Maintained 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. Links to more detailed information are highlighted in the text.
The Wisconsin Legislature stands adjourned pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1. The 2013-14 legislative session will commence on January 7, 2013.
On July 18, Senator Rich Zipperer (R) announced that he would be resigning his seat in the 33rd Senate District. His resignation will leave the Senate with 17 Democrats and 15 Republicans. Zipperer is joining Governor Walker's staff, effective August 6. The Governor has not yet issued an order calling for a special election to fill the Senate seat. Zipperer was elected in 2010 to a four-year term. Two current Assembly Representatives, Rep. Chris Kapenga (R-33) and Rep. Paul Farrow (R-98), have announced their intentions to run for the vacant Senate seat.
In anticipation of the August 14 partisan primary election, the Government Accountability Board (GAB) released a guide to voter rights and responsibilities that includes information on registration, absentee voting, proof of residence, rules for election observers, and other topics.
For the upcoming primary, no incumbents filed in two senate districts and 21 assembly districts. In two districts, two incumbents have both filed to run: Evan Wynn and Andy Jorgensen have both filed in the 43rd Assembly District; Samantha Kerkman and John Steinbrink have both filed in the 61st Assembly District. Lists of candidates are available on the GAB website.
Dane County Circuit Judge David Flanagan has issued a permanent injunction against the voter id law passed last summer. The suit was brought by the Milwaukee Branch of the NAACP against Governor Walker and the Government Accountability Board, claiming that 2011 Wisconsin Act 23 violates the Wisconsin Constitution's Equal Protection and Suffrage clauses. In March, another Dane County judge issued a permanent injunction against the law in a suit brought by the League of Women Voters. See the March 12 edition of the Spotlight for more details on that decision. The Attorney General has appealed the ruling.
Pursuant to 2011 Wisconsin Act 32, the Department of Administration, the Department of Employee Trust Funds, and the Office of State Employment Relations completed a study of the structure and benefits of the Wisconsin Retirement System.
The Legislature has RSS feeds for recent session activity. Also see our Facebook page and Twitter.
The Legislative Council Special Committee on Supervised Release and Discharge of Sexually Violent Persons will meet August 8 starting at 10am. For details of upcoming committee meetings, see the Schedule of Committee Activities
During the 2011-12 legislative session, 286 acts have been signed into law. They can be found under the acts section of the Legislative Documents site. All enrolled bills from the current session have now either been signed into law or vetoed.
The library recommends the following resources:
For more information about Legislative Service Agency publications, see the left panel of the Spotlight index page.
Send comments to LRB.Reference@legis.wisconsin.gov
Last revised: April 18, 2013