New law could end confusion in Michigan over Flint name

By ANNA LIZ NICHOLS
Associated Press/ Report for America

FLINT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A new Michigan law could mean a new name for Flint Township, which for years has been trying to show that it’s separate from the city of Flint despite sharing a border and a name. Until recently, townships across the state had no authority to change their names, unlike cities and villages. That ended last month when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a law to allow it. The confusion isn’t isolated to the Flints, where in recent years the city’s lead-in-water crisis has renewed interest in changing the township’s name. As many as 352 of Michigan’s 1,240 townships share a name with at least one other township. That number doesn’t include places like Flint Township that share a name with cities or counties.