This week's survey

Recently, the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimated that the state would end the year with a $620 million surplus. As is the case anytime revenue numbers are higher than expected, legislators discuss ways to spend this money. Governor Evers proposed spending $250 million of the budget surplus on public education; this is in spite of two consecutive Republican budgets that spend record amounts of money on public schools. Conversely, Republicans argued that surplus dollars should be returned to hard-working taxpayers in the form of a tax cut and personal property tax reduction. Additionally, the GOP proposal invests a portion of the surplus into the state's rainy day fund. 

Passing by a vote of 65-34, the tax cut package puts $250 million toward the reduction of middle-class income taxes by changing the standard deduction tables. Additionally, $45 million will be used to decrease personal property taxes and $100 million would pay off general fund-supported borrowing. This proposal, which was passed with bipartisan support, would leave a surplus of more than $350 million at the end of the biennium and a rainy day fund of more than $950 million. 

Due to prudent budgeting, we are able to provide the average income filer a $106 tax reduction. 

Please, take a minute to answer this week's survey question regarding surplus revenue.

Click here for my survey

Survey Results

Thank you to everyone who responded to last week's survey question relating to agricultural incentives. In total, just 44 individuals answered last week's survey question. The two most popular solutions for providing relief to farmers were: allowing farmers and sole proprietors to deduct health insurance costs (68 percent); and income tax deductions based on property taxes on buildings used exclusively for agriculture (62 percent).

Conversely, the two least popular solutions were: requiring the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents to evaluate funding and staffing for agriculture programs (25 percent); and Special Session Bill 7 relating to increased funding for promotional DATCP grants (32 percent). 

What is more, just nine percent of respondents answered "other." Responses include: 

"Enough with the tax breaks. What is next, tax breaks for state employees, hospital workers, etc. Allow the free-market to dictate free trade, at the very least, do not allow anyone from the University of Wisconsin System gets their hands on our tax money."

"It is not the job of government to select winners and losers. We should allow the free market to run its course, as capitalism is the greatest economic system ever devised by man. Better and more innovative agricultural practices, not government handouts, will solve the state's farming crisis. 

Floor Session

 This week, the Wisconsin State Assembly concluded its 2019-2021 by passing more than one-hundred bills. The following are some of the more significant pieces of legislation that were approved. I was fortunate to have six bills passed by the Assembly, this week.

Assembly Joint Resolution 136

Senator Duey Stroebel and I introduced Assembly Joint Resolution 136, honoring the life and service of former State Representative and Ozaukee County Circuit Court Judge, Warren Grady. The Assembly was joined by members of Judge Grady's family during the passage of the Joint Resolution. 

Assembly Bill 114: Pharmacy Benefit Manager

Assembly Bill 114, authored by Representative Michael Schraa, introduces accountability for Pharmacy Benefit managers through a mandatory licensure under OCI. By giving OCI regulatory authority over PBMs, in line with OCI's existing authority over insurers and other plan administrators, this bill will allow OCI to promulgate necessary rules and respond to complaints against abusive PBMs. AB 114 also requires PBMs to submit annual transparency reports regarding aggregated drug rebate totals, arming OCI with better data to understand what factors are contributing to the high cost of prescription drugs. 

Additionally, this bill provides pharmacists with safeguards against many of PBMs' current abusive and anti-competitive practices, by ensuring fair audit processes and implementing limits on how PBMs can recoup monies already paid to pharmacies on previously adjudicated claims. The bill also requires PBMs to disclose to prospective pharmacies, in writing, what accreditations and certification standards would be required to join the PBMs network; the bill then limits how often a PBM may change its standards, thereby providing a pharmacy with reasonable assurance to rely on before undertaking an often lengthy and expensive accreditation process.

Assembly Bill 114 also introduces a number of new consumer protections aimed at making prescriptions more affordable and accessible. This includes prohibiting PBMs from including "gag clauses" in their contracts, which prevented pharmacists from telling consumers that a drug might be cheaper by paying cash instead of by using their insurance. 

Assembly Bill 114 was approved 96-0. 

 Assembly Bill 459: The Cursive Writing Act of 2020

Assembly Bill 459, authored by Representative Jeremy Thiesfeldt, guarantees that all Wisconsin students are able to write in cursive by the end of fifth grade. The bill is a way to help students with the basics of brain development, fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and sensory integration. Cursive is also extremely beneficial in helping students with learning disabilities, including dyslexia. 

Cursive requires different muscles and uses a different part of the brain than regular writing. Writing in cursive helps activate and create neurological pathways connecting the different parts of our brain. Cursive writing actually trains the brain to integrate visual and tactile information and fine motor dexterity. 

I supported final passage of Assembly Bill 459, recognizing the positive impacts cursive writing has on brain development and cognition. Assembly Bill 459 was approved unanimously, via voice vote.

Assembly Bill 516: Truth-in-labeling law in Wisconsin

Ask any dairy farmer in Wisconsin and they will tell you that milk comes from a cow. This seems like common sense, but Wisconsin's current labeling laws allow plant-based milk alternatives to be labeled as "milk." Walk into most grocery stores and you will see "2 percent milk" next to "Soy Milk" and "Almond Milk." Yet, neither of the plant-based beverages is actually milk.

