Representative Oldenburg’s Bills Signed Into Law: 2024 Wisconsin Act 139 & 152

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         CONTACT: Rep. Loren Oldenburg

March 21, 2024                                                                                                        (608) 237-9196

Representative Oldenburg’s Bills Signed Into Law:

MADISON – Representative Oldenburg (R-Viroqua) authored Senate Bill 67 and Senate Bill 163. Senate Bill 67 and Senate Bill 163 were signed into law on March 21, 2024 and are now 2024 Wisconsin Act 139 and 2024 Wisconsin Act 152.

2024 Wisconsin Act 139 defines ‘decommissioned’ as it relates to power plants, makes the distribution of phase-out utility aid more manageable, and keeps municipalities whole in their funding. “I am excited to see this bill officially become law” said Oldenburg, “I began working on this legislation last session to assist the Town of Genoa, Village of Genoa, and Vernon County as they prepared for Dairyland Power Cooperative’s Genoa Power Plant to close.

The Genoa Power Plant was demolished and decommissioned this week. “Now communities who host a power plant will be treated fairly across the state, and will have the ability to adapt to the changes in their tax roll over time.” said Oldenburg.

2024 Wisconsin Act 152 clarifies membership requirements for the Wisconsin Agricultural Education and Workforce Development Council (WAEWDC) in the Department of Workforce Development. Current law specifies that one of the council members is the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Extension. After some recent restructuring, the dean is the specified WAEWDC member.

“I’m happy to help the WAEWDC” said Oldenburg, “This statute update will allow the council to continue promoting employment opportunities in the agriculture industry and attract new talent.”