2021 Spring Survey Results

Thank you for participating in this session's spring survey. More than seven hundred surveys were returned to my office. The following is a breakdown of the results for all eleven survey questions:

Question One:

As legislators work on the 2021-23 budget, what should their top priorities be in the two-year spending plan?

Question Two: 

Should the state borrow nearly $3.6 billion and raise taxes by more than $1 billion, as the governor has proposed?

Question Three: 

Last session, legislative Republicans invested more than $40 million in broadband expansion grants. Should the state do more to provide high-speed internet services in unserved areas of Wisconsin?

Question Four: 

Do you support the following reforms to public benefit Programs?

Question Five:

Governor Evers' budget doubles the energy tax, which will cause electric bills to increase for Wisconsin businesses and residential customers. Do you support that tax increase?

Question Six:

What is your opinion regarding marijuana legalization in Wisconsin?

Question Seven:

Should UW-System Schools grant in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrants?

Question Eight:

Do you support election reform legislation?

Question Nine:

Do you support government-mandated vaccines?

Question 10: Do you support a $15 per hour minimum wage for private-sector employees?

Rate your elected officials:

President Joe Biden

Governor Tony Evers

United States Senator Ron Johnson

United States Senator Tammy Baldwin

United States Representative Glenn Grothman

United States Representative Scott Fitzgerald

State Senator Duey Stroebel

State Representative Rob Brooks

E-update Survey Results

Thank you for answering this week's survey question regarding the inclusion of cursive writing into the state's English language arts curriculum. In total, one-hundred-thirty-three individuals responded, with forty-eight percent in support of including cursive writing to these standards and thirty-eight percent opposed.

What is more, seventeen percent of respondents voted "other." Responses include:

"Leave it up to the school districts."

"Local school districts should be encouraged to adopt cursive writing into their curriculum without a state mandate."

"There should be some type of cursive teaching in the schools. If it is not, children will be incapable of signing their name, contracts, and other legal documents."

"I believe it is something that should be taught, but do not believe it should be mandated."

"This is a small issue. There are way more important bills to be discussing."

"Not as a requirement. My smart grandchildren do not know cursive and believe it is unnecessary in this new world of keyboards."

Assembly Floor Session

This week, the Wisconsin State Assembly voted on several consequential proposals on everything from personal property aid payments to police reform. The following is an analysis of the bills approved during this week's floor session.

Assembly Bill 59: Personal Property Aid Payments

The 2017-2019 biennial budget established a new personal property tax exemption, s.70.111(27), for machinery, tools, and patterns, not including such items used in manufacturing. The budget proposal also created a personal property aid program to reimburse local governments for the lost revenue resulting from the new tax exemption. These aid payments go to municipalities, school districts, and counties. They are also made to TIF districts containing exempt personal property.

An issue has arisen with regard to DOR's interpretation of the personal property aid distributions to TIF districts. The department interprets state law to mean that any personal property aid payments being made to a TIF district for exempt personal property existing in the district terminate when the TIF district closes.

Assembly Bill 56, which has bipartisan support and was approved unanimously out of committee, clarifies that personal property aid payments the state makes to a TIF district continue after the TID closes, but transfer to the municipality and other taxing jurisdictions. An amendment to the bill applies this change retroactively to any TIF districts that terminated between 2018 and the bill's effective date. Furthermore, the amendment extends the implementation date to May 2022, the next time personal property aid payments will be distributed.

Assembly Bill 69: Expungement Reform

As we recover from the ongoing economic effects of COVID-19, it is important that Wisconsin remains a leader in providing employment opportunities to our citizens. Recently, the Department of Workforce Development announced that Wisconsin's unemployment rate is five percent, down from six percent in May. While this news is encouraging, it underscores a workforce shortage many of Wisconsin's employers face when attempting to fill vacancies. 

Assembly Bill 69, which has widespread bipartisan support (I am cosponsor), is the product of significant input from the practitioners of expungement law, including the Director of State Courts, the state prosecutors, state public defenders, and the State Bar of Wisconsin, as well as employers impacted by the legislation.

Wisconsin's current expungement procedure was written in the 1970s and has not been substantively modified since. The current process is antiquated, outmoded, and cumbersome for criminal justice system professionals. Assembly Bill 69 establishes a new, more effective and efficient process that has been crafted with input from stakeholders.

