Wisconsin Legislative Spotlight

This page, prepared by the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau, provides an overview of recent and upcoming activities in the Wisconsin Legislature. It will usually appear weekly, but less frequently when the legislature is not in floor session. Links to more detailed information sources are highlighted. A link at the end of this feature accesses earlier issues of the Spotlight.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION -- MAY 4 - 13

The Joint Committee on Finance continues its executive sessions on the 1997-98 budget. The committee will meet on most weekdays in May.

The complete text of all 1997 Wisconsin bills and joint resolutions is available in pdf format for reading or printing.

SCHEDULING

The legislature completed its March floorperiod on March 20 and will not return to the floor until May 13.

ON THE AGENDA

Scheduled Hearings

The Senate Committee on Judiciary, Campaign Finance Reform and Consumer Affairs will hold a public hearing on SB-105 relating to use of taxes levied by a local professional baseball park district; LRB-2848 (see note at the end of the paragraph) relating to elimination of the state lottery and pari-mutuel wagering; SB-137 relating to authorization for the attorney general and district attorneys to issue subpoenas to investigate alleged violations of the open meeting law; and SB-36 relating to notice of tort claims against governmental entities. Wednesday, May 7, at 1 pm, Room 1, 119 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Madison. (Note: When a bill is listed by its LRB draft number (LRB#), it has not been formally introduced. At this stage, copies can be obtained only by contacting the committee chairperson.)

The Assembly Committee on Rural Affairs will hold a public hearing on AB-134 relating to creation of an ethanol production incentive program; AB-274 relating to publicizing the names of persons who illegally dump trash; and AB-317 relating to the effect of certain water withdrawals on commercial agricultural operations. Thursday, May 8, at 9 am, Room 328 Northwest, State Capitol.

The Assembly Committee on Education will hold a public hearing on AB-301 relating to removal of disruptive pupils from the classroom; AB-304 relating to the procedure for creating a new school district; and AB-261 relating to the statute of limitations for special education appeals. Tuesday, May 6, at 10 am, Room 328 Northwest, State Capitol.

The Legislative Council's Special Committee on Federally Tax-Exempt Land will meet to hear invited speakers in the morning and for a public hearing in the afternoon. Thursday, May 8, 10 am to 4 pm, Room 417 North, State Capitol (DATE CHANGE).

Check the complete list of hearings for more information, including times and places.

OTHER ACTIVITY

Amendments Available on Internet

Amendments to bills, resolutions and joint resolutions are now available on the Internet. Access the bill by clicking the legislation button on the Wisconsin State Legislature's home page. Click on "Text of Legislative Proposals". Type in the bill number and house and click on "submit". If the bill has been amended, the query on the bill form will return a page containing a link to the original bill, the bill's procedural history and each amendment or substitute amendment. If the bill has not been amended, the query will return the text of the bill with no intervening page.

Rules and Joint Rules on the Internet

You can now link to the rules of each house and the joint rules of the two houses from the home page of either house.

Legislative Audit Bureau Web Pages Are Up

The Legislative Audit Bureau has joined the other legislative service agencies on the legislative Web site. The LAB page offers information about the agency, as well as lists of audit reports and summaries of those reports.

The reader can connect to all the service agencies through the "Support Agencies" link on the legislature's home page or through http://www.legis.state.wi/agencies.html. You will need an Adobe Acrobat reader to view LFB documents, and a free copy can be downloaded from Adobe. For assistance in installing the Adobe reader, go to Installing Helper Applications.

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