In 2016, then-U.S. President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in the city of Flint, Michigan. For years, city residents had been drinking water with dangerously elevated levels of lead, which is hazardous to all and can cause serious neurological damage to children. In order to save money, Flint switched its water source from the nearby city of Detroit to a local river. Agents of each responsible institution failed to investigate subsequent clear signals of trouble with local water quality. The new water source had higher corrosiveness, which caused lead from the pipes to leach into the water supply. Local officials failed to test the water in homes in order to monitor lead levels. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality failed to follow its own protocols to investigate the issue. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which issued a memo outlining the corrosiveness problem, informed local officials that it was a draft memo and did not push aggressively for more investigation. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services prepared and then dismissed a report revealing higher-than-usual lead levels in the blood of children who lived in Flint. It was only when a local medical center reported double the number of children with high levels of lead in their blood that public attention caused a regulatory response. A panel subsequently issued a report concluding that state officials were “‘fundamentally accountable’ for the lead contamination of Flint’s water supply.” This example illustrates the fact that even if several institutions detect a problem, without coordination and clear accountability action may not be taken to address the problem.