Relating to: use of loan proceeds under the business improvement loan guarantee program.
By Representatives Handrick, Hutchison, Prosser, Jensen, Ourada, Linton, Boyle, Olsen, Zukowski, Musser, Ladwig, Dobyns and Green; cosponsored by Senator Breske
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Business, Economic Development and Urban Affairs.
Assembly Bill
621
Relating to: records Relating to ride-sharing programs and providing a penalty.
By Representatives La Fave, Olsen, Krug, Goetsch, Bock, Albers, Cullen, Hahn, Baldwin, Hasenohrl and Boyle; cosponsored by Senators Darling, Huelsman and Cowles
.
Read first time and referred to committee on State Government Operations and Corrections.
Assembly Bill
642
Relating to: denial by the department of regulation and licensing of applications for renewal of a credential based on a credential holder's tax delinquency.
By Representative
Jensen
; cosponsored by Senator Rude
, by request of the Department of Regulation and Licensing and the Department of Revenue.
Read first time and referred to committee on Business, Economic Development and Urban Affairs.
Assembly Bill
666
Relating to: removable and fixed prosthodontic services under medical assistance and making an appropriation.
By Representatives Silbaugh, Powers, Prosser, Hahn, Freese, Skindrud, Green, Ladwig, Wirch, Ainsworth, Lehman, Johnsrud, Robson, Boyle, Kreibich, Brandemuehl, Ourada, Otte, Plombon, Black, Baldwin, Zukowski, Huebsch, Kelso, Seratti, F. Lasee, Underheim, Hutchison, Kaufert, Turner, Gronemus, Albers, Handrick, Hasenohrl, Harsdorf, Musser, Wasserman and Murat; cosponsored by Senators Buettner and Andrea
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Health, Human Services and Aging.
Relating to: creating an environmental science council.
By Representatives Duff, Jensen, Klusman, Freese, Albers, Ourada, Ott, Johnsrud, Hoven, Huebsch, Kelso, Seratti, Silbaugh, Hahn, Lazich, Powers, F. Lasee, Olsen, Gunderson, Vrakas, Ladwig, Goetsch, Grothman and Springer; cosponsored by Senators Farrow, Rude, Petak, Breske and Rosenzweig
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Environment and Energy.
Assembly Bill
736
Relating to: supervision of assessments.
By Representatives Harsdorf, Gunderson, Freese, Lehman, Musser, Owens, Porter, Goetsch, Hahn, Ladwig, Grothman, Klusman, Dueholm, Silbaugh, Olsen, Hasenohrl, La Fave, Gronemus, Ott, Albers and Powers; cosponsored by Senators Petak, Clausing, Weeden, Welch, Breske, C. Potter, Adelman, A. Lasee and Jauch
.
Read first time and referred to committee on State Government Operations and Corrections.
Assembly Bill
808
Relating to: creation of a property tax relief fund and transferring moneys to that fund.
By Representatives Powers, Hanson, Huebsch, Handrick, Kelso, Seratti, F. Lasee, Hutchison, Gunderson, Hahn, Skindrud, Silbaugh, Hoven, Olsen and Zukowski; cosponsored by Senators Drzewiecki, Panzer, Cowles and Petak
.
Read first time and referred to committee on State Government Operations and Corrections.
Assembly Bill
825
Relating to: exempting farm trucks from the motor vehicle emission inspection and maintenance program.
By Representatives Otte, Porter, Grothman, Owens, Ward, Musser, Skindrud, Nass, Gunderson, Jensen, Brandemuehl, Goetsch, Urban, Hahn, Silbaugh, F. Lasee, Ourada, Zukowski, Seratti, Johnsrud, Kreibich, Green, Freese, Klusman, Huebsch, Ott, Powers, Hutchison, Lorge, Gronemus, Wilder, Reynolds, Plache, Duff, Schneiders, Wasserman, Baumgart, Ainsworth, Hoven, Albers, Olsen, Underheim and Harsdorf; cosponsored by Senators A. Lasee, C. Potter, Panzer and Buettner
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Transportation, Agriculture and Local Affairs.
Assembly Bill
833
Relating to: preparation of a plaque honoring the public service of Dr. H. Rupert Theobald and making an appropriation.
By Representatives Prosser, Kunicki, Krug, Ladwig, Porter, Notestein, Urban, Coleman, Hanson, Lazich, Bock, R. Young, Otte, Goetsch, Schneiders, Lorge, Dobyns, Johnsrud, Ainsworth and Lehman; cosponsored by Senators Rude, Burke, Panzer, Buettner, C. Potter and Grobschmidt
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Bill
833
Relating to: preparation of a plaque honoring the public service of Dr. H. Rupert Theobald and making an appropriation.
By Representatives Prosser, Kunicki, Krug, Ladwig, Porter, Notestein, Urban, Coleman, Hanson, Lazich, Bock, R. Young, Otte, Goetsch, Schneiders, Lorge, Dobyns, Johnsrud, Ainsworth and Lehman; cosponsored by Senators Rude, Burke, Panzer, Buettner, C. Potter and Grobschmidt
.
