2015-2017
Budget
Work continues on the 2015-2017 state
budget bill,
Assembly
Bill 21 and
Senate
Bill 21. The Legislature's
Joint
Committee on Finance has announced that it will be holding
agency
briefings next week, Monday through Wednesday. This is an
opportunity for state agencies to answer the committee's questions about
their respective portions of the budget. You will be able to watch
the briefings on
WisconsinEye.
The nonpartisan
Legislative
Fiscal Bureau, which assists the Legislature on the budget and other
legislation with fiscal impacts, has completed its
summary of AB 21 and
SB 21. The LFB budget summary is a valuable tool for legislators
and constituents alike to get a better handle on what the Governor's
proposal actually does.
The finance committee has not yet
announced when and where it will hold public hearings around the state,
but I expect the hearing notices will be published in the next few
weeks.
Right to Work
I have received many contacts in recent
weeks about
Assembly
Bill 61 and
Senate
Bill 44, the "Right to Work" bills currently moving through the
Legislature. In a nutshell, AB 61 and SB 44 would prohibit someone
from requiring another person either to be or not be a member of a labor
union as a condition of employment.
The Senate's labor committee held a
lengthy public hearing on SB 44 on Tuesday, February 24, and the Senate
passed it on Wednesday, February 25, so it is now in the Assembly's
hands. The Assembly labor committee has announced that it will
hold a public hearing on Monday, March 2, starting at 10 a.m. The
hearing will be shown on WisconsinEye.
Over
the past week, I have been hearing arguments on both sides of the issue,
and both sides have raised valid points, but at the same time it can be
difficult to separate fact from opinion and determine the "truth" about
what effect Right to Work will have on Wisconsin. While I am not a
member of the labor committee, I look forward to learning about any new
information that may be presented at Monday's hearing.
Listening Sessions
Sen. Terry Moulton has announced that he
will be holding listening sessions around the 23rd Senate District over
the next two Mondays. I plan to join him for the following
sessions:
Monday, March 2
Cornell City Hall
222 Main St
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Monday, March 9
New Auburn Village Hall
130 E Elm St
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Stanley Fire Department
239 E 1st Ave
1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
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