The proposal accomplishes the following changes:

• Eliminates the state mandate on judges to grant/deny expungement at the time of sentencing.
• Provides employers and employees with clarity and certainty with regard to criminal background disclosures on employment applications.
• Clarifies that only low-level offenders are eligible for expungement. 
• Defines what it means to successfully complete a sentence. 
• Removes the arbitrary age limit of twenty-five.

Assembly Amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 69 includes various crimes to the list ineligible for expungement. These crimes include certain stalking offenses, property damage to a business, criminal trespass to a dwelling, and violation of a domestic abuse injunction or restraining order.

Assembly Bill 91: Bodily Fluids

Assembly Bill 91, which has widespread bipartisan support and was passed unanimously by the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety, expanded the ability for a court to order communicable disease testing for any criminal defendant who throws a bodily fluid at a public safety worker or prosecutor. 

Under current law, a court may only order communicable disease testing for a prisoner if they throw or expel a bodily fluid at another person in a prison facility. 

Assembly Bill 97: Bart Starr Memorial Bridge

Assembly Bill 97, which has overwhelming bipartisan support and was passed unanimously out of committee, would rename the "Walnut Street Bridge" on State Highway 29 in downtown Green Bay, the "Bart Starr Memorial Bridge," in honor of late Hall of Famer quarterback and Green Bay Packers legend Bart Starr. 

While Bart Starr is best remembered as a Packers icon and the MVP of the first two Super Bowls, he was also deeply committed to community service. Starr and his wife, Cheryl, cofounded, with John and Jan Gillespie, the Rawhide Boys Ranch in 1965, to help at-risk youth. Mr. and Mrs. Starr also founded the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation in 1971. Since its founding, the Vince Lombardi Cancer Foundation has donated more than $21 million to support cancer research and care. 

Mr. Starr passed away in May 2019 at the age of eighty-five. "The Bart Starr Memorial Bridge" designation would recognize Bart Starr's tremendous athletic achievements and his life-long contributions to Green Bay and Wisconsin. 

Assembly Bill 108: Use of Force and Whistleblower Protections

Assembly Bill 108, which has bipartisan support, requires law enforcement agencies to specify when use-of-force must be reported, how to report use-of-force, and when officers who observe or use force must report it. Additionally, the bill provides whistleblower protection so that police officers who report violations of policy cannot be retaliated against.

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 108 created a statewide use-of-force standard, a duty to report and a duty to intervene in situations where an officer observes another officer failing to comply with the use-of-force standard created above, and a misdemeanor penalty for an officer who intentionally fails to report or intervene. 

Assembly Bill 109: Reporting Use of Force incidents:

Assembly Bill 109, of which I am a cosponsor, and has bipartisan support, requires DOJ to collect data and publish an annual report on use-of-force incidents. The incidents for which data must be collected include: shooting of a civilian by a law enforcement officer or shooting of a law enforcement officer by a civilian; discharge of a firearm in the direction of a civilian or law enforcement officer; and action taken in response to an act of resistance resulting in serious harm or death. The specific data that must be collected includes: gender, race, ethnicity, age, time, date, location, whether the civilian was armed, the type of weapon, type of resistance used, number of officers involved, number of civilians involved, and a description of the circumstances around the incident.

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 adds additional data points that need to be collected including, a reason for the law enforcement officer's initial contact with the civilian and any other information that is required to comply with the National Use-of-Force Data Collection system. It also clarifies that DOJ must provide reporting officials a simple format to submit information to minimize officer time spent on reporting. 

Assembly Bill 110: Public Access to Use-of-Force Policies

Assembly Bill 110, which has widespread bipartisan support, requires law enforcement agencies to post their policies on use-of-force online, whether that be on their department's website or municipality's website. The bill also requires law enforcement to develop a mechanism for requesting a copy of the policy. If requested, the agency must provide a copy at no charge within three business days. 

Assembly Bill 134: Prohibiting the Use of Chokeholds 

Assembly Bill 134, which has bipartisan support, prohibited the use of chokeholds as a use-of-force policy except in life-threatening situations or in self-defense. A chokehold is defined in the bill to mean "the intentional and prolonged application of force to the throat or windpipe that prevents or hinders breathing or reduces the intake of air."

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 134, revises the definition of "chokehold" to include force to the carotid arteries that prevent blood flow or reduces blood flow to the head.