Read first time and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Joint Resolution 59
Relating to: encouraging the administration to develop a sister-state relationship with Belgorod.
By Representative
Dobyns
; cosponsored by Senator Buettner
.
Read and referred to committee on State Government Operations and Corrections.
Assembly Joint Resolution 74
Relating to: the life and public service of Sheriff Fred Schram.
By Representatives Albers, Brandemuehl, Freese and Johnsrud
.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
The Senate proceeded in a body to the Assembly Chamber to meet in Joint Convention to receive the State of the State Message.
The President of the Senate in the Chair.
The committee to await upon the Governor appeared with his excellency the Governor, who delivered his message as follows:
Speaker Prosser, President Rude, Members of the Legislature; Constitutional Officers, honorable justices of the Supreme Court, tribal chairmen, members of the Cabinet, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
I am proud to come before you tonight to talk about the accomplishments we have made together as a state and about the bold future we are building together.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the state of the state is exceptional.
As I travel across Wisconsin and talk with thousands of people, I am inspired by their abiding belief in an even better future.
I see hope in the eyes of children at Bruce Guadalupe school in Milwaukee's inner city.
I see confidence in the small entrepreneur who's just invested her life savings in a new venture, knowing she will succeed.
I see a sense of security in our mothers and fathers, who have chosen to raise their children in a state where values, character and hard work matter.
And there is reason for the hope that lies within us.
We have built a sense of confidence in the future. For we have proven as a state that if we work hard enough, if we make sacrifices, and if we believe in ourselves -- we can do anything.
We are breaking records that were thought to be unbreakable surpassing milestones thought unattainable. Consider the following:
Welfare caseloads are down 33 percent -- their lowest level in two decades...The American Dream is now within reach of 33,000 more families ...And tonight, we're on the brink of ending welfare altogether.
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Just a few years ago, wolves, eagles and elk were either long gone or dying off. Today, the wolves are back, the eagles are soaring and the elk are bugling across their native Wisconsin....We've preserved more pristine land than any time in our history...And we've cut industrial pollution by 26 percent while our businesses have grown by more than 30 percent.
The future is brighter for our family farmers: We're now assessing farms based on their use instead of their potential value and we're cutting property taxes by $1.2 billion -- putting tens of thousands of dollars in the pocketbooks of our family farmers.
We've begun a modern day industrial revolution. We have more manufacturing jobs today than at any time in our history -- 596,000 of them. That's more than we had in our industrial heyday of the late 70s when Allis Chalmers, Uniroyal and AMC were all operating at top capacity. It is a breathtaking achievement. An achievement most thought would never happen.
And our sports teams are winning like never before.....As you can see, they're bringing home the championship trophies in abundance.
The University of Wisconsin men's soccer team, the UW-Platteville men's basketball team, the UW-La Crosse football team and the Brookfield East boy's soccer team dominated their competition and won national championships in 1995.
We're even daring to talk about another Super Bowl -- and with a straight face. After 23 years, the Green Bay Packers are once again champions -- the NFC Central Division Champions. And they came within 15 minutes of the Super Bowl.
But next year .... We get the Cowboys up at Lambeau Field -- in January. The windchill is minus 20. The turf is frozen hard as a rock. It's snowing and the wind is whistling across the field at 50 miles an hour. And then, we kick their big, fat .... egos all the way back to Dallas.
And after that, we'll bring the Lombardi Trophy back home to Wisconsin, where it belongs.
Wisconsin is already winning, ladies and gentlemen. Wisconsin is Working -- better and stronger than at any time in our history.
What's our secret? An off the field incident affecting the Packers may explain it best.
Just days before the Packers biggest game in nearly three decades, Reggie White's church was burned to the ground in Knoxville, Tenn. It was a horrible tragedy and a dastardly act.
This wasn't our church. This didn't happen in one of our communities. But the next day, the people of Wisconsin were already raising money to help Reggie rebuild his church. As a state, we've raised more than $210,000.
That's the Wisconsin Way.
We're motivated by a commitment to our neighbor. And dedicated to helping people lead better lives.
That's why we are fighting crime....reducing government....cutting taxes. And why we are strengthening our families....reforming education.....ending welfare.
We have a strength of character in Wisconsin that comes from our deep faith and our willingness to fight for the values we hold dear. Unfortunately today, our values and traditions are coming under continual assault.
Right now, I am being sued because I defended the beauty of our Capitol Rotunda with its Christmas tree and menorah. And the same people are suing me in an attempt to throw out our Good Friday holiday.
If it means I have to go to court to defend the traditions that make us great, so be it. As long as I am governor, I will fight to defend and elevate the values that are the fabric of our state.
For it is these values and the commitment to our neighbors that keeps Wisconsin winning.
But there are still more battles to fight. More victories to claim.
The great architect Daniel Burnham once said: "Make no small plans. For they have not the power to move the minds of men."
In Wisconsin, we make no small plans. We make grand plans...And we implement them.
Wisconsin Works.