (HBs 4881-82). You can watch it here beginning at about 10:30.
Second, watching old hearings of a bill you oppose is an invaluable learning experience. There’s no better way to gain an understanding of the the dynamics of speaking out against a bill that a majority of committee members support. A good example is SR 15 of 2021 calling for a wolf hunt. The Natural Resources Committee took testimony on February 24, 2021 and there was strong opposition. You can watch it here beginning at about 36.20.
