SB655: Bill Text

SB655,1,2 An Act to create 13.83 (4) of the statutes; relating to: special joint legislative committee on strengthening Wisconsin's families.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill requires the Joint Legislative Council to create a permanent, special committee on strengthening Wisconsin's families, consisting of not fewer than 6 nor more than 11 members who are not legislators and not fewer than 6 nor more than 12 legislator members of the senate and assembly, including at least one member of the majority party and at least one member of the minority party from each house. All members are appointed by the Joint Legislative Council. The special committee is required to study issues related to strengthening Wisconsin's families and develop specific recommendations and legislative proposals relating to these issues. Among the issues that the special committee may study are the following:

1. Ways to increase awareness of the importance of families in society and to resolve social issues.

2. Ways to target public moneys for family services to families and not individuals.

3. Existing laws relating to strengthening families.

4. Ways in which the results from the scientific study of attachment and brain development can be incorporated into public schools, day care centers, and homes.

5. Child support and custody issues involving fathers, for the purpose of ensuring that fathers are appropriately engaged in the lives of their children.

6. Changes to state agency rules, policies, guidelines, and procedures to strengthen families, reduce reliance on social service professionals for family support, and maximize community support for families.

7. Core values held by Wisconsin families and proposed legislation to incorporate these values into state law.

8. Changes to the state tax code to strengthen families and provide incentives to engage in family-supporting activities and services.

9. The advantages and disadvantages of merging the departments of workforce development and health and family services to create a new department of family supports to integrate family services currently administered by multiple departments.

10. Proposed legislation to create a reconciliation council, consisting of representatives of different cultural and religious groups, that would seek to bridge cultural and religious differences among these groups.

11. Identification and support of private sector initiatives to strengthen families.

12. Ways in which local government services can be performed by volunteer groups of individuals and ways in which the saved moneys currently spent for these services by local governments can be allocated to the volunteer groups.

For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB655, s. 1 Section 1. 13.83 (4) of the statutes is created to read:

SB655,2,9 13.83 (4) Special committee on strengthening Wisconsin's families. (a) The joint legislative council shall, in each biennium, create a special committee on strengthening Wisconsin's families. The special committee shall study issues related to strengthening Wisconsin's families and develop specific recommendations and legislative proposals relating to these issues. The special committee shall, from time to time, report its findings and its legislative and other recommendations to the joint legislative council. Among the issues that the special committee may study are the following:

SB655,2,11 1. Ways to increase awareness of the importance of families in society and resolving social issues.

SB655,3,2 2. Ways to target public moneys for family services to families and not individuals.

SB655,3,4 3. Existing laws relating to strengthening families, including specifically chs. 46, 48, 49, and 938.

SB655,3,6 4. Ways in which the results from the scientific study of attachment and brain development can be incorporated into public schools, day care centers, and homes.

SB655,3,8 5. Child support and custody issues involving fathers, for the purpose of ensuring that fathers are appropriately engaged in the lives of their children.

SB655,3,11 6. Changes to state agency rules, policies, guidelines, and procedures to strengthen families, reduce reliance on social service professionals for family support, and maximize community support for families.

SB655,3,13 7. Core values held by Wisconsin families and proposed legislation to incorporate these values into state law.

SB655,3,15 8. Changes to the state tax code to strengthen families and provide incentives to engage in family-supporting activities and services.

SB655,3,19 9. The advantages and disadvantages of merging the departments of workforce development and health and family services to create a new department of family supports to integrate family services currently administered by multiple departments.

SB655,3,22 10. Proposed legislation to create a reconciliation council, consisting of representatives of different cultural and religious groups, that would seek to bridge cultural and religious differences among these groups.

SB655,3,24 11. Identification and support of private sector initiatives to strengthen families.

SB655,4,3 12. Ways in which local government services can be performed by volunteer groups of individuals and ways in which the saved moneys currently spent for these services by local governments can be allocated to the volunteer groups.

SB655,4,4 (b) The special committee shall be composed of the following:

SB655,4,6 1. Not fewer than 6 nor more than 11 members appointed by the joint legislative council who are not legislators.

SB655,4,10 2. Not fewer than 6 nor more than 12 legislator members of the senate and assembly, including at least one member of the majority party and at least one member of the minority party from each house, appointed by the joint legislative council.

SB655,4,13 (c) The joint legislative council shall pay the expenses incurred by the members appointed under par. (b) 1., in performing their functions on the special committee, from the appropriation under s. 20.765 (3) (e).

SB655,4,14 (End)