To committee on Labor.
Referred on May 2, 2005
.
Relating to public assistance overpayment collection and affecting small businesses.
Submitted by Department of Workforce Development.
Report received from Agency, April 21, 2005.
To committee on Children and Families
.
Referred on May 2, 2005
.
Relating to licenses, certifications and registrations and affecting small businesses.
Submitted by Department of Commerce.
Report received from Agency, April 25, 2005.
To committee on Labor.
Referred on May 2, 2005
.
Relating to the convenience fee for telephone vehicle registration renewal.
Submitted by Department of Transportation.
Report received from Agency, April 25, 2005.
To committee on Transportation.
Referred on May 2, 2005
.
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Read first time and referred:
Assembly Bill 395
Relating to: the use of ethnic names, nicknames, logos, and mascots by school boards, granting rule-making authority, and providing a penalty.
By
Representatives Boyle, Musser, Sherman, Ainsworth, Benedict, Berceau, Bies, Black, Colon, Fields, Grigsby, Hebl, Kessler, Krawczyk, Lehman, McCormick, Molepske, Mursau, Nelson, Parisi, Pocan, Pope-Roberts, Richards, Schneider, Seidel, Sheridan, Shilling, Sinicki, Toles, Turner, Van Roy, Wasserman and Young; cosponsored by Senators Coggs, Risser, Robson, Carpenter, Hansen, Jauch and Miller.
To committee on State Affairs.
Assembly Bill 396
Relating to: eliminating tax benefits for and taxing authority of a local professional baseball park district.
A211
By
Representatives Schneider and Vruwink.
To joint committee on Finance.
Assembly Bill 397
Relating to: the 2003-05 Authorized State Building Program.
By
Representative
Loeffelholz
; cosponsored by Senator Schultz
.
To joint committee on Finance.
Assembly Bill 398
Relating to: cash discounts for retail motor vehicle fuel purchases.
By
Representatives Wood, Suder, Moulton, Jensen, Hines, Jeskewitz, Krawczyk, Vos, Musser, LeMahieu, Nerison, Pridemore, Nass, Gunderson, F. Lasee, Vrakas and Mursau; cosponsored by Senators Zien, Brown, Grothman, Reynolds, Stepp and Lassa.
To committee on Transportation.
Assembly Bill 399
Relating to: the involvement of military base commanders with local zoning entities; creating a council on military and state relations; and requiring a seller of real property to disclose its proximity to the boundaries of a military installation.
By
Representative
Musser
; cosponsored by Senator Brown
.
To committee on Military Affairs
.
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Chief Clerk Reports
The Chief Clerk records:
Assembly Bill 92
Assembly Bill 99
Assembly Bill 140
Presented to the Governor on Thursday, April 28.
Patrick E. Fuller
Assembly Chief Clerk
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Reference Bureau Corrections
Assembly Bill 293
1. Page 4, line 10: delete "municipality" and substitute "municipal".
Note: "Municipal," rather than "municipality," is the correct text of the statute that is being amended (s.
66.0305 (6)(c)).
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Governor's Veto Message
April 29, 2005
To the Honorable Members of the Assembly:
I am vetoing Assembly Bill 63 in its entirety. This bill would require voters and persons registering at the polls on Election Day to show photo identification before being allowed to vote or register on Election Day. This bill would also repeal the current law that allows individuals to register by having their residence corroborated by another elector.
I am vetoing AB 63 because it places unnecessary restrictions on voting and is inconsistent with Wisconsin's proud tradition of ensuring maximum access to the constitutionally protected right to vote. In the 2004 election, Wisconsin ranked third in the nation in voter turnout, with about 75 percent of eligible voters showing up to exercise their right to vote. AB 63 would make Wisconsin's election laws the strictest in the country and put us on equal footing with South Carolina, a state that had only a 50 percent turnout -- one of the worst voter turnouts in the nation. When it comes to voting rights and voter turnout, we shouldn't trade our laws for South Carolina's. While it is true that Wisconsin's election system is in need of reform, AB 63 is not the answer.
What is particularly troubling about AB 63 is that it in no way addresses the problems that it is supposedly intended to remedy. AB 63 does not prevent felons from voting. It does not prevent individuals from voting twice or ensure that the address appearing on a photo ID card is in fact accurate and up to date. AB 63 does not make the lines at polling places any shorter or make them move any faster. And it does not make the job of poll workers any easier. In fact, AB 63 creates a host of additional administrative burdens for poll workers as they would be forced to interpret the accuracy and authenticity of each photo ID card and also determine whether individuals appearing without the required photo ID fall into one of the exemptions or whether their ballots should be marked and treated as provisional. AB 63 creates more problems than it solves.
In addition, AB 63 would disenfranchise tens of thousands of otherwise eligible, elderly voters who do not have a driver's license or valid Wisconsin photo ID card. As I have noted before, according to the Department of Transportation, there are nearly 100,000 elderly voters in Wisconsin who would be disenfranchised by this bill. I refuse to sign into law a bill that would make it harder for Wisconsin's senior citizens to exercise their right to vote.
What the 2004 election revealed is that to properly accommodate increasing voter turnout Wisconsin's election system needs improvement. We ought to be focused on making it easier for legitimate voters to vote, and ensuring that every valid vote is counted. A photo ID requirement won't achieve either objective, but it will disenfranchise tens of thousands of Wisconsin seniors who don't have drivers' licenses.
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Three weeks ago, I proposed a comprehensive package of election reform that addresses the real problems - the understaffed and under-trained polling workforce, the lack of statewide uniformity in election administration, and the burdens associated with our absentee voting system. The measures that I proposed will help restore integrity to our election system and give clerks and poll workers the tools and resources they need to properly administer elections in Wisconsin. Most importantly, my proposed reforms, unlike AB 63, do not undercut our proud history of ensuring maximum access to the ballot box in Wisconsin.
The protection of our citizens' fundamental rights is of utmost importance. Any legislative attempt to restrict those rights must be carefully scrutinized. Because AB 63 needlessly strips away full and unfettered access to voting for some of Wisconsin's most vulnerable citizens - including nearly 100,000 senior citizens -- I cannot sign it into law.
Respectfully submitted,
Jim Doyle
Governor
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Referral of Vetoes
Assembly Bill 63
Relating to: requiring certain identification in order to vote at a polling place or obtain an absentee ballot, verification of the addresses of electors, and the fee for an identification card issued by the Department of Transportation.
To committee on Campaigns and Elections.
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Communications
State of Wisconsin
Joint Legislative Council
Madison
April 26, 2005
Mr. Patrick Fuller
Assembly Chief Clerk
P.O. Box 8952
Madison, WI 53708
Dear Patrick:
I am pleased to transmit to you the following reports to the 2005 Legislature on legislation introduced by the Joint Legislative Council:
RL 2005-01 Special Committee on Recodification of Chapter
45, Veterans
RL 2005-05 Special Committee on Recodification of Chapter
767, Stats., Actions Affecting the Family
RL 2005-06 Special Committee on Wisconsin's Transportation Network Infrastructure
