Government Relations

Legislative Update

March 28, 2008

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In this issue:

STATE UPDATE

In The News

Governor Appoints 2 New Regents

On March 27, Governor Doyle appointed John Drew and Betty Womack to the UW System Board of Regents.  He also reappointed Regent Danae Davis to serve out the term of former Regent Milt McPike.  See news release.

Competing Budget Repair Bills Introduced 

On March 12, Jim Doyle called the Legislature into a Special Session on the Governor’s Repair Bill to work on addressing state budget deficits.  Also See Secretary Morgan’s memo to legislative leadership.

Also on March 12, the Assembly Republicans offered, and voted on, their own version of a budget repair bill. The Assembly’s Budget Repair Bill passed along party lines (51-46), with one Republican (Nass) and one Democrat (Ziegelbauer) switching parties. See the roll call here.

On March 19, the State (versus Joint) Finance Committee held a hearing at UW-Milwaukee’s campus on both the Governor’s and the Assembly’s respective versions of the bills.  UW-M Chancellor Carlos Santiago offered welcoming remarks, and testified on behalf of UWM and UW System. To view his remarks scroll down to 03.19.08 Senate Committee on Finance (Part 1).  Chancellor Santiago begins speaking at 2:05. 

See that here. 

On March 20, the Senate Democrats introduced Senate Amendment 1 To the Assembly-Passed Budget Repair Bill. See Legislative Fiscal Bureau Summary for details of provisions contained in the amendment. That day the Senate Committee on Finance passed the provision 6-2, along party lines, and forwarded it to the full senate.

On March 25, the Senate passed Senate Amendment 1 to the Assembly Bill along party lines (18-14).

On March 26, LFB issued a comparative summary of the three versions of budget repair bill. See the specific proposals regarding the UW System:  LFB Comparative Summary of Budget Adjustment Bills.  The LFB also issued a memorandum to members of the Wisconsin Legislature detailing appropriations subject to lapse provisions that could be affected by the three competing budget repair bills.

See WisEye interview with Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch (R-West Salem) in which the Speaker discusses budget negotiations and the possibility of a resolution being reached in days.

No further legislative action is confirmed for either the special session, which may proceed indefinitely, or for the legislature’s designated limited floor period, scheduled May 6-8. 

More legislative retirements announced

Senator Carol Roessler (R-Oshkosh) representing 18th Senate District. See Announcement.

Representative Steve Wieckert (R-Appleton) representing the 57th Assembly District.  See Announcement.

Kreuser to seek Kenosha County Executive post

Assembly Minority Leader Representative Jim Kreuser has announced he is running for Kenosha County Executive position in a June Special Election. Should he win that election he is expected to vacate his 64th Assembly district seat. See Announcement.

State Legislation Update

Signed Into Law

Governor Doyle has signed into law the following:

March 17

  • SB 456 – relating to the TomoThereapy addition to the UW-Madison Veterinary School to the 2007-09 authorized state building program. Act 105
  • SB 310 – relating to changes to the anatomical gift law based on the Revised Uniform Anatomical Gift Act of 2006.  Act 106

March 20

  • AB 8 – relating to privacy standards in locker rooms.  Act 118
  • AB 741 – relating to the State Economic Development Programs. Act 125                

March 27 – The Joint Committee on Information Policy and Technology held a public hearing on Information Technology Oversight. The DOA Chief Information Officer Oskar Anderson and Rep. Montgomery provided testimony on changes and development of the state IT projects and findings from the Task Force on Information Failures.

Awaiting Governor Action

AB 83-- relating to the establishment of Agricultural Education & Workforce Development.

Remaining Legislative Schedule

The remaining schedule is as follows:

  • April 3, 2008 (Th) Bills sent to Governor
  • May 6 to 8, 2008 (Tu − Th) Limited-business floor period
  • May 15, 2008 (Th) Bills sent to Governor
  • May 27 and 28, 2008 (Tu − W) Veto review floor period

FEDERAL UPDATE

Vote Schedule

Both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House will reconvene for business on Monday, March 31.

NIH Funding

On March 11, a group of university leaders, headed by Harvard University President Drew Faust, released a report on the harmful effects of flat funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on retaining the next generation of biomedical scientists and researchers. 

The report, “A Broken Pipeline? Flat Funding of the NIH Puts a Generation of Science at Risk,” was released at a press conference in Washington, D.C., featuring President Faust, Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric Fingerhut, and UW-Madison School of Medicine Dean Robert Golden.  Also speaking at the press conference were two young investigators from Vanderbilt University and UCLA, as well as a cancer survivor from Georgia. 

The group discussed how the flat NIH budget has increased competition for grants to the point that the average age for a first grant is 43 and many young investigators are being discouraged from pursuing careers in biomedical research.  President Faust likened this to a “ladder of discouragement.”  The competition also has prompted investigators to submit proposals that are safer and less innovative, said Dr. Golden, perhaps slowing the pace of scientific discovery.  

Following the press conference, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a hearing on the issue, which featured President Faust and Dr. Edward Miller, dean of the medical faculty at The Johns Hopkins University. 

Background materials, including press statements and the hearing testimony, are available at:  www.brokenpipeline.com.

FY2009 Federal Priorities

The UW System Office of Federal Relations has compiled the FY2009 Federal Priorities binder for the Wisconsin Congressional delegation.  The binder provides members and their staffs with an overview of the UW System and background and position statements.  This year’s Federal Priorities binder highlights several emerging ideas and issues in the UW System:  the importance of Federal financial aid programs; the value of academic research and development in Wisconsin; UW System’s critical role in developing and supporting water research policy; and our national leadership role in advancing bioenergy research and discovery.  See Binder online.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS     

March  
17-28 Congressional District Work Period
April  
10-11 Board of Regents Meeting – Hosted by UW-Extension, Pyle Center, Madison

 

Web Resources

Contact

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