A veteran of the US Army Reserves, Senator Fitzgerald served since 1981 and was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Army branch in 1985. In 2009, he retired with 27 years of service at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Senator Fitzgerald brought his background in service to the Legislature where he has been recognized as a champion of veteran’s issues.
Joining Senator Fitzgerald today are his wife Lisa, mother Bonnie, and father Steve, a lifelong public servant and current superintendent of the Wisconsin State Patrol. He would also like to recognize his three sons Scott, Brennan, and Connor.”
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Oath of Office
Upon the calling of the newly elected Senators on Monday, January 5, 2015, the following appeared before the Senate, took and subscribed the oath of office which was administered by the Honorable Annette Ziegler, Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Frank Lasee Tim Carpenter
Lean Vukmir Chris Larson
Devin LeMahieu Steve Nass
Scott Fitzgerald Janis Ringhand
Howard Marklein Roger Roth
Van Wanggaard Terry Moulton
Janet Bewley Jon Erpenbach
Jerry Petrowski Kathleen Vinehout
Paul Farrow
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Call of Roll
The roll was called, disclosing the presence of a quorum.
Pursuant to Senate Rule 15, the official attendance for session was: Senators Bewley, Carpenter, Cowles, Erpenbach, Farrow, S. Fitzgerald, Gudex, Hansen, Harris Dodd, Harsdorf, C. Larson, Lasee, Lassa, Lazich, LeMahieu, Marklein, Miller, Moulton, Nass, Olsen, Petrowski, Ringhand, Risser, Roth, Shilling, L. Taylor, Tiffany, Vinehout, Vukmir, Wanggaard and Wirch - 31.
Absent with leave - Senator Darling - 1.
Vacancies - 20th Senate District - 1.
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Leaves of Absence
Senator Fitzgerald, with unanimous consent, asked that Senator Darling be granted a leave of absence for today's session.
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hist31212Considered as privileged and taken up. Relating to: notifying the assembly and the governor that the 2015-2016 senate is organized.
By Senators S. Fitzgerald, Lazich, Farrow, Shilling and Hansen.
hist31213The question was: Adoption of Senate Resolution 1? The ayes and noes were demanded and the vote was: ayes, 31; noes, 0; absent or not voting, 1; as follows:
Ayes - Senators Bewley, Carpenter, Cowles, Erpenbach, Farrow, S. Fitzgerald, Gudex, Hansen, Harris Dodd, Harsdorf, C. Larson, Lasee, Lassa, Lazich, LeMahieu, Marklein, Miller, Moulton, Nass, Olsen, Petrowski, Ringhand, Risser, Roth, Shilling, L. Taylor, Tiffany, Vinehout, Vukmir, Wanggaard and Wirch - 31.
Noes - None.
Absent or not voting - Senator Darling - 1.
Adopted.
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Remarks of President Lazich
“The first item is thank you. Thank you to the Most Reverend Jerome Listecki, Archbishop, Archdiocese of Milwaukee for offering the opening prayer for this 102nd session. Thank you New Berlin Eisenhower School Strings Ensemble for performing the National Anthem and providing music during our reception earlier. Thank you to VFW Post 7591, Madison, for presenting the colors. Thank you to Chief Clerk Renk and the crew here in front of me that makes all of our work during session possible, all of our work do to the people’s business, our guests today.
Next, I want to make mention of the important people in my life, my family. My husband, Glenn, assisting his 94 year old father, Emil Lazich; a World War II veteran, a very important person in our life. My son Glenn and his wife Dana, and Autumn, Grayson, and Macie, their children, here today. My daughter Bernadine with her husband, John, here today. My daughter Rhonda, hopefully watching on Wisconsin Eye, because she is with her four daughters Kaytlyn, Mady, Ashley, Caroline, and her husband, Steve, stationed with the United States Navy. Family play important roles and make tremendous contributions to our success. I also mention guests here today, Howard and Georgene Fletcher, and Dave and Rick Meister. Thank you for joining us.
