Political Tidbits – December 20, 2024

Email from The Hamilton Consulting Group

December 20, 2024

Wisconsin political news for clients and colleagues.

As another year comes to a close, we here at Hamilton like to reflect back on what makes working here so great.

Clearly, it’s the relationships we’ve built with you over the years, both current and past clients who still remain friends, it’s the reason why we enjoy what we do.

When we introduce our firm, we notice (maybe others do too) that our team’s core just keeps stacking up our years together. Between Andy, Rebecca, Caty, R.J. and Michelle we now have combined to work at Hamilton for well over 50 years!

Which is also why its exciting to announce that we are adding a new lobbyist to our team: Tyler Clark. Tyler comes to us from Speaker Vos’s office and has spent ten years working in Assembly leadership offices which includes stints campaigning for RACC. A Minnesota native (read: Vikings fan), Tyler is a welcome addition and fits in perfectly with our crew.

As the holiday season approaches, our new expanded team wishes you and yours the happiest of holidays. We look forward to working with you in the New Year.

If you have any questions, please contact a member of the Hamilton Consulting team.

New Faces and Leadership Changes in Wisconsin Legislature for 2025-26 Session

Following the November 2024 election, the Wisconsin Legislature will welcome 34 new members, 27 Democrats and seven Republicans. These new members will assume office on January 6, 2025.

New Members

After the election, the Assembly and Senate party caucuses met to select their leadership for the 2025-26 legislative session. New members of Senate Republican leadership include Sen. Mary Felzkowski as Senate President and Sen. Rachel Cabral-Guevara as Caucus Vice-Chair. In the Assembly, Republicans reelected Rep. Robin Vos as Speaker. New to Assembly leadership this session is Rep. Scott Krug, taking retired Rep. Jon Plumer’s position of Assistant Majority Leader.

Sen. Mark Spreitzer and Sen. Dora Drake are democratic newcomers to Senate leadership. Rep. Clinton Anderson, Rep. Mike Bare and Rep. Jodi Emerson are new to Assembly leadership in their caucus.

Caucus Leaders

The powerful 16-person committee, which includes eight Assembly and eight Senate lawmakers, is responsible for crafting the state’s biennial budget for July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2027.

Joint Finance Committee

Sen. LeMahieu announced Senate Committees and committee membership for the 2025-2026 Session on December 19. The committee assignments will formally take effect in January.

Senate Committees

Speaker Robin Vos announced Assembly Standing Committee Leadership on December 18. He has created a new committee titled ‘Government Operations, Accountability and Transparency' which will be chaired by Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie). Full committee membership will be released at a later date.

Assembly Committees

State Projects $4 Billion Budget Surplus but Faces Challenges Ahead

On November 20, the Department of Administration (DOA) released updated state revenue estimates heading into the 2025-27 biennium. According to DOA, Wisconsin is on track to conclude the 2023-25 biennium (which ends in June 2025) with a $4 billion surplus, an increase of $500 million from earlier projections.

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Wisconsin Prepares for Pivotal 2025 Elections: Supreme Court and State Superintendent Races

Wisconsin voters are gearing up for two high-profile races in 2025 that will have a lasting impact on the state’s judicial and educational systems. The primary election is scheduled for February 18, with the general election to follow on April 1. Both races are drawing significant attention, setting the stage for critical decisions about the state’s future.

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County Judge Strikes Down Parts of Walker-Era Collective Bargaining Reforms

Dane County Circuit Court Judge Jacob Frost has struck down key provisions of a 2011 law, including provisions barring general employees from negotiating for anything other than base wage increases capped for inflation and prohibiting public employee unions from forcing employees to pay dues.

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ABC: Wisconsin Is the Top State for Construction

Wisconsin is the No. 1 state for construction, according to Associated Builders and Contractors’ 10th annual Merit Shop Scorecard. The scorecard, released annually since 2015, ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on policies and programs that better career pathways in construction, further workforce development and strengthen fair and open competition on taxpayer-funded construction projects. Arkansas, Kentucky, West Virginia and Florida rounded out the top five states in 2024, in ranking order.

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The Healthcare Dollar

AHIP (formerly, America’s Health Insurance Plans) recently released their analysis on where America’s health care premium dollars go. The survey found that nearly two-thirds of every dollar Americans pay for health care premiums goes towards hospital and prescription drug costs. More specifically, 40 cents of every premium dollar paid goes to hospital costs - such as inpatient and outpatient hospital costs and emergency room costs - and nearly a quarter goes towards prescription drug costs.

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News Clips