Snyder also said he would release all emails pertaining to the issue of Flint water from 2014 and 2015, to provide transparency in an effort to clarify the course of events.

Governor Rick Snyder devoted most of Tuesday night's State of the State speech to the Flint water crisis.

"I'm sorry most of all that I let you down", Snyder, whose administration is engulfed in criticism, said in address, as hundreds of protesters demonstrated outside the Capitol.

Rick Snyder thought he'd calm fears and win over residents when he addressed the current water crisis in Flint, he was mistaken.

The crisis originated in 2014 when Flint switched its water source from the Detroit supply to the Flint River to save money.

The state has been criticized for largely ignoring complaints about the water until late a year ago, and presidential candidates from both sides have slammed the way officials have handled the situation. Flint residents - 57 percent of whom are African-American and 41 percent of whom have incomes below federal poverty guidelines - immediately complained about the color, smell and taste of the water.

Bill Goodman, another member of the legal team, explained to reporters the objective of the three lawsuits: The federal lawsuit filed in November addresses alleged violations of the U.S. Constitution; the suit filed last week in the Michigan Court of Claims targets alleged violations of the state constitution; and the suit filed in Genesee County Circuit Court deals with what he called "grossly negligent actions by government officials". "I'm sorry, and I will fix it". The money would be earmarked for bottled water, water filters, treating people with elevated lead levels in their blood, and a study assessing the infrastructure that supports Flint's water system. He's going to be meeting with the governor tomorrow. On Saturday, the president did sign an emergency declaration for Flint, clearing the way for the city to receive federal aid.

Snyder said in his speech Wednesday night that he didn't know about the "scope and magnitude" of the crisis until September, after researchers from Virginia Tech conducted an independent investigation into Flint's water.

"While I was pleased to hear the governor speak directly to the people of Flint, I believe the plan he outlined tonight fell short of what is needed to fully address the extensive needs of Flint residents suffering from lead exposure, especially Flint's children", first-term U.S. Sen.

"I want to solve this problem", he told the National Journal. Flint had purchased the Lake Huron water from Detroit, which treated it for distribution.

The crisis, which has resulted in elevated levels of lead in local children, and might have been responsible for killing 10 people with Legionnaire's Disease, has put the governor and other high-ranking officials in his administration under heavy fire for being unresponsive to - and perhaps responsible for - the town's plight.

"Our first priority is to make sure the water in Flint is safe, but we also must look at what the agency could have done differently", the agency said in a statement.

Also Tuesday, President Barack Obama named Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Dr. Nicole Lurie to a position of coordinating federal assistance to Flint.

Weaver also met with Obama's senior adviser and his intergovernmental affairs director on Tuesday.