Next, and importantly, I am tremendously honored by the faith and trust placed in me by my colleagues to preside over this body. Within the Senate, the expectation is debate will be robust and orderly. My job as President is to ensure everyone is heard and the agenda is completed. I will do my best to be fair and uphold the dignity of this body.
I spoke with our dear friend Senator Alberta Darling this morning. She sends her very best wishes to everyone here today and misses us all tremendously. Please keep Bill, her husband, and Alberta and their family in your thoughts and prayers.
For the first 131 years of its history, the Wisconsin State Senate relied on the Lieutenant Governor and President Pro Tempore to preside over our debate. In the 36 years since the office of President of the Senate was created, there have been four other senators that served in the capacity. Senator Brian Rude, was our first Senate President, Senator Alan Lasee, Senator Mike Ellis, and sitting with us today Senator Fred Risser all served as Senate Presidents bringing dignity and honor to this body. As the first woman to hold this office, I plan to follow in their footsteps and their examples by leading the Senate in fair, open debates. And I look forward to all of your support to make that happen.
Two years from now, my hope is we all look back on this session and remember the policy, and importantly the civility that we brought to the debate. Thank you again for entrusting me to serve as your President of the State Senate. Thank you.”
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Senate Officers Oath of Office
The President, Mary Lazich, the President Pro Tempore, Richard Gudex, the Chief Clerk, Jeffery Renk, and the Sergeant at Arms, Edward A. Blazel, having been duly elected by the adoption of Senate Resolution 1, appeared together before the bar of the Senate, took and subscribed the oath of office which was administered by the Honorable Annette Ziegler, Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
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President Lazich introduced the Senators returning from the 101st Session: Senators Cowles, Taylor, Harris Dodd, Darling, Harsdorf, Tiffany, Olsen, Miller, Gudex, Wirch, Lassa, Risser, Lazich, Hansen, and Shilling.
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With unanimous consent, Senator Fitzgerald addressed the members from the rostrum.
Remarks of Majority Leader Fitzgerald
“As we begin the important duty of conducting the work of the people of Wisconsin, I would like to welcome and congratulate the 17 Senators whose oaths were renewed or taken for the first time today. Your constituents have entrusted you with the great privilege and responsibility of representing their interests here in Wisconsin’s statehouse, and I look forward to working with each and every member of this body, new and returning.
Over the most recent legislative sessions, we have conducted the difficult work of repairing our state. We balanced the budget, eliminated the deficit, and created a surplus. We shored up Wisconsin’s Rainy Day fund to the largest balance in state history, reduced unemployment to the lowest level in six years, and put over $2 billion back into the pockets of Wisconsin’s taxpayers. We have worked to ensure that Wisconsin is moving forward—continually becoming a better place for workers, taxpayers, and businesses.
I am proud of all that we have been able to accomplish, but more than that, I am proud that we have achieved all of this with a spirit of bipartisanship and cooperation. Last session, 97 percent of the bills that passed through these chambers and were signed into law in Wisconsin garnered support from both sides of the aisle. I call on all of my colleagues gathered here today to enter into the 102nd legislative session with that renewed spirit.
In this new session, we must build upon all of the achievements of the last. While Wisconsin’s voters are confident that our responsible stewardship has put Wisconsin on the right track, this session we must renew our commitment to improving our business climate, developing our workforce, and creating jobs.
As we embark on the process of crafting the next biennial budget, we will ensure that the best interests of Wisconsin’s taxpayers remain a priority. Wisconsin has already seen over $3 billion in savings thanks to the reforms of Act 10, and we will continue to search out instances of waste, fraud, and abuse within our state government and ensure that they are eradicated. Meanwhile, we will continue to reform our education system, defend public safety, invest in infrastructure, and prove that we are responsible stewards of Wisconsin’s finances.
