| |
The State Assembly last night concluded its legislative
business for 2005 and recessed until
next year. Both Houses are scheduled
to return for business on Jan. 17, 2006.
(The Senate, which met last week, was
not in session this week.)
While December floor periods are unusual in Wisconsin,
the Legislature did address a number
of high profile, controversial issues
including “concealed carry,”
repeal of the automatic gas tax indexing,
and mandating ethanol blend in gasoline
throughout the state. The concealed
carry bill was amended and needs to
return to the Senate for further action;
the ethanol mandate passed the first
House; but, the next stop for the gas
tax repeal is the Governor.
The Legislature also took final action on the Jobs
Preservation Act relating to actual
proof of fault in product liability
cases and advanced, within the process,
other civil justice bills relating to
the standard for punitive damages and
liability exemptions related to alleged
injuries resulting from weight loss
and obesity. The Legislature has made
civil justice reform a very high priority
and three major bills are currently
pending before the Governor, including
the Jobs Preservation Act referred to
above, as well as product liability
reform and the establishment of stricter
standards for the admission of expert
opinion evidence. (The Governor has
already vetoed the re-establishment
of caps on noneconomic damages in medical
malpractice cases.)
Tidbits Alerts will be sent over the next couple of
weeks if there are significant developments
to be reported. Otherwise, we are going
into a bit of a holiday mode.
All of us at The Hamilton Consulting
Group extend our wishes for A HAPPY
HOLIDAY to all of our clients, friends
and colleagues.
| In this Issue |
 |
| The Jobs Preservation Act Advances to Governor
Punitive Damage Bill has Assembly Hearing
Gas Indexing Bill Goes to Governor
Ethanol Mandate (AB-15)
Pier Bill Approved
Other Assembly Action This Week
Committees Recommend Passage of “Obesity” Bills
Milwaukee Earns ‘World Leadership’ Award
Governor Signs Bill Promoting Donation of Umbilical Cord Blood
for Scientific Research
Chvala to Serve Jail Time
Former Senator Proxmire Dies
Newcomer Wins Primary |
| Policy Developments |
|
| The Jobs Preservation Act Advances to Governor
The Assembly this week gave
final approval (on
a voice vote) to Senate Bill
402
(labeled the Jobs Preservation
Act by proponents), which would
reaffirm traditional tort law
in Wisconsin that requires proof
a specific company actually
manufactured or sold the specific
product that caused the damage
before the injured party can
recover. (The Assembly companion
bill, AB 778, had previously
passed the Assembly on a vote
of 60-36.)
The legislation was introduced in response the Thomas decision
issued by the Wisconsin Supreme
Court in July of this year.
The decision has been characterized
by a national expert as putting
Wisconsin law dramatically out
of line with any other state
in the country.
Punitive Damage Bill has Assembly Hearing
The Assembly Committee on
Judiciary on Tuesday held a
public hearing on AB 843
relating to the standards
for the award of punitive damages
which responds to two other
Wisconsin Supreme Court cases
handed down earlier (March)
of this year.
Proponents of the legislation argue that the Wisconsin Court
“re-interpreted and weakened”
the standards adopted by the
Wisconsin Legislature in 1995.
The Senate companion bill, SB 447,
is pending before the Senate
Judiciary committee.
Gas Indexing Bill Goes to Governor
Earlier this week, the Assembly
concurred in the bill which
repeals the automatic annual
indexing of the state gasoline
tax rate (SB-331).
The vote was 74-23. The bill
passed
the Senate on December 6 by
a vote of 20-13.
The bill now goes to Gov. Doyle for action. For further information
on the effects of SB-331, see
the Dec.
9 edition of Political Tidbits.
The Legislative Council has
prepared a memo
on the subject.
Ethanol Mandate (AB-15)
During its final floorperiod
of 2005, the State Assembly
on Thursday passed the controversial
bill (AB-15)
to mandate the use of ethanol
in Wisconsin gasoline. The vote
was 54-38,
Paired 6. [See the Legislative
Council Amendment Memo.]
Supporters said the bill would help farmers by increasing corn
sales; those opposed cited the
increase in ozone pollution
that would be caused by burning,
ethanol which would, in turn,
place additional emission control
costs on Wisconsin businesses.
The bill now goes to the Senate.
Pier Bill Approved
Also on Thursday evening,
by a vote of 58-34,
4 paired, the Assembly passed
AB 850,
which allows existing piers
in Wisconsin to avoid regulation
by rules approved last week
by the Wisconsin Natural Resources
Board. The bill will grandfather
existing piers and prevent their
owners from having to pay a
fee to the DNR.
Other Assembly Action This Week
-
AB 594,
relating to repossession
of goods in consumer credit
transactions, passed on
a vote of 64-29.
-
SB 426,
relating to changes in the
Unemployment Insurance Law
developed by the UC Advisory
Committee was concurred
in on a vote of 82-11.
-
AB 120,
which prohibits cell phone
use by teenage drivers during
the first nine months of
their license period, and
also by teenage drivers
who hold an instruction
permit, passed the Assembly
89-6.