Assembly Bill 190: Law Enforcement Standards Board

Under current law, the Law Enforcement Standards Board (LESB) regulates the training and certification of law enforcement officers, tribal law enforcement officers, and jail or juvenile detention officers. The Law Enforcement Standards Board approves training and educational programs for law enforcement personnel; certifies law enforcement employees; and may decertify law enforcement employees.

Assembly Bill 190, which has bipartisan support, broadens the authority of LESB to establish minimum educational, training, and recruitment standards for jail or juvenile detention officers and establish minimum qualification standards for admission to preparatory courses for law enforcement officers. 

The bill also requires law enforcement agencies to retain employment files for each employee. A law enforcement agency wishing to hire a former or current law enforcement official must require the candidate to sign a waiver allowing his or her employer to review the candidate's existing employment file, unless the candidate is party to a non-disclosure agreement. 

Assembly Bill 190 prohibits the use of non-disclosure agreements by law enforcement employees after the effective date of the bill.

Assembly Amendment 1 allows LESB to decertify a law enforcement officer who resigns in lieu of termination or is terminated for just cause. Under current law, an officer may be decertified if he or she is convicted of a felony or misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.

Assembly Bill 195: Protecting Women in Sports

Assembly Bill 195 ensures athletes competing in intercollegiate, intramural, or club athletics, or sports sponsored by each University of Wisconsin institution or technical college, are competing in one of three categories in accordance with their respective sex, as determined by a physician at birth and reflected on the birth certificate. The bill establishes a third category for athletic competition that would be coeducational and allow participants of both sexes the opportunity to compete together. 

Nearly fifty years ago, Title IX became enshrined in law, honoring and protecting the abilities and achievements of women in their own divisions in competitive sports. In allowing biological males to play on women's teams because of gender identity, biological females are once again losing opportunities at titles, scholarships, and even participation. 

Assembly Amendment 1 changes the definition of sex from, "the sex assigned to an individual at birth by a physician," to: "the sex determined by a physician at birth and reflected on the birth certificate." Therefore, the amendment changes the definition of "sex" to include a reference to what is provided on an individual's birth certificate.

Assembly Bill 211: Operation of Drones over Correctional Institutions

2015 Wisconsin Act 318 made it illegal for any person to operate a drone over a correctional institution. Unfortunately, this included each facility's administration as well. Assembly Bill 211, of which I am a cosponsor and has bipartisan support, corrects this oversight by affording the Wisconsin Department of Corrections with the authority to operate drones over their correctional facilities. This will provide increased security and maintenance support for the department. 

Assembly Amendment 1 allows sheriffs' departments to operate drones over their county facilities. The amendment also clarifies that one must have the express authorization of DOC to operate the drone over a state facility, and the person must have the express authorization of the sheriff or his or her designee to operate the drone over a county facility. 

Assembly Bill 258: COP House Grant Program

Assembly Bill 258, which has bipartisan support, establishes a grant program through the Department of Justice to fund community oriented-policing houses. COP houses, as they are herein referred, are vacant homes in high-crime areas that are purchased, renovated, and staffed by police officers. The officers who staff the house look to build relationships with the residents and learn the needs of the neighborhood in order to increase safety and reduce crime. COP houses are open for community members to use for the purpose of promoting positive interactions in a variety of circumstances with members of the law enforcement community. The officers are also trained to provide information on a myriad of community issues.

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 258 makes cities with populations of 30,00 or more eligible for these grants. It also outlays the criteria for DOJ in awarding the grants as: ability to maximize grant resources to serve the greatest number of people in the greatest number of cities; the city's plan to integrate COP houses into the fabric of a community; the future ability to use the COP house for multiple purposes; and the ability for community organizations, government agencies, nonprofits, and faith-based organizations to use the COP house.

Assembly Bill 274: DNA to State Crime Lab

Currently, in-state-offenders in the correctional system who have committed crimes after April 1, 2015, are required to furnish DNA samples. However, out-of-state offenders moving to Wisconsin on parole are required to do so under certain circumstances. A DOC employee must review each case individually to determine if the transferring parolee's case would have been a felony in Wisconsin. Only then, would the parolees be required to provide a DNA sample.

Assembly Bill 274, which has bipartisan support, streamlines the statute so the DNA requirement is the same for in-state and out-of-state offenders for all crimes committed after April 1, 2015. 

Assembly Bill 299: Prohibition on Vaccine Passports

With the widespread availability of the COVID-19 vaccine, certain political leaders have looked for ways to force individuals to become vaccinated. In states like New York and Hawaii, governments and businesses have adopted the use of "vaccine passports." These documents would be required in order for one to shop at certain businesses, attend college or attend government meetings, among other things.

