Assembly Update

The Wisconsin State Assembly met on June 16 to pass a major bipartisan police-reform package based on recommendations from the Speaker’s Task Force on Racial Disparities and its Subcommittee on Law Enforcement Policies and Standards.

The package includes:

  • Senate Bill 121 prohibits chokeholds except self-defense or life-threatening situations
  • Assembly Bill 329 requires the Department of Justice to prepare annual reports about the use of no-knock warrants
  • Assembly Bill 331 requires applicants for full-time police positions to undergo psychological examinations
  • Assembly Bill 332 requires law enforcement officers to complete crisis management training as part of their recertification
  • Assembly Bill 334 requires state and local law enforcement agencies to adopt written policies that mandate drug testing for officers who discharge their firearms at individuals or whose actions cause death or great bodily harm
  • Assembly Bill 335 creates a grant program for local and tribal law enforcement agencies to purchase body cameras

I am proud to have joined colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass this legislation.  Our law enforcement agencies exist to serve and protect all of us, regardless of race.  The Speaker’s task force took a deep dive into police practices and identified many paths to improvement.  Racial disparities aren’t always a Milwaukee problem or a Madison problem, but a problem that can affect communities across the state, big and small, and I want to thank Rice Lake Police Chief Steve Roux for his work as a member of the task force and subcommittee.

The Assembly passed several other bills with my support as well, including Assembly Bills 195 and 196, which preserve fair competition in women’s sports at the college and high school levels, and Assembly Bill 299, which prohibits businesses and government agencies from requiring proof of COVID vaccination ("vaccine passports") as a condition for services.

The Assembly will reconvene on June 22.

Budget Update

The Legislature's Joint Finance Committee completed its work on the 2021-2023 state budget this week with committee votes on June 15 and June 17.

On June 15, the committee took up the Department of Health Services, the Department of Children and Families, and the Public Service Commission

Highlights from the DHS budget include an additional $434 million in state and federal funding for long-term care facilities and staff (motion items 4, 5, and 6), a $104 million increase in disproportionate share hospital payments (item 7), and $46 million for increased MA dental reimbursements (item 11).  In several areas, including long-term care, the committee went beyond Governor Evers' recommendations.

As part of the PSC budget, the Finance Committee approved $129 million for broadband expansion grants.  This is in addition to the $100 million in ARPA-funded grants that is currently accepting applications.  The past year has shown us just how important reliable broadband access is, particularly in our rural areas and communities, and the PSC motion includes a statement that it is in the public interest for the state to work with internet service providers to expand high-speed access to all Wisconsin residents.

The Finance Committee wrapped things up at its June 17 meeting with a tax cut of historic proportions, $3.4 billion.  This includes repealing the personal property tax credit, lowering the third-bracket tax rate from 6.27% to 5.3%,  establishing a state-level child and dependent care credit, and exempting active-duty military income.  (For additional details, please see the tax relief and general fund taxes motions.) 

This tax cut continues the Republican practice of returning surpluses to Wisconsin taxpayers.  Surpluses are a sign that government taxes too much, not that it spends too little.  Compare the Finance Committee's actions to Governor Evers' original budget proposal, which would have increased taxes by over $1 billion.

The Finance Committee also met maintenance of effort requirements for education and increased funding to exceed the 2/3 funding goal for K-12 (included among other provisions here).  Meaningful tax relief and investment in education are not mutually exclusive, but it requires the will to construct responsible budgets, and I want to thank the members of the Joint Finance Committee for taking their responsibilities seriously.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau and the Legislative Reference Bureau will now assemble the approved budget motions into a substitute amendment - essentially, a new budget bill.  The LFB will also prepare a summary that compares the Finance Committee's budget with the Governor's original proposal.  (Here is the 2019 comparative summary, as an example.)  After this, the Finance Committee bill will come before the Assembly and Senate for a vote, possibly the week of June 28.  While there may be some last-minute amendments for the houses to consider, the final vote is yes or no on the budget as a whole - no picking and choosing among the various provisions.  The next fiscal year begins July 1, so the ideal is for the budget to be passed and signed into law by then.

Legislative Website

If you are interested in learning more about bills that I have authored, co-sponsored, or voted on, please click here.  This link will take you directly to my Wisconsin State Legislative page.  Also, if you are interested in viewing my office website, click here.