2009 Assembly Joint Resolution 76
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION
Relating to: the second anniversary of WisconsinEye's commencement of broadcast operations.
Whereas, the WisconsinEye network was initiated through joint legislative study and leadership, incorporated as a private, nonprofit organization and now, under a seven-year contract with the Wisconsin legislature, serves as a public-private partnership dedicated to enhancing civic life and citizen access to the critical workings of state government; and
Whereas, the WisconsinEye network offers gavel-to-gavel coverage of all senate and assembly floor sessions, many legislative committee meetings, all supreme court oral arguments and executive branch events through 70 digital camera locations inside the state capitol as well as high-quality public affairs and educational programming from events statewide; and
Whereas, the WisconsinEye network during its start-up period provided this award-winning digital content in the form of 40 hours of new, first-run programming weekly streamed live via the Web and broadcast through Charter Cable Channel 995, Time Warner Cable Channel 163, and Wisconsin's BadgerNet Converged Network; and
Whereas, the WisconsinEye network is the only state network that receives no direct or indirect state funding and earns its support from a bipartisan donor community including private foundations, commercial distributors, corporations, groups, associations, and individuals to ensure its editorial independence; and
Whereas, the WisconsinEye network has entered its third full year of broadcast operations and is celebrating groundbreaking coverage of the 2009-2011 state budget process that marks the first time a complete and verbatim record of the proceedings has ever been available to the public; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the assembly, the senate concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin legislature commend WisconsinEye, its esteemed board of directors, and its dedicated staff for their devoted efforts to promote and sustain greater citizen engagement in public life; and
Be it further resolved, That the assembly chief clerk shall provide a copy of this joint resolution to WisconsinEye President and Chief Executive Chris Long and WisconsinEye Board Members Margaret Farrow, Tim Cullen, Diane Hendricks, John Laabs, Michael Ley, Jim Riordan, David Sanks, and Dick Vander Woude.