Assembly Bill 299 would prohibit the use of "vaccine passports" for the COVID-19 vaccine by any public or private entity. Any individual that violates this prohibition could be fined $500 or jailed for thirty days.

Assembly Bill 329: No-Knock Search Warrant Reporting

Assembly Bill 329, which has strong bipartisan support, would require the Department of Justice to collect information from law enforcement agencies and prepare an annual report to the legislature about the issuance of search warrants and the use of no-knock search warrants. The collection and analysis of data are critical to law enforcement due to the fact it guides the decision-making process with respect to deploying police assets, identifying potential problems, and improving public and officer safety. 

No-knock warrants are a necessary tool for law enforcement when certain dangerous circumstances arise. There has been much discussion about no-knock search warrants after recent high-profile incidents but no collective data about their use and outcomes. The data collected through the passage of this bill will be instrumental in fostering an honest, fact-based discussion about their prevalence and application. 

Assembly Bill 330: School Resource Officer Training

Assembly Bill 330, which has bipartisan support, requires the Department of Justice's Office of School Safety to develop standards and approve a certified training program for school resource officers and require officers assigned to these roles to complete the training. The bill also requires the Office of School Safety to maintain a database of all school resource officers in Wisconsin. The bill does not require that schools have a school resource officer on staff.

School resource officers play a unique and necessary role in our criminal justice system. These dedicated professionals are often the first contact with law enforcement that our young people have and can play an integral role in the development of a positive relationship with law enforcement as they move through adolescence into adulthood. 

Because of their many roles outside the normal duties of a police officer, additional training on dealing with our youth and adolescent community members would be an asset to the officers as well as the students, schools, and parents they serve. 

Assembly Bill 331: Law Enforcement Psychological Exams

As a current condition to employment as a law enforcement officer, an individual must already meet several recruitment qualifications which are established by the Law Enforcement Safety Board (LESB). These qualifications ensure the applicant does not suffer from any physical, emotional, or mental condition which might adversely affect the performance of duties as an officer. Current law does not require an individual to undergo a psychological evaluation as a condition of employment, though some agencies currently require these evaluations as a condition of hire.

Assembly Bill 331, which has strong bipartisan support, would require a psychological evaluation and determine a prospective law enforcement officer's personality characteristics and suitability to perform his or her duties as an officer. This bill would also require the LESB to promulgate administrative rules that will govern the administration and interpretation of these examinations, including the type of test being administered.

Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 requires that rules governing the administration and interpretation of exams be promulgated in consultation with the psychological examining board and consistent with nationally recognized guidelines. The amendment also specifies various procedures related to the exams and clarifies that the contents of an exam are confidential and not subject to open records law but the determination may be disclosed to another interviewing agency. Finally, the amendment clarifies that the examination requirement only applies to those commencing employment for the first time in their lifetime. 

Assembly Bill 332: Crisis Intervention Training

Assembly Bill 332, which has bipartisan support, supplements recertification language and would require each law enforcement officer in the state to complete at least four hours of crisis management training every two years, which would be counted towards the officer's annual twenty-four-hour training requirement. An essential element of crisis management training is to provide specialized and comprehensive training to officers who respond to incidents involving an individual with mental illness.

Assembly Amendment 1 aligns the bill's effective date with the new certification cycle for law enforcement officers.

Assembly Bill 333: Crisis Program Enhancement Grants

Current law provides $250,000 each biennium to the Department of Health Services to award grants to counties or regions comprised of multiple counties to establish or enhance crisis programs to serve individuals having crises in rural areas. 

Assembly Bill 333, which has strong bipartisan support, expands the authorized purposes of this grant program by allowing DHS to award grants to counties, municipalities, or regions comprised of multiple counties or municipalities to establish and enhance law enforcement and behavioral health services emergency response collaboration programs. For all grants awarded under the $250,000 program, the bill requires a minimum of twenty-five percent match, instead of fifty percent as required by state law, and limits single grant awards to $100,000 or less.

Assembly Amendment 1 requires DHS to collect information from counties, municipalities, and regions comprised of municipal counties and municipalities receiving a grant under the program and submit a report to the appropriate legislative standing committee by June 30 the following year.

