From NBC News:
NBC NEWS - Michigan's legal bills for the man-made water crisis in Flint are piling up.
At least $14 million has been spent hiring lawyers from at least 33 law firms, according to an Associated Press analysis of state records. Costs are only expected to balloon as Attorney General Bill Schuette's outside team of two-dozen attorneys and investigators turns toward prosecuting a dozen current or former state employees or appointees whose criminal defenses are being covered by taxpayers.
"The millions spent on legal fees could be used to save people from losing their homes and ensuring safe water for everyone," said Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich, a Flint Democrat. "Instead taxpayers are stuck picking up an even larger tab for a crisis that could have been avoided if this administration had put people first from the start."
Schuette has spent $4.4 million of the $5.1 million authorized so far for a 17-month probe led by special counsel Todd Flood. When he charged two high-ranking members of Republican Gov. Rick Snyder's administration, Schuette said it is "absolutely imperative" that the governor and lawmakers provide additional funding to "deliver justice to the families of Flint."
While he has said not said how much more is needed for his investigation into the lead contamination of children and a deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak, the GOP-led Legislature has authorized $2 million for the next fiscal year — $600,000 less than in the current budget.
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