Brad has spent the majority of his career working for the people of Wisconsin. He served in senior positions with the US Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency in the Obama Administration and as the Secretary-designee of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Previously, Senator Pfaff held positions in the Offices of US Representative Ron Kind and US Senator Herb Kohl.
Brad met his wife, Betty, a West Salem native, while he was a senior in high school at a 4-H leadership luncheon. They are the proud parents of two children.”
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Oath of Office
Upon the calling of the newly elected Senators on Monday, January 6, 2025 the following appeared before the Senate, took and subscribed the oath of office in the Senate Chamber, which was administered by the Honorable Maria S. Lazar, Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge, District 2:
Eric Wimberger Dora Drake
LaTonya Johnson Jodi Habush Sinykin
Rob Stafsholt Mary Felzkowski
Sarah Keyeski Melissa Ratcliff
Kristin Dassler-Alfheim Dan Feyen
Robert W. Wirch Patrick Testin
Kelda Helen Roys Julian Bradley
Jamie Wall Brad Pfaff
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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 Bradley, Cabral-Guevara, Carpenter, Dassler-Alfheim, Drake, Felzkowski, Feyen, Habush Sinykin, Hesselbein, Hutton, Jacque, Jagler, James, L. Johnson, Kapenga, Keyeski, Larson, LeMahieu, Marklein, Nass, Pfaff, Quinn, Ratcliff, Roys, Smith, Spreitzer, Stafsholt, Testin, Tomczyk, Wall, Wanggaard, Wimberger and Wirch - 33.
Absent with leave - None - 0.
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Introduction, First Reading, and Reference of Proposals
Read first time and referred:
Relating to: requiring photographic identification to vote in any election (second consideration).
By Senators Wanggaard, Bradley, Cabral-Guevara, Felzkowski, Feyen, Hutton, Jacque, Jagler, James, Kapenga, Marklein, Nass, Quinn, Stafsholt, Testin, Tomczyk, Wimberger and LeMahieu; cosponsored by Representatives Snyder, Donovan, Allen, Armstrong, August, Behnke, Born, Brooks, Callahan, Dallman, Dittrich, Duchow, Goeben, Green, Gundrum, Gustafson, Hurd, B. Jacobson, Kitchens, Knodl, Kreibich, Krug, Maxey, Melotik, Moses, Murphy, Mursau, Nedweski, Neylon, Novak, O'Connor, Penterman, Petersen, Piwowarczyk, Sortwell, Spiros, Steffen, Summerfield, Swearingen, Tittl, Tucker, Tusler, Vos, Wichgers, Wittke, Zimmerman, Kaufert, Rodriguez and Kurtz.
hist198415To the committee on Judiciary and Public Safety. _____________
Consideration of resolutions and joint resolutions not requiring a third reading
Relating to: notifying the assembly and the governor that the 2025-2026 senate is organized.
hist198403The question was: Adoption of Senate Resolution 1? The ayes and noes were required and the vote was: ayes, 21; noes, 12; absent or not voting, 0; as follows:
Ayes - Senators Bradley, Cabral-Guevara, Felzkowski, Feyen, Habush Sinykin, Hutton, Jacque, Jagler, James, Kapenga, LeMahieu, Marklein, Nass, Quinn, Ratcliff, Stafsholt, Testin, Tomczyk, Wall, Wanggaard and Wimberger - 21.
Noes - Senators Carpenter, Dassler-Alfheim, Drake, Hesselbein, L. Johnson, Keyeski, Larson, Pfaff, Roys, Smith, Spreitzer and Wirch - 12.
Absent or not voting - None - 0.
Adopted.
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Senate Officers Oath of Office
The President, Mary Felzkowski, the President Pro Tempore, Patrick Testin, and the Sergeant at Arms, Tom Engels, 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 Maria S. Lazar, Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge, District 2.
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In the Chair
Senate President Felzkowski in the chair.
3:02 P.M.
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Remarks of President Felzkowski
_Hlk186533262“First, I would like to thank all the people who made today happen: our Senate Sergeant and his staff, Mr. Rick Champaign for again stepping into the role of Chief Clerk, Pastor Emily Lueder from Winneconne, the New London High School Chamber Ensemble, VFW 7591 Color Guard, and all of the families, without whom none of us would be here today. The gravity of this role does not escape me, nor does the short list of those who have come before me in it. As only the second woman to take the gavel, I would be remiss if I did not single out and thank Sen. Mary Lazich for her dedication and strength to blaze the trail and become the first woman to do so. Today also marks the first time a Senator who resides, and whose district is entirely, north of Highway 29 takes the gavel as Senate President. I was born and raised in Tomahawk, and will bring common-sense, Northwoods values to this body.
I will emphasize, as Sen. Lazich did, the importance of fair, honest, and open debates on this floor. In this time of sensationalized politics and 30 second Twitter clips, true debate on the Senate floor is needed more than ever. From this chair, I will ensure the right of the minority to be heard as they argue their case, while at the same time ensure that the will of the majority reigns. I will expect and encourage robust debate, but will require the dignity and respect for the rules that our constituents expect of us. To have a government of, by, and for the people, we must respect this body. As President, I will demand this respect and adherence to its rules.
Among our many roles as Senators, I believe that being good stewards of taxpayer dollars is chief. As Mr. Thomas Jefferson said, “I… place economy among the first and most important republican virtues, and public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared.” As we begin the policy debates of this session, we must remember that regardless of party, we are all here on behalf of the people of Wisconsin. They have put us in this body with the expectation of leading them, protecting our State, and ensuring that Wisconsin stays true to our values of hard work and level-headedness. This is an incredible responsibility, and a burden that I know does