Before Joint Committee on Finance (JFC) kicked off voting this week, JFC chairs, Representative John Nygren (R-Marinette) and Senator Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) issued a memo on the budget procedures for the budget vote process. The memo included a list of 14 non-fiscal policy items that the chairs have determined will not be addressed in […]
JFC Chairs Set Ground Rules and Remove Non-Fiscal Budget Items
Date Fri, Apr. 17, 2015 - 9:10am By Hamilton
Tourism Day at the Capitol
Date Fri, Apr. 17, 2015 - 9:08am By Hamilton
On Wednesday April 15, the Wisconsin Association of Conventions and Visitors Bureaus (WACVB) held their annual legislative day where members of WACVB met with legislators. The event was hosted jointly by WACVB and the Association of Wisconsin Tourism Attractions (AWTA). State Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke addresses Tourism Day at the Capitol attendees. To start […]
Joint Finance Committee and the Calm Before the Storm
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 9:05am By Hamilton
The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) has finished up its round of public hearings across the state and will begin to vote on whether to approve, amend, or delete provisions from the governor’s budget. The JFC is waiting for the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) to complete the budget papers, which provide alternative budget provisions. JFC members […]
Hutton, Vukmir Champion Bill to Repeal State’s Prevailing Wage Law
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 9:03am By Hamilton
Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance Study Concludes Law is Flawed, Annually Costing Taxpayers Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Representative Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield) and Senator Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) have introduced Assembly Bill 32/Senate Bill 49, companion bills to repeal the state’s prevailing wage law. Wisconsin’s prevailing wage law requires state and local units of government to pay […]
Highest Court Denies to Hear Voter ID Challenge
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 9:00am By Hamilton
The U.S. Supreme Court refused to take up a challenge to Wisconsin’s Voter ID law, ending the dispute and upholding the law that was passed in 2011. In June 2014, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued its long awaited opinions (League of Women Voters v. Walker and Milwaukee Branch of NAACP v. Walker) upholding Wisconsin’s controversial Voter ID […]
Election Next Week
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 8:56am By Hamilton
Wisconsinites head to the polls on April 7th to vote in many local races, but those in Wisconsin politics are following two races: the special election for the 20th Senate District and the open seat for Waukesha County Executive. Also on the ballot is a referendum that if passed would change the way Wisconsin’s supreme […]
Governor Names DNR Deputy Secretary
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 8:55am By Hamilton
Governor Walker has announced Kurt Thiede will be the new Deputy Secretary of the Department of Natural Resouces (DNR). Thiede has been hired from within the DNR, having served fourteen years with the agency. Prior to his new appointment he was Land Division Administrator, a position which oversaw 500 personnel working in wildlife, parks and […]
CAFTA – 10 Year Anniversary
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 8:54am By Hamilton
The Class Action Reform Act (CAFTA) turned ten years old a month ago. Introduced by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in early 2005, it passed overwhelmingly in both houses of Congress and was signed into law on February 18, 2005. This Act reformed two problem areas associated with class action lawsuits. Review First CAFTA loosened diversity […]
Budget Hearings Wrap Up
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 8:51am By Hamilton
Budget hearings concluded last week after the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) held four public hearings across the state to hear citizens’ testimony on Governor Walker 2015-2017 proposed state budget. In total, over 1,000 people testified at the hearings, held in Brillion, Milwaukee, Rice Lake and Reedsburg. With over 25 hours of testimony, JFC members heard […]
Bills of Note Gone Dog Wild
Date Fri, Apr. 3, 2015 - 8:48am By Hamilton
In this week’s edition of Political Tidbits we cover the furry-sided legislation that’s making its way through the Wisconsin Legislature: pets included on protective orders, dogs and felons, and a proposal for the State Lizard. Pets on Protective Orders A bipartisan bill introduced by Representative Andrè Jacque (R-De Pere) and Senator Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) would […]