Michigan House Republicans want to hear from residents who have been wronged by the government, and those seeking answers bureaucrats aren’t willing to provide.

“People across Michigan are asking tough questions but getting few answers. That lack of accountability has eroded trust in government, and it’s well past time to fix it,” according to a new House Oversight Committee website launched Tuesday.

“That’s why House Republicans are introducing a stronger, more focused Oversight Committee. The people deserve answers, and they’re going to get them.”

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State Rep. Angela Rigas, R-Caledonia, chair of the committee’s Subcommittee on Weaponization of State Government, noted the new website’s key purpose is to allow the public to submit tips and suggestions for upcoming investigations.

“We’re going to look into every submission sent and listen to every whistle blown until no stone is left unturned,” Rigas said. “As Chair of the Subcommittee on Weaponization of State Government, I want to hear the stories of each and every Michigan resident who’s been victimized by government overreach and get them the justice they deserve.”

Rigas ran for office in 2022 after she was charged with a misdemeanor for defying Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s pandemic edicts at a Capitol rally, where she dared to offer free haircuts amid the closure of all “nonessential” businesses.

Afterwards, Whitmer’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs attempted unsuccessfully to revoke Rigas’ cosmetology license, while the charge against her was eventually dismissed.

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Rigas was re-elected in November along with a Republican majority that has since moved to expand the House Oversight Committee with subpoena power and six subcommittees: Weaponization of State Government, the Child Welfare System, Corporate Subsidies and State Investments, Public Health and Food Safety, Homeland Security and Foreign Influence, and State and Local Public Assistance Programs.

“Over the past two years, there have been too many troubling examples of state government operating with little oversight,” the new Oversight website reads. “We’ve seen millions funneled into projects tied to the Chinese Communist Party, hush money deals covering up government missteps, dozens of audits left on a self, and a lack of real transparency in decision-making.”

“We’re going to look at everything from deadly COVID mishandlings to government corruption,” said Rigas. “Our constituents deserve to know what their tax dollars have been funding, both good and bad.”

The House Oversight Committee provides critical checks and balances within the Legislature, handling issues involving state government, including reviewing audit reports released by the Auditor General and legislation addressing governance of the Legislature, state departments and agencies.

The committee is chaired by Rep. Jay DeBoyer, R-Clay, who noted in January there were over 50 reportable findings across state departments in audits conducted by the Office of the Auditor General from 2022-24, but Democrats held few committee hearings that would help ensure compliance and that problems were being corrected.

“That’s an irresponsible action out of the administration and a controlling party in the House,” DeBoyer said. “But that’s going to change.”

The increased oversight is also expected to target abuses of power and malfeasance by the Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.

The Whitmer administration has been plagued by questions about the coverup of nursing home deaths during the pandemic, secret negotiations that led to $715 million in taxpayer-funded subsidies for Chinese EV battery component manufacturer Gotion and the company’s close ties to the Chinese Communist Party, business incentive deals that benefitted the governor’s political backers, and massive taxpayer subsidies for illegal immigrants, among other issues.

Benson faces multiple complaints to the State Bar of Michigan’s Attorney Grievance Commission over her “deceitful” efforts to manipulate the 2024 ballot, and a $82,500 campaign contribution to Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Bolden’s reelection coffers. Bolden, as it happens, ruled in Benson’s favor on multiple cases.

Questions also surround Benson’s fierce legal fights to avoid vetting the state’s bloated voter rolls, partisan voter registration efforts, and illegal voting in the 2024 election, in addition to multiple allegations of campaign finance violations.

Nessel has aggressively prosecuted Republicans in recent years, targeted Republican candidates during the 2024 election, and meddled in investigations involving high-level Democrats.

“This is a person who has engaged in lawfare who goes after people, notice they’re almost always Republicans, and ties them up in years and years of frivolous criminal litigation,” House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Twp., said of Nessel. “There is going to be scrutiny on that budget. Her department and her office is out of control.”

The Oversight Committee is asking residents to submit tips through a “Contact Us” form on MIOversight.com, encouraging “all those who have been victimized by government tyranny or have information pertaining to the subcommittee’s investigations to please reach out.”

“Accountability begins right now,” Rigas said. “With your help, we’re going to get answers and bring the truth to light.”