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Late last Thursday, May 4, the
State Senate and Assembly adjourned the Regular Session of the
2005-06 Legislature. Bills that did not pass both the Senate and
Assembly with identical language are dead for this session and no
new bills may be introduced. Both houses were also working
concurrently in an Extraordinary Session that has been recessed
but not adjourned and, therefore, a few bills still pending could
be dealt with if the Legislature decides to reconvene the
Extraordinary Session.
During its last week, the Legislature gave final approval to a number of
bills, some of which are referenced below. Of significant note, however, was
the failure of a proposed constitutional amendment to place limits on the
growth of government spending. As noted last week, the Assembly passed a
version which would have placed limits on state government only, and would
have left much of the detail to implementing legislation. The Senate failed
to act on that proposal with several Republicans joining Democrats in
opposition. The opposition among Republicans was split between those who
opposed amending the constitution for the purpose of limiting spending and
those who believed that the proposal was no longer strong enough.
Both Houses of the Wisconsin Legislature did pass a bill (AB-1163) to repeal
the “shareholder liability” provision in Wisconsin law that is cited as a
major impediment to capital investment in Wisconsin. The statute in question
provides that shareholders of a corporation are personally liable for an
amount equal to the par value of (and probably total value paid for) their
shares owned for all wages owing to employees for up to the preceding six
months. The existing provision is out of sync with virtually every other
state in the country.
There are currently 104 measures that have passed both houses and are
awaiting action by the Governor, who has until May 30 to act. Under
Wisconsin law, any bills not acted upon by the deadline, automatically
become law.
We
at The Hamilton Consulting Group join others in extending our
condolences to Gov. Doyle and his family on the passing of his mother, Ruth
Doyle. Mrs. Doyle was an exceptional person who made substantial
contributions to the betterment of the state of Wisconsin.
| In
This Issue |
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Bills Awaiting Action by the Governor
Ruth Doyle Remembered |
| Policy
Developments |
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Bills Awaiting Action by the Governor
The following “selected bills” passed the second House last week
and are enrolled for gubernatorial action.
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AB 33:
Provides an exception to confidentiality requirements for treatment
records.
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AB 958:
Civil liability exemption for assistance provided as the result of an
emergency.
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AB 1163:
Repeal of shareholder liability.
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AB 1186:
Unincorporated cooperative associations.
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SB 99:
Time period for service of a responsive pleading.
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SB 136:
Creates income and franchise tax credits for businesses located in an
airport development zone and a loan program for certain construction
projects in an airport development zone.
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SB 358:
Establishes a prohibition on charging excessive prices during a period of
declared emergency.
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SB 563:
Creates income and franchise tax credits for expenses related to film
production services and for capital investments made by a film production
company.
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SB 567:
Limits eligibility for public assistance programs to U.S. citizens and
qualifying aliens.
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SB 616:
Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act.
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SB 639:
Payment of interest on property tax refunds for manufacturing property.
For more information on Legislative developments,
go to the
WMBA
Legislative Tracking Report. |
| Wisconsin
Politics |
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Ruth Doyle Remembered
On Saturday, May 6, after a long battle with Parkinson's Disease,
Ruth Doyle, mother of Gov. Jim Doyle, passed away.
In 1948, she became one of the first
women elected to the Wisconsin Legislature. When she was elected
to the Assembly, she was the first Democrat in decades and the
first woman ever to represent Madison. She is also remembered for
her notable service as longtime assistant
to the Dean of the UW-Madison Law School.
She went on to serve with distinction as the only
female member of the Dane County Board and was the first female president of
the Madison School Board. In 1990, the School Board named the district's
administration building in her honor.
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| In
the News |
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Doyle orders deal on piers into effect; most meet rules:
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 9, 2006. Republicans say he overstepped
his authority.
3 Wisconsin cities called smart places to live:
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 9, 2006. La Crosse, Madison and
Oshkosh rank on Kiplinger's Personal Finance list.
Your
Legislature in action: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 8, 2006.
State lawmakers tackled a variety of measures in just-finished session.
Legislative session marked by 'politics of conflict': La Crosse
Tribune, May 8, 2006. Here's a look at how the action in Madison will
affect the state's 5.5 million residents.
Strategy
session fuels more Tommy talk: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 8,
2006. Recent poll showed Thompson trouncing Doyle by 58%-30%, with the
rest undecided.
Feingold critical of Hayden nomination for CIA: Green Bay
Press-Gazette, May 8, 2006. Bush announced the nomination of Gen.
Michael Hayden in the Oval Office this morning.
54th contenders expect attention: Oshkosh Northwestern, May 7, 2006.
Hintz, Pung Leschke, Didlo readying to run.
Supporters
of spending limit amendment say lessons learned: Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel, May 6, 2006. Start earlier, stay consistent and market better,
they say.
Referendums
may boost GOP: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 6, 2006. Death
penalty, marriage votes likely to energize Republicans, experts say.
Defeat of ethics bill a lost opportunity (opinion): La Crosse
Tribune, May 6, 2006. They could have done much more.
Giving the people reason to believe (opinion): Beloit Daily News, Ma
5, 2006. The best argument we can see for adopting new ethics
legislation is to send a message.
7 from GOP
reject spending limit: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 5, 2006.
Senators reject state spending limits, defeating 3-year effort for
amendment.
For more Wisconsin News, go to
Hamilton Consulting News Clips. |
© 2006 The Hamilton Consulting Group
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