Committees Recommend Passage of “Obesity” Bills
The Assembly Judiciary committee
has recommended passage of AB-338,
which
would provide certain exemptions
from civil lawsuits by people
with health conditions brought
on by weight gain or obesity.
The companion bill, SB-161,
was recommended for passage
by the Senate Committee on Judiciary,
Corrections and Privacy by a
vote of 3-2 on Dec. 2.
Milwaukee Earns ‘World Leadership’ Award
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett
announced today the City of
Milwaukee is one of nine cities
worldwide to receive a ‘World
Leadership’ Award for
its model of affordable housing
that transforms neighborhoods.
The World Leadership Forum issued the award to the City of
Milwaukee Housing Authority
in a recent ceremony in London
(UK). Leaders in 400 of the
world’s largest cities
were asked to submit synopses
of their most successful projects.
Projects from around the world
were submitted on the environment,
urban renewal, housing, health,
city planning, architecture,
civil engineering, education,
the economy and employment.
Governor Signs Bill Promoting Donation of Umbilical Cord
Blood for Scientific Research
Gov.
Jim Doyle on Thursday signed
Assembly AB-270,
which promotes the donation
of umbilical cord blood. The
information must be provided
if the donation for the collection
or storage may be made without
monetary expense to the woman,
to any third-party providing
health care coverage for the
woman, or to the hospital in
which the delivery occurs. Stem
cells derived from the umbilical
cord blood of newborn babies
have proven to be a potentially
life-saving resource in the
treatment of certain diseases.
The Assembly passed the bill on June 23 by a vote of 79-19,
and the Senate concurred 33-0
on September 27.
For
more information on legislation
of interest to CTCW members,
go to the CTCW
Tracking Report.
|
| Wisconsin Politics |
|
| Chvala to Serve Jail Time
Former Senate Majority Leader
Chuck Chvala was sentenced to
nine months in jail, followed
by two years of probation for
felony misconduct in office
and illegally funneling campaign
contributions.
Dane County Circuit Judge David Flanagan ordered the sentence
on Thursday, extending the six-month
sentence recommended by prosecutors.
The sentence also includes a
fine and will include some level
of restitution, pending receipt
of a recommendation by the prosecutors.
The Judge also included in his
order that Chvala may not engage
in lobbying during his jail
and probationary period.
Former Senator Proxmire Dies
William Proxmire, died on
Thursday at the age of 90. He
served as a member of the Wisconsin
State Assembly from 1951 to
1952 and was an unsuccessful
candidate for Governor of Wisconsin
in 1952, 1954 and 1956.
Senator Proxmire was elected to the U.S. Senate to fill the
remainder of the term vacated
due to the death of Senator
Joseph McCarthy in 1957 and
served in the Senate until 1989.
Senator Proxmire served as the
Chairman of the Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs from 1975 to 1981 and
again from 1987 to 1989.
Proxmire's monthly "Golden Fleece" awards, which he began in
1975 to point out what he thought
were frivolous expenditures
of taxpayers' money, became
a Washington tradition.
Newcomer Wins Primary
Mark Newcomer defeated four
other Republicans in Tuesday’s
GOP primary to win the right
to meet Democrat Patrick Byrne
in the January 10th
special election to fill the
vacancy created by the resignation
of Republican Dan Vrakas, who
was elected Waukesha County
Executive earlier this year. |
| In the News |
|
| Chvala
gets 9 months: Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel, Dec. 16, 2005.
Assembly
passes ethanol fuel measure:
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
Dec. 16, 2005.
Senator
showed independence: Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel, Dec. 16, 2005.
Proxmire,
presenter of 'Golden Fleece'
award, dead at 90: Fond
du Lac Reporter, Dec. 15, 2005.
Assembly
passes mandate for ethanol in
gasoline: Appleton Post-Crescent,
Dec. 15, 2005.
Assembly
passes mandate for ethanol in
gasoline: Fond du Lac Reporter,
Dec. 15, 2005.
Chvala
sentenced to nine months:
Appleton Post-Crescent, Dec.
15, 2005.
Assembly
approves bill easing regulation
on piers: Green Bay Press-Gazette,
Dec. 15, 2005.
Umbilical
cord blood bill signed:
Appleton Post-Crescent, Dec.
15, 2005.
Doyle
hails tax figures as proof of
relief: Madison Capital
Times, Dec. 12, 2005.
Doyle
picks locally; Shilling selected
to head subcommittee: La
Crosse Tribune, Dec. 12, 2005.
Vote to
narrow crowded GOP field:
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
Dec. 11, 2005. |
| Upcoming Fundraisers |
|
| Dec. 20
For details, go to Hamilton
Consulting Fundraiser Calendar. |
CTCW Political
Tidbits is a weekly newsletter on
Wisconsin political and policy developments
prepared for CTCW members by The Hamilton Consulting
Group. Employees of CTCW member
organizations can subscribe at: http://www.ctcw.org/form-subscribe-tidbits.html.
To unsubscribe, go to: http://www.ctcw.org/form-unsubscribe-tidbits.html.
© 2005 The
Hamilton Consulting Group |
|
|
Links
|
|