As members of the legislature, we are so often characterized by our divisions—from house, to district, to party affiliation; but all of us here today are united by our shared desire to make our state a better place. It is in this spirit that I welcome all of you to the 102nd Session of the Wisconsin State Senate.”
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With unanimous consent, Senator Shilling addressed the members from the rostrum.
Remarks of Minority Leader Shilling
“Madame President, friends and colleagues. I am honored to join you here today as we begin a new legislative session and address the challenges facing our state.
I would like to welcome our new and returning members as well as their families. I especially want to recognize my husband Chris and two boys, Nathan and Zachary, who are here with me today. Thank you for your unconditional love, support and encouragement.
I also want to welcome everyone watching from home on WisconsinEye as well as our guests here in the Senate chamber.
While today marks the start of a new session, it also provides our legislature with a clean slate and the opportunity to chart a new course for our state.
We all know that Wisconsin is a unique, vibrant and hardworking state full of amazing people and unparalleled potential, but we need a clearer plan to invest in our future and ensure long-term economic success.
While our state has seen modest economic growth, too many workers remain unemployed, family wages are stagnant and our aging infrastructure is preventing many businesses from expanding. Additionally, Wisconsin’s $2.2 billion budget shortfall and the state’s fiscal uncertainty continues to present significant challenges. While our neighboring states are enjoying budget surpluses and reaping the benefits of the national economic recovery, Wisconsin communities, businesses and residents are already bracing for another round of difficult budget cuts and sacrifices.
As we seek to balance Wisconsin’s budget deficit and build a brighter future, my Senate Democratic colleagues and I are committed to focusing on the important issues at hand. We will put forward thoughtful proposals to improve workplace flexibility, increase economic freedom and invest in pro-growth policies to strengthen the middle class. We recognize that these aren’t Democratic or Republican issues. They’re Wisconsin issues and we must find ways to work together on these key priorities.
In this new session, it is important to recognize the shortcomings of past policies and look for new ways to deliver on legislative promises. Without adequately investing in our future, Wisconsin will continue to lag our neighboring states in job growth and prosperity. We know that a quality education is the foundation for lifelong success, yet state cuts, local funding challenges and the massive increase of student loan debt have become significant burdens for families. By making targeted investments in our schools, we can improve education outcomes at all levels from pre-K programs to our technical colleges and universities.
Senate Democrats will also look for ways to help businesses improve workplace productivity, reduce employee turnover and provide greater workplace flexibility. We want to focus on increasing access to affordable childcare and reducing health care costs in order to eliminate the barriers that prevent employers and employees from succeeding in a competitive global marketplace.
We also recognize that our government has a responsibility to strengthen communities and private enterprise by maintaining a strong public infrastructure. From repairing aging roads and bridges to encouraging broadband access in urban and rural areas, we need to ensure that our infrastructure is an asset, not a liability, to businesses growth and expansion.
Each of the members in this chamber represents a unique district and geographic area of our state, but we are united in our desire to do what’s best for everyone. Rather than focusing on policies that will divide communities, I hope that we will seize this opportunity to set a new tone and find commonsense solutions to the challenges we face. As the Senate Democratic Leader, I look forward to working with Gov. Walker, my legislative colleagues, community leaders and local advocates to strengthen relationships and move Wisconsin forward. By working together, I know that we can provide greater economic opportunity, prosperity and freedom for all to enjoy.
Thank you.”
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Report of Committees
The joint committee on Legislative Organization reports and recommends:
Senate Joint Resolution 1
Relating to: the session schedule for the 2015−2016 biennial session period.
Introduction.
Ayes: 10 − Senators Lazich, Fitzgerald, Farrow, Shilling, and Hansen. Representatives Vos, Steineke, Knodl, Barca, and Shankland.
Noes: 0 − None.
MARY LAZICH
Senate Chairperson
hist31215Considered as privileged and taken up. Relating to: the session schedule for the 2015-2016 biennial session period.
By joint committee on Legislative Organization.
