Wisconsin Legislature: A324

Sincerely,

james E. doyle

Attorney General

Referred to committee on Judiciary.

__________________

State of Wisconsin
Department of Justice
Madison

June 5, 1995

To the Honorable, the Legislature:

1991 Wisconsin Act 194 became effective in April, 1992, and established a Class A misdemeanor penalty for harassment accompanied by a credible threat of death or severe harm or that occurs while the actor is subject to a restraining order limiting contact with the victim. Act 194 increased the penalty to a Class E felony for a second violation involving the same victim within a seven year period.

In subsequent legislative session, 1993 Wisconsin Act 96 was enacted which defined "stalking" as intentionally maintaining a visual or physical proximity to a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear harm to one's self or family. The penalty for stalking was set at either a Class A misdemeanor or Class E felony depending on the circumstances of the act. Under s.165.829, this act required the Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide an annual report to the legislature detailing arrests and judgements of conviction for violations of s.940.32 (stalking) and s.947.013 (harassment) through October 1, 1997.

Attached is a report fulfilling the DOJ requirements by providing information on calendar year 1994 arrests and judgements of conviction for violations of Wisconsin's stalking and harassment statutes. It is important to note a number of limitations with the data contained in this report.

First, the arrest information relies on what local law enforcement agencies report to DOJ. While this information can provide an overall profile of stalking and harassment arrests in Wisconsin, it should not be viewed as comprehensive data on all incidents in the state.

Second, under prevailing law at the time the enabling legislation was passed, police agencies were not required to report all misdemeanor harassment arrests or ordinance violations to DOJ. Therefore, certain violations of s.940.32 and s. 947.013 may not appear in this arrest data.

In order to ensure that future legislative summaries are more comprehensive, I have designated, pursuant to s. 165.83(2), that all violations of the stalking and harassment statutes are reportable offenses. We should see increased reporting of arrests beginning with the 1995 statistics.

I am pleased that the Department of Justice is able to provide this information to the Wisconsin Legislature. Should any member of the Senate of Assembly require additional information, please contact Michael Moschkau, Director of the Crime Information Bureau, at 266-7399.

Sincerely,

james E. doyle

Attorney General

Referred to committee on Criminal Justice and Corrections.

__________________

Agency Reports

State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
Madison

June 5, 1995

To the Honorable, the Legislature:

We have completed an evaluation of the Department of Industry, Labor and Human Relations' Bureau of Migrant Services, as requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. The Bureau is responsible for enforcing federal as well as state migrant labor laws. Wisconsin's laws are among the nation's broadest.

In reviewing the Bureau's certification of migrant labor camps for occupancy, we did not find evidence to suggest that certified camps do not meet established housing standards. In addition, in 1994, few variances to the standards were granted. Nevertheless, improvements can be made to the certification process to promote the efficient use of inspector time and camp operator compliance with the standards.

The Bureau also undertakes several activities to ensure compliance with housing and employment standards following the arrival of migrant workers. Few violations are identified as a result of these activities. The Bureau's practices do not, however, maximize the probability that serious violations will be identified. For example, out of respect for migrant workers' privacy, inspectors typically inspect only the exterior of buildings and their grounds. We recommend a number of procedural improvements to better ensure that violations of established standards will be identified if they exist.

Even if serious violations are identified, the enforcement options available to the Bureau are limited. In addition, because the available tools are not used effectively, they may not serve to deter employers and camp operators from violating established standards. While the Department is pursuing several initiatives in this area, better procedures should be developed for collecting the evidence necessary to bring action when a serious violation, such as the operation of an illegal camp, is identified.

Finally, we believe the Council on Migrant Labor's unique authority to disapprove administrative rules proposed by the Department has hindered, rather than assisted, efforts to address migrant labor issues. We recommend that the statutes be amended to remove this authority from the Council.

A324 We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by Department of Industry, Labor and Human Relations staff. The Departments response is Appendix II.

Sincerely,

dale cattanach

State Auditor

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Representative R. Potter asked unanimous consent that the Assembly stand recessed until 12:45 P.M. Granted.

The Assembly stood recessed.

12:16 P.M.

__________________

RECESS

12:50 P.M.

The Assembly reconvened.

Speaker Pro Tempore Freese in the chair.

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Assembly Bill 150

Relating to: state finances and appropriations, constituting the executive budget act of the 1995 legislature, and making appropriations.

Assembly amendment 10 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 offered by Representatives Baldus, Bell, Grobschmidt, Kunicki, Krug, R. Potter, Hanson, Baldwin, Wood, Cullen, Meyer and Bock.

Representative Jensen moved that Assembly amendment 10 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table.

The question was: Shall Assembly amendment 10 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

Ayes - Representatives Ainsworth, Albers, Brancel, Brandemuehl, Coleman, Dobyns, Duff, Foti, Freese, Gard, Goetsch, Green, Grothman, Gunderson, Hahn, Handrick, Harsdorf, Hoven, Huebsch, Hutchison, Jensen, Johnsrud, Kaufert, Kelso, Klusman, Kreibich, La Fave, Ladwig, F. Lasee, Lazich, Lehman, Lorge, Musser, Nass, Olsen, Ott, Otte, Ourada, Owens, Porter, Powers, Rutkowski, Schneiders, Seratti, Silbaugh, Skindrud, Underheim, Urban, Vrakas, Walker, Ward, Wasserman, Zukowski and Speaker Prosser - 54.