Assembly Bill 334: Officer Drug Testing

Assembly Bill 334, which has bipartisan support, requires state and local law enforcement agencies to adopt a written policy regarding drug testing and alcohol testing following an officer-involved critical incident. The bill defines an "officer-involved critical include: as, "an incident that occurs in the performance of a law enforcement officer's official duties and in which either the actions of the officer results in death or great bodily harm to a person; or the officer discharges a firearm at a person.

Under this bill, the written policy requires that each law enforcement officer who participates in or observes an officer-involved critical incident submit to drug and alcohol testing, with testing to be completed as soon as practicable after the incident. The policy must also require that the drug and alcohol testing include testing for the presence and concentration of at least the following substances: alcohol; amphetamines; cannabis; opiates; cocaine; phencyfclinde, and anabolic steroids. 

Assembly Amendment 1 clarifies the scope of law enforcement officers who must be required to submit to drug and alcohol testing under a law enforcement agency's written policy. Specifically, under the amendment, an agency's written policy must require that each law enforcement officers whose actions caused death or great bodily harm or who discharged a firearm at a person in an officer-involved incident must submit to drug and alcohol testing, rather than each officer who is involved in an officer-involved critical incident. 

Assembly Bill 335: Grants to law enforcement agencies for body cameras

Assembly Bill 335, which has bipartisan support, establishes a grant program under which the Department of Justice must award grants to law enforcement agencies to purchase body cameras for their officers. For at least three years, grant recipients must: equip all officers whose primary duties involving traffic patrol, beat patrol. or responding to calls from the public requiring assistance with body cameras, and require an officer equipped with a body camera to activate the camera in situations in which the officer has contact with a member of the public.

Under the bill, grant funds may be used only to cover the costs of body cameras, digital storage, and retrieval systems. Grant recipients must provide a fifty-percent match, and grant funds may not supplant existing resources. Upon DOJ's request, the bill authorizes the Joint Finance Committee to supplement the bill's appropriation in the 2021-23 fiscal biennium with sufficient funds for DOJ to award grants, without finding that an emergency exists, as generally required under current law governing JCF supplemental appropriations.

Assembly Amendment 1 clarifies that the definition of "law enforcement agency" for purposes of eligibility for the grant program. Specifically, under the amendment, law enforcement agencies of Wisconsin political subdivisions or of federally recognized Indan tribes or bands are eligible for the grant, as is the Marquette University Police Department. However, the amendment clarifies that state law enforcement agencies are ineligible. 

Assembly Bill 369: Timeline for local redistricting in Wisconsin

Due to delays in processing the United States Census, a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is anticipated that Wisconsin will not receive census data until as late as the end of September 2021. With the data still unavailable, Wisconsin counties are unable to meet statutory requirements to perform the required calculations regarding the size of districts, hold the required public hearings, and adopt tentative county supervisory district plans. This in turn will also cause a delay in the municipal process as well since municipalities cannot adjust ward boundaries until they receive more specific information.

As a result of the delay, by the Census Bureau, a solution is required to aid counties and municipalities in their ability to complete local redistricting in a manner that is transparent to the public, completed judiciously, and in a timeframe that actually works. Assembly Bill 369 grants communities and municipalities the ability to accomplish these goals.

Assembly Bill 369 will adjust the timeline for local redistricting and allow counties to adopt a tentative plan for county supervisory districts by February 22, 2022. Municipalities will then have until May 15, 2022, to adopt new wards. Finally, the counties will have sixty days thereafter to finalize their supervisory districts following the work of municipalities. 

The delay will also affect the ability of counties and municipalities to redistrict until 2022, the supervisory and ward maps effectiveness until the spring primary and 2023 general election. The new municipal wards will also not be in effect until the spring primary and election of 2023. The bill is crucial because counties and municipalities cannot elect new supervisors in 2022 and then redistrict them out of their newly elected positions with new maps mid-term.

Events

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

Farmers Market, June 20, Saukville

Nature Detectives: Boat Building, June 19, Saukville

Cub Scout Fun Day and Scout's Merit Badge Day, June 19, Saukville

The Value of Art, May 13-September 26, Cedarburg

Thirst for Art Fair, June 19, Cedarburg

Port Washington Community Rummage Sale, June 19, Port Washington

Port Washington Outdoor Farmers Market, June 19, Port Washington

Community Rivers Program: Family Fishing Fun-Fredonia, June 18, Fredonia

Ryan Ray Tesch 10th Annual Canoe Run, June 19, Fredonia

Stay up to date

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