State Rep. Angela Rigas (R-Caledonia) today responded to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) after they requested an egregiously long extension for a simple oversight request this week. On Wednesday, the DNR requested an extension of 150 business days to a records request originally sent by Rigas on June 13. The request asked for records, footage, and laboratory documentation regarding the DNR’s enforcement of the Invasive Species Order against pig farms and ranches. The DNR’s extension request would push the due date from July 3, 2025, to late January 2026.

Previously, Rigas’ Oversight Subcommittee on Weaponization of State Government heard testimony from multiple pig farmers who testified on the DNR’s broad interpretation of the order they used to massacre thousands of pigs unjustly. Witnesses testified that the DNR would use vague characteristics like the floppiness of pigs’ ears, shape of their tails, and facial features to justify whether or not the pig would live or be killed without compensating the owner.

“Thank you for your response,” Rigas wrote back to the DNR on Thursday. “We’re happy to extend your deadline from July 3rd to no later than 5:00 PM on July 14, 2025.”

In their initial response letter, the DNR made multiple references to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and referred to the deadlines set as ‘non-binding’. Rigas’ request was not a FOIA request and was well-within the scope of the oversight committee’s duty to review the work of state agencies.

“The snarkiness of career bureaucrats in Lansing is beyond ridiculous and we’re not letting them off the hook,” Rigas said. “As members of the Oversight Committee, we have a clear duty defined by the state of Michigan to provide oversight to the executive branch. The DNR is clearly in the wrong and deeply violated the rights of these farmers. Now they’re refusing accountability to the people’s representatives and treating our legislative authority like a simple FOIA request. They have until close of business on July 14 to produce these documents.”

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