Noes - Representatives Baldus, Baldwin, Baumgart, Bell, Black, Bock, Boyle, Carpenter, Coggs, Cullen, Dueholm, Grobschmidt, Gronemus, Hanson, Hasenohrl, Huber, Hubler, Kreuser, Krug, Krusick, Kunicki, Linton, Meyer, Morris-Tatum, Murat, Notestein, Plache, Plombon, R. Potter, Reynolds, Riley, Robson, Ryba, Schneider, Springer, Travis, Turner, Vander Loop, Wilder, Williams, Wirch, Wood, L. Young, R. Young and Ziegelbauer - 45.

Absent or not voting - None.

Motion carried.

Assembly amendment 11 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 offered by Representatives Plombon, Wilder, Dueholm, Ryba, Vander Loop, Gronemus and Springer.

Representative Jensen moved that Assembly amendment 11 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table.

The question was: Shall Assembly amendment 11 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

Absent or not voting - None.

Motion carried.

Assembly amendment 12 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 offered by Representatives Wilder, Bell, Krug, Grobschmidt and Dueholm.

Representative Prosser moved that Assembly amendment 12 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table.

Representative Duff in the chair.

The question was: Shall Assembly amendment 12 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

A325 Ayes - Representatives Ainsworth, Albers, Brancel, Brandemuehl, Coleman, Dobyns, Duff, Foti, Freese, Gard, Goetsch, Green, Grothman, Gunderson, Hahn, Handrick, Harsdorf, Hoven, Huebsch, Hutchison, Jensen, Johnsrud, Kaufert, Kelso, Klusman, Kreibich, Ladwig, F. Lasee, Lazich, Lehman, Lorge, Musser, Nass, Olsen, Ott, Otte, Ourada, Owens, Porter, Powers, Prosser, Schneiders, Seratti, Silbaugh, Skindrud, Underheim, Urban, Vrakas, Walker, Ward, Wasserman and Zukowski - 52.

Noes - Representatives Baldus, Baldwin, Baumgart, Bell, Black, Bock, Boyle, Carpenter, Coggs, Cullen, Dueholm, Grobschmidt, Gronemus, Hanson, Hasenohrl, Huber, Hubler, Kreuser, Krug, Krusick, Kunicki, La Fave, Linton, Meyer, Morris-Tatum, Murat, Notestein, Plache, Plombon, R. Potter, Reynolds, Riley, Robson, Rutkowski, Ryba, Schneider, Springer, Travis, Turner, Vander Loop, Wilder, Williams, Wirch, Wood, L. Young, R. Young and Ziegelbauer - 47.

Absent or not voting - None.

Motion carried.

Assembly amendment 13 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 offered by Representatives Grobschmidt, Kunicki, Bock, R. Young, Baldus, Turner, Meyer, Plombon, Murat and Krusick.

Representative Jensen moved that Assembly amendment 13 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table.

Speaker Pro Tempore Freese in the chair.

The question was: Shall Assembly amendment 13 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

Ayes - Representatives Ainsworth, Albers, Brancel, Brandemuehl, Coleman, Dobyns, Duff, Foti, Freese, Gard, Goetsch, Green, Grothman, Gunderson, Hahn, Handrick, Harsdorf, Hoven, Huebsch, Hutchison, Jensen, Johnsrud, Kaufert, Kelso, Klusman, Kreibich, Ladwig, F. Lasee, Lazich, Lehman, Lorge, Musser, Nass, Olsen, Ott, Otte, Ourada, Owens, Porter, Powers, Prosser, Schneiders, Seratti, Silbaugh, Skindrud, Underheim, Urban, Vrakas, Walker, Ward, Williams and Zukowski - 52.

Noes - Representatives Baldus, Baldwin, Baumgart, Bell, Black, Bock, Boyle, Carpenter, Coggs, Cullen, Dueholm, Grobschmidt, Gronemus, Hanson, Hasenohrl, Huber, Hubler, Kreuser, Krug, Krusick, Kunicki, La Fave, Linton, Meyer, Morris-Tatum, Murat, Notestein, Plache, Plombon, R. Potter, Reynolds, Riley, Robson, Rutkowski, Ryba, Schneider, Springer, Travis, Turner, Vander Loop, Wasserman, Wilder, Wirch, Wood, L. Young, R. Young and Ziegelbauer - 47.

Absent or not voting - None.

Motion carried.

Assembly amendment 14 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 offered by Representatives Grobschmidt, Krusick, Coggs, R. Potter, Notestein, Krug, Bock and Kreuser.

Representative Jensen moved that Assembly amendment 14 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table.

The question was: Shall Assembly amendment 14 to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 150 be laid on the table?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

Ayes - Representatives Ainsworth, Albers, Brancel, Brandemuehl, Coleman, Dobyns, Duff, Foti, Freese, Gard, Goetsch, Green, Grothman, Gunderson, Hahn, Handrick, Harsdorf, Hoven, Huebsch, Hutchison, Jensen, Johnsrud, Kaufert, Kelso, Klusman, Kreibich, Ladwig, F. Lasee, Lazich, Lehman, Lorge, Musser, Nass, Olsen, Ott, Otte, Ourada, Owens, Porter, Powers, Prosser, Schneiders, Seratti, Silbaugh, Skindrud, Underheim, Urban, Vrakas, Walker, Ward, Wood and Zukowski - 52.