Flint in particular was incompetence at the state level, not local. Michigan passed a law saying that any bankrupt township can be run by an "emergency manager

Flint in particular was incompetence at the state level, not local. Michigan passed a law saying that any bankrupt township can be run by an "emergency manager" who gets all local executive power. The mayor or city council no longer have any effective authority, nor do any other locally elected officials. It was the emergency manager for Flint who decided to switch water suppliers to reduce cost, and who decided not to use the chemical processing necessary for the new water supply to be compatible with the existing pipes. This was effectively a decision made at the state level that caused the Flint water crisis.