Michigan Live » The Flint City Council voted to approve purchasing water from Detroit instead of continuing to use Flint River as the water source. The city’s Emergency Manager, who was appointed by the Governor, claims it will cost $12 million more per year to make this change, and that water from Detroit is no safer than water from Flint. Residents have complained about the water quality since April 2014, and testing in early 2015 found Flint water to be in violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act.