Grand Rapids comptroller sues to reclaim powers stripped by city hall

The comptroller of Grand Rapids is fighting to restore his office’s authority after the city stripped it from him in early 2025.

Grand Rapids City Comptroller Max Frantz has asked the Kent County Circuit Court to invalidate a reorganization that removed core financial responsibilities from his elected office without voter approval. He filed two motions for a summary disposition challenging the transfer of authority over city payments and accounting to another office.

A court hearing on the motions is scheduled for Nov. 20, 2026.

In January 2025, the city transferred the employees of the Comptroller’s Office, which makes payments as outlined by the city charter, to the Fiscal Services Department. This placed both the comptroller’s staff and the office’s financial duties under City Manager Mark Washington and Chief Financial Officer Molly Clarin.

The reorganization came after Franz questioned Washington’s use of city funds to pay a $323 restaurant tab at Bistro Bella Vita, as well as an $822 restaurant bill on behalf of an organization he served as a board member. The legal dispute hinges on whether the city can consolidate powers designated to the comptroller, who is charged with auditing and accounting, within the office of the city manager, who serves as chief executive under a commissioner-manager structure.

Brief in Support of MSD - Accounting.pdf by mcclallen

Washington said the comptroller’s staff should report to someone under his supervision, arguing that employees performing the elected comptroller’s duties did not answer to the city manager.

Grand Rapids has a Fiscal Services Department and a chief financial officer, the lawsuit says. But Franz argues that the charter establishes the comptroller as an elected officer and assigns payment and accounting duties to his office. The reorganization, Frantz claims, takes responsibilities the charter assigns to the elected comptroller and places them in the hands of unelected employees in the city manager’s chain of command.

The city manager’s preference for controlling the comptroller’s employees does not authorize transferring the elected comptroller’s charter-assigned duties out of that office, the lawsuit argues.

Witness testimony confirms that the comptroller’s office no longer performs the core payment and accounting duties at issue. Franz’s motions cite admissions by other employees that the Comptroller’s Office no longer issues city payments, verifies accounts or available funds before payment, keeps the charter-required detailed accounts, or prescribes the city’s accounting methods. Instead, the unelected city manager and chief financial officer have taken over the comptroller’s position.

Frantz argues that the city has left the appearance of an elected office in place while stripping its authority over its charter-mandated functions. The city also continues to use the comptroller’s signature while denying his office control over payments. Washington’s office acknowledged that it affixes Frantz’s reproduced signature despite his express objection.

The city hires employees to perform accounting work, including classifying transactions, reconciling accounts, correcting errors, making accounting adjustments, and preparing financial statements. But those employees now answer to Fiscal Services management, outside the comptroller’s direction and supervision.

The lawsuit argues that giving the comptroller access to Fiscal Services’ completed reports does not satisfy the charter’s mandate that the comptroller keep the city’s accounts and prescribe its accounting methods. Grand Rapids voters previously rejected proposals to make changes to the comptroller’s office and place its financial duties under the city manager.

Franz argues in his lawsuit that Grand Rapids officials cannot bypass the electorate by retaining the elected position while transferring its substantive financial responsibilities to officials under the city manager. Frantz asks the court to declare that the challenged transfers violate the Grand Rapids City Charter, the Home Rule City Act, and the Uniform Budgeting and Accounting Act, which prohibit diminishing any charter responsibilities of an elected official.

The court filing asks the court to stop the unlawful reassignment and restore to his office the authority and resources needed to perform its mandatory duties.

Frantz lost a reelection bid on Nov. 3, but he will serve as the comptroller through Dec. 31.

“We intend to proceed with the pending motions for summary disposition,” Nicholas F.X. Gumina of Eardley Law Offices, who represents Frantz, told Michigan Capitol Confidential in an email. “The hearing remains scheduled for November 20 at 8:30 a.m., and we are preparing to proceed. We are also evaluating any procedural steps that may be necessary when the newly elected comptroller takes office if the court has not ruled on the motions by then.”

A spokesperson for the city of Grand Rapids said that it doesn’t comment on pending litigation but disagrees with the claims and will file a response soon.

"While the city does not comment on active litigation, we will be filing an official response to the motions,” the spokesperson told CapCon in a Nov. 3 email. “We firmly disagree with the Comptroller’s claims and maintain that no charter violations have occurred and will be asking the court to decide the case in our favor."