Dairy farmers are frustrated that these mislabeled beverages continue to appear in stores and misuse dairy names. Research suggests that more than half of consumers who purchase milk alternatives purchase them thinking they possess greater nutritional value than milk. In reality, plant-based alternatives to milk do not have the same nutritional value as milk.

To help Wisconsin's dairy farmers and alleviate consumer confusion, Assembly Bill 516 creates a truth-in-labeling law for milk. This legislation ensures that the only product that can be labeled as "milk" comes from a cow or other hooved or camelid mammal, such as a goat. Plant-based products will help be required to be labeled as "drink" or "beverage."

Assembly Bill 516 was passed unanimously, via voice vote, on February 20th.  

Assembly Bill 86: Alcohol package

Assembly Bill 869, authored by Representative Rob Swearingen, authorizes the Wisconsin Department of Revenue to issue retail alcohol beverage permits for the Road America race track grounds. The bill authorizes caterers to make retail sales of alcoholic beverages on race track grounds. 

Lastly, the bill creates an exception allowing 14 counties to extend closing hours for licensed or permitted establishments during the time that the 2020 Democratic National Convention is held in Milwaukee. Municipalities have the option if they wish to have extended hours (4 am) from July 13th-July 17th.

Senate Bill 821: Economic Stimulus Package of 2020

In late January, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau projected that Wisconsin's surplus at the end of the biennium would exceed $620 million. Assembly Bill 910, authored by Speaker Robin Vos, would return a portion of the expected surplus to the taxpayers in three ways:

1. It eliminates another category of the personal property tax, resulting in a savings to taxpayers of $44.7 mullion. 

2. It would reduce income taxes largely focused on the middle class by $247.7 million; more than two million Wisconsinites will pay lower taxes because of this cut.

3. It would pay off the $100 million in state debt, saving additional tax dollars that would have been spent on debt service. 

After these tax relief and debt reduction efforts, there would be a transfer of $123 million to the rainy day fund. What is more, at the end of the biennium, the rainy day fund will have a projected balance of $956 million, and the state general fund balance will be $351 million.

Once again, Republicans voted to return surplus dollars back to taxpayers. The Assembly approved a $250 million tax cut with bipartisan support. The plan also pays down state debt, reduces personal property taxes, and makes a deposit to the state's rainy day fund. 

Senate Bill 821 increased the maximum individual income standard deduction by 13.2 percent. The bill continues to buy down the onerous personal property tax--an unnecessary double taxation on our state's business. Finally, the bill reduces Wisconsin's debt by $100 million. 

Senate Bill 821 was approved 65-34 on February 20th. 

Assembly Bill 551: Riparian Rights

Last year, a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling, Movrich v. Lobermier, dealt a devastating blow to citizens who own land on one of Wisconsin's 240 flowages. Ultimately, the court ruled that the public trust doctrine does not allow landowners whose deed does not explicitly grant access to the water bed of flowages, the ability to erect and maintain a pier. Meaning that, unless a landowner's deed explicitly grants the right to the water bed beneath a flowage, a landowner potentially cannot erect a pier.

Assembly Bill 551, authored by Rob Stafsholt, changes no environmental standards that are found under current law. All land that abuts flowages will be treated as is under current law. The bill does not make it any easier to erect or maintain piers and does not change any language relating to siting, zoning, or mitigation relating to Wisconsin's shoreline zoning laws. This a common-sense bill that makes riparian rights a priority.

This bill was approved by both houses of the legislature and sent to Governor Evers for his signature. 

Assembly Special Session Bill 6: Wisconsin Agricultural Exports

Governor Evers proposed $1 million for a "Wisconsin Initiative for Dairy Exports" to increase Wisconsin's dairy exports to twenty percent of the United States' milk supply by 2024. The bill also provides two positions at DATCP to implement the plan. 

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1, authored by Representative Tony  Kurtz, creates an export agricultural program at WEDC and requires WEDC and DATCP to collaborate in the creation and implementation of an agriculture export program. The bill includes three categories of agricultural exports to be increased including:

• Dairy to 50 percent of the United States' milk supply by 2030
• Meat (25 percent)
• Crops (25 percent)

I joined my colleagues in supporting this bill and look forward to it being signed into law by Governor Evers. 

Assembly Special Session Bill 7: Dairy Processing Plant Grants

Assembly Special Session Bill 7 awards grants to dairy processing plants. Under the bill, the dollar amount for these grants is increased by $600,000 for fiscal year 2019-20 and is also increased by $600,000 for fiscal year 2020-21. The bill did specify that when DATCP is awarding these grants it should give preference to small processing plants, but did not define "small."

Assembly Amendment 1, authored by Representative Loren Oldenburg, defines "small." Under the amendment, a small processing plant is defined as a plant that produces no more than 50 million pounds of processed products each year.

I voted in favor of this proposal and look forward to Governor Evers signing this proposal into law and providing additional relief to Wisconsin dairy farmers. 

If you would more information about any of these bills, please contact my office. 

Events

The following are events that will be held this week in the 60th Assembly District. If you have any upcoming events that you would like included, please contact my office. 

Mardi Gras at the Hundred Mile House, February 21, Port Washington

Mindful Movement, February 21, Port Washington

Super Secret Comedy Show at Vines to Cellar, Port Washington

Jerry and Nora DUO Show, February 21, Fredonia

Waterfowl and other wetland birds in the Bog, February 22, Cedarburg

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