Read first time and referred:
Senate Bill 273
Relating to: creation of renewable resource credits by electric providers and granting rule-making authority.
By
Senators
Plale, Cowles, Leibham, Sullivan, Holperin, Taylor, Lassa, Hopper, Darling, Olsen, A. Lasee, Hansen, Kapanke, Schultz, Risser and Lazich; cosponsored by Representatives Zigmunt, Soletski, Ziegelbauer, Kestell, Gunderson, Berceau, Nelson, Milroy, Grigsby, Turner, Montgomery, Huebsch, Van Roy, Nygren, Suder, Townsend, Gottlieb, Spanbauer, Davis, Dexter, A. Ott, Bernard Schaber, Van Akkeren, Hixson, Zepnick, Honadel, Danou, Zipperer, Ripp, Benedict, M. Williams, LeMahieu and Wood.
To committee on Commerce, Utilities, Energy, and Rail.
__________________
The committee on Judiciary, Corrections, Insurance, Campaign Finance Reform, and Housing reports and recommends:
Senate Bill 160
Relating to: increasing the amount of the homestead exemption.
Passage.
Ayes, 4 - Senators
Taylor, Sullivan, Erpenbach and Hopper.
Noes, 1 - Senator
Grothman.
Senate Bill 40
Relating to: public financing of campaigns for the office of justice of the supreme court, making appropriations, and providing penalties.
Passage.
Ayes, 3 - Senators
Taylor, Sullivan and Erpenbach.
Noes, 2 - Senators
Grothman and Hopper.
Lena Taylor
Chairperson
State of Wisconsin
Office of Senator Dale Schultz
August 12, 2009
The Honorable, The Senate:
Please remove my name as a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 194, relating to: professional land surveyors, the practice of professional land surveying, surveying land abutting navigable waters, and granting rule-making authority.
If you have any questions about this request, please feel free to call me.
With Kindest Regards,
dale schultz
Senator, 17th Senate District
Department of Transportation
August 21, 2009
The Honorable, The Legislature:
Enclosed is the report required under 343.237(9), regarding the release of photos from the Department driver record files to Wisconsin Law Enforcement, Federal Government Law Enforcement and all other eligible State Law Enforcement.
This report is provided annually and contains the agencies and the purpose for which copies of the photographs were provided. Please forward this report, as you feel appropriate to any interested parties.
If you have any questions regarding the release of photographs please contact Debbie Kraemer, Supervisor in the Records and Licensing Information Section, Bureau of Driver Services, by phone at (608) 264-7060.
Sincerely,
FRANK J. BUSALACCHI
Secretary
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Government Accountability Board
August 24, 2009
The Honorable, The Legislature:
Many local election officials have received a communication from U.S. PIRG concerning voter registration modernization legislative initiatives at the state and federal level. U.S. PIRG is one of several organizations along with the Brennan Center and some Members of Congress interested in making a significant change in how states create voter registration lists. Apparently, U.S. PIRG has contacted many municipal clerks throughout Wisconsin seeking their support. It is clear the mailing is raising questions rather than providing information on voter registration modernization.
The underlying concept with this initiative is to shift the responsibility for populating voter registration lists with eligible voters from the voter to the government. This is the approach used in most other democracies including Canada and European countries. At the heart of this approach is having the government automatically register eligible voters based on information in various data bases such as driver license files, human service agency records, tax records and other data bases, and keep the information current based on this automatic listing.
This requires significant information exchange and data matching, which will require the government to take an active role in resolving data conflicts. The ability for the voter to correct voter list errors before voting is an essential component to this approach. Election Day registration is one means to provide this opportunity. Part of the justification for voter registration modernization is to make voter lists more accurate by eliminating data entry while saving money and improving efficiency.
U.S. PIRG is asking municipal clerks to support its approach. The G.A.B. staff urges local election officials to postpone taking a position on this initiative until draft legislation is available for review by state and local election officials. There are many policy and administrative issues that need to be thoroughly vetted to ensure any changes to the current voter registration system in Wisconsin, or elsewhere, accomplish the goals of improving the accuracy, cost, efficiency and integrity of our voter registration data.
I am currently working with a group of state and local election officials from across the country along with some academics who have been asked to look at voter registration modernization. Based on reports I have seen from the Brennan Center(
http://www.brennancenter.org/content/pages/voter_registration_modernization) and inquiries from Members of Congress, I expect to see some draft federal legislation before the end of the year.
Like our efforts with respect to H.R. 811 in the last Congressional session, election officials can play a key role in addressing proposed federal mandates. The Government Accountability Board has not taken a position on this initiative, but our staff will endeavor to learn as much as possible about voter registration modernization issues in order to provide local election officials and our elected representatives with information to address the impact of any legislative initiatives in this area.
We will continue to share information with you as we learn more. Please feel free to contact me on this matter if you have additional questions.
Sincerely,
Nathaniel E. Robinson
Elections Division Administrator
