Washington • Government officials tangled on Wednesday over who was to blame for the crisis in Flint, Michigan, that allowed lead-contaminated water to flow to thousands of residents at a combative congressional hearing that devolved into a partisan fight over witnesses and no-shows.
"A failure of epic proportions," said Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at the first Capitol Hill hearing since the crisis in Flint emerged last year.
Joel Beauvais, acting water chief for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said Michigan officials ignored federal advice to treat Flint water for corrosion-causing elements last year and delayed for months before telling the public about the health risks.
"What happened in Flint was avoidable and never should have happened," Beauvais told the House panel.
Countering the federal official, Keith Creagh, director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, acknowledged that the state should have required Flint to treat its water but said the EPA "did not display the sense of urgency that the situation demanded," allowing the problem to fester for months.
Creagh apologized for the state's role in the water crisis but said, "in retrospect, government at all levels should have done more."
Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time.
Water was not properly treated to keep lead from pipes from leaching into the supply. Some children's blood has tested positive for lead, a potent neurotoxin linked to learning disabilities, lower IQ and behavioral problems.
In the Senate, Democrats are pressing for money for Flint and threatened to block a bipartisan energy bill if the city doesn't get some relief.
"We are serious, and if they want a bill we want to help the people of Flint," said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., sponsor of a package of aid that Democrats hope to add to the energy bill.
Democrats had proposed a $600 million package, but Stabenow said they had a agreed to less than half of what they had originally asked for. But Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the second-ranking Republican, said it "seems a little premature to write a multi-hundred million dollar blank check when the state hasn't even assessed their needs," and is already getting funds from the state and the Obama administration.
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Keith Creagh, director, Department of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Flint, Mich. resident LeeAnne Walters testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Flint, Mich. resident LeeAnne Walters testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Flint is under a public health emergency after its drinking water became tainted when the city switched from the Detroit system and began drawing from the Flint River in April 2014 to save money. The city was under state management at the time. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Witnesses, from left, Joel Beauvais, acting deputy assistant administrator, Office of Water, EPA; Keith Creagh, director, Department of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan; Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech professor, Environmental and Water Resources Engineering: and Flint, Mich. resident LeeAnne Walters, are sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Witnesses, from left, Joel Beauvais, acting deputy assistant administrator, Office of Water, EPA; Keith Creagh, director, Department of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan; Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech professor, Environmental and Water Resources Engineering: and Flint, Mich. resident LeeAnne Walters, are sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2016, prior to testifying before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Keith Creagh, director, Department of Environmental Quality, State of Michigan, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich. Michigan should have required the city of Flint to treat its water for corrosion-causing elements after elevated lead levels were first discovered in the city's water a year ago, the state's top environmental regulator says in testimony prepared for congressional hearing. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Flint, Mich. resident Glaydes Williamson holds up water from Flint and hair pulled from her drain, during the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich., on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Michigan should have required the city of Flint to treat its water for corrosion-causing elements after elevated lead levels were first discovered in the city's water a year ago, the state's top environmental regulator says in testimony prepared for congressional hearing. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Flint, Mich. resident Glaydes Williamson holds up water from Flint and hair pulled from her drain, during the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to examine the ongoing situation in Flint, Mich., on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Michigan should have required the city of Flint to treat its water for corrosion-causing elements after elevated lead levels were first discovered in the city's water a year ago, the state's top environmental regulator says in testimony prepared for congressional hearing. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)