When outlining priorities for the coming legislative session, Gov. Walker and Republican leaders in the state legislature have indicated modifying Wisconsin’s mining law will be one of the first orders of business. Although the legislative session does not begin until January, the post-recall, Democrat-controlled Senate has been working on a mining bill since September, and […]
State Legislature Election Preview
Date Thu, Nov. 1, 2012 - 11:37am By Hamilton
Find out what races we will have our eyes on as the results come in, and what each race means for control of that house. State Assembly There is no question that the large majority Assembly Republicans built in 2010 will, for the most part, be intact after the 2012 elections. Going in to Tuesday’s […]
The Fight for the State Senate
Date Fri, Oct. 12, 2012 - 10:44am By Hamilton
Immediately after the 2010 elections, many observers viewed the State Senate as the Republican stronghold least likely to change hands in the years to come. Yes, the Assembly Republicans had a very large partisan seat advantage, but Senate Republicans would be on the offensive and sitting in districts with wider voter margins in their favor […]
Musical Chairs
Date Wed, Oct. 10, 2012 - 5:33pm By Hamilton
A couple of recent changes in the make-up of the executive branch are worth mentioning. Also of note is a brush-up between the Treasurer and a handful of legislators. Corrections Wisconsin Department of Corrections Sec. Gary Hamblin is stepping down on October 26th to attend to health issues. Gov. Walker released the following statement on […]
Senate Holds Hearings on Mining
Date Fri, Sep. 21, 2012 - 4:24pm By Hamilton
Last session’s hot topic is back again, as the Senate is holding three hearings on mining in Wisconsin. Mining Committee Chairman Sen. Tim Cullen (D-Janesville) called the hearings in an effort to create a greater context for the issues involved in reforming Wisconsin’s mining laws and detail the roles other government entities play in the […]
LRB’s Legislative District Almanac
Date Mon, Aug. 27, 2012 - 4:51pm By Hamilton
Wisconsin’s Legislative Reference Bureau has released the third edition of its Legislative District Almanac. The Almanac is designed to provide legislators, other policy makers, and citizens with demographic data on Wisconsin’s 33 state senate districts and 99 assembly districts. The Almanac is divided into 33 chapters, one for each state senate district and the three […]
Races to Watch: August 14th Primary
Date Wed, Aug. 8, 2012 - 12:14pm By Hamilton
Redistricting and retirements mean this year’s primary election ballot is a bit more crowded than usual. U.S. Senate The only state-wide race on the ballot is the GOP primary for retiring Democratic Sen. Herb Kohl’s seat. The winner of the four-person primary will face Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin in November. The four Republican candidates […]
Wisconsin’s Budget Process
Date Tue, Jul. 24, 2012 - 12:27pm By Hamilton
The latest brief from the Legislative Reference Bureau, Executive Budget Bills Enacted by the Wisconsin Legislature, 1931-2011, is an interesting look at the evolution and current status of Wisconsin’s state budget process. The detailed look at how each biennial budget is developed explains that the process has already started for agencies even though a budget […]
Zipperer Resigns Senate Seat to Join Walker Staff
Date Wed, Jul. 18, 2012 - 6:03pm By Hamilton
A series of changes is leaving the Senate Democrats with a 17-15 majority and shuffling staff in the Walker Administration. Sen. Rich Zipperer, who currently represents the 33rd District, will resign his Senate seat and take on the role of Walker’s Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Counsel on August 6. The heavily Republican district […]
New Leadership in the State Senate
Date Wed, Jul. 18, 2012 - 6:01pm By Hamilton
The State Senate convened on Tuesday, July 17 to formally transfer control of the upper house to Democrats. Control of the Senate flipped to the Democrats after John Lehman (D-Racine) was sworn in following the June 5 recall elections. Sen. Fred Riser was chosen to serve as Senate President; Tim Carpenter as President Pro-Tempore; and […]