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Wisconsin Legislative SpotlightMaintained by the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB), this page provides an overview of recent and upcoming activities in the Wisconsin Legislature. The LRB revises its content weekly during legislative floorperiods. Links to more detailed information are highlighted in the text. |
The schedule of floorperiods for the 2009-2010 Legislative Session was established by 2009 Senate Joint Resolution 1. The legislature is currently in a floorperiod that will run until Thursday, April 30. After the current floorperiod concludes, the next floorperiod will begin on May 12.
You can now access updates from the LRB on Twitter, including information on new LRB publications, new acquisitions by the LRB Library, and general information about the legislature, and the current legislative session. To find the LRB on Twitter, go to: http://twitter.com/WILRB.
Governor Doyle signed the following bills into law on April 14.
Assembly Bill 3 (2009 Wisconsin Act 9) restricts the application of fertilizers containing phosphorous to lawns, golf courses, and other mowed grassy (turf) areas. The bill provides exceptions for agricultural land and some manure products, and allows use of fertilizer with phosphorous to some limited circumstances. These new phosphorous restrictions will protect Wisconsin’s lakes and aquatic habitats while allowing for reasonable exceptions.Senate Bill 7 (2009 Wisconsin Act 5) allows Chippewa Falls to file paperwork to amend Tax Incremental District 10 by December 31, 2009. The bill will support economic growth in the region.
Assembly Bill 4 (2009 Wisconsin 6) changes the restrictions on catch and release bass and muskellunge fishing. The bill eliminates the requirement that the Department of Natural Resources specify a season for catch and release of these fish in inland waters north of US Highway 10, and eliminates the requirement to use barbless hooks during this season.
Senate Bill 6 (2009 Wisconsin Act 7) adds a 10-mile portion of the Brunsweiler River to the state’s wild river system. The section, which runs through the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Ashland County, will be named the “Martin Hanson Wild River” in honor of the state’s conservation leader who died in 2008.
Senate Bill 36 (2009 Wisconsin Act 8) allows the judicial system to decide whether to suspend a person’s driver’s license if the person is convicted of a nontraffic drug violation. The bill also makes optional the suspension of driving privileges of persons convicted of drug violations in other states.
After Governor Doyle delivered his Budget Message (video) to the Legislature on February 17, the Joint Committee on Finance introduced the Biennial Budget Bill, 2009 Assembly Bill 75. The Department of Administration issued its guide to the bill, the Budget in Brief.
The Legislative Fiscal Bureau has prepared an Informational Paper on the State Budget Process, which explains the budgeting process in both plain language and technical detail.
Tax and Fee Increases. On March 18, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau released a memorandum titled: “State Tax and Fee Modifications Included in the Governor’s 2009-11 Budget Recommendation.” According to a summary in the memo, the changes in the governor’s budget would increase net taxes by about $1.47 billion during the biennium and would increase net fees by about $237 million during the two years covered by the budget. In addition, measures to enhance the collection of current taxes and fees would generate an estimated $61 million.
Local aids. On March 19, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau released estimates for 2010 County and Municipal Aid Payments under AB 75. The bill would reduce local aid payments by a total of about 1%, or $8.5 million.
Property Tax Estimates. On April 8, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau released a memorandum that provides an estimate of the effects of the budget bill on property taxes, updating the property tax estimates for the 2008(09) tax year based on nearly complete reports filed with the Department of Revenue.
On April 7, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau released a list of non-fiscal policy items contained in the proposed budget. Joint Committee on Finance co-chairs Senator Miller and Representative Pocan released a letter in response. (Links courtesy www.thewheelerreport.com.)
The Joint Committee on Finance conducted a series of public hearings across the state on the 2009-2011 budget bill, AB-75. Video of all these hearings can be found in the archive at WisconsinEye.org.
On April 16, the committee held an executive session. The first order of business was a 13.10 request for $38 million of federal stimulus money to the Department of Workforce Development. The LFB paper on the request can be viewed here. The conclusion was adopted, 15-0. Another executive session will be held Tuesday, April 21. Budget papers can be viewed on the Legislative Fiscal Bureau’s Web site.
On February 19, Governor Doyle signed the Budget Adjustment Bill (2009 Senate Bill 62), creating 2009 Wisconsin Act 2. The bill passed swiftly through the Senate and Assembly (18-15 and 51-48, respectively). Items of interest in the bill include a provision for combined reporting for corporations, an increase in the hospital assessment for FY 2008-09, and the introduction of the streamlined sales tax which will require sales and use taxes to be collected on purchases of specified digital goods like music downloads. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau released a summary of the bill's provisions.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was passed by Congress on February 13. The Wisconsin Office of Recovery and Reinvestment was created by Governor Doyle to help with fully understanding the federal stimulus package and how best to access funds.
For a historic comparison of how federal economic stimulus packages have impacted the state, the LRB library has dozens of the original reports documenting the economic stimulus and work relief projects funded during the 1930s through federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) spending and state funds. The reports, including such titles as A Half Billion Dollars for Public Welfare in Wisconsin, 1931-1936 and Review of Work Relief Activities, April 1934-Aug. 1935, are listed in LRBCAT under the keyword search terms “Wisconsin Public Welfare Dept.” and “Wisconsin Emergency Relief Administration.”
The text and history of legislation introduced in the 2009 Legislative Session may be accessed on the Legislature's Web site. Click on "Text of Introduced Proposals" in the Legislative Documents Search.
Bills introduced recently include:
In the race for Supreme Court Justice, incumbent Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson defeated challenger Randy Koschnick. Abrahamson was first appointed to the Supreme Court by Governor Patrick Lucey in 1976. She is one of the longest serving justices in the court’s history.
Deputy Superintendent Tony Evers defeated Rose Fernandez in the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Official election results are not yet available.
The IBM Center for the Business of Government has published a report by Judy Zelio (Fiscal Affairs Program Director for NCSL), Five Actions to Enhance State Legislative Use of Performance Information. The report is available from the Center's Web site, and offers five actions that state agencies can take to improve the usefulness of their performance reports for state legislatures. It includes examples of effective reports from various states. You can also find this report and a multitude of other publications (many with full-text access) at the LRB using our library catalog (LRBCat).
There are committee hearings scheduled for each day of this week. See the Schedule of Committee Activities to view the full monthly calendar and details on times and locations of committee meetings.
The Legislative Reference Bureau recently issued the following publications:
The LRB has also released a new Podcast about our online library catalog system (LRBCat).
Recent publications by other legislative service agencies:
Two Informational Bulletins were also issued by the LRB as companions to the 2007-2008 Wisconsin Blue Book: Informational Bulletin 07-1, “A Study Guide to the 2007-2008 Wisconsin Blue Book,” and Informational Bulletin 07-2, “Inside the 2007-2008 Wisconsin Blue Book.”
Send comments to LRB.Reference@legis.wisconsin.gov
Last revised: April 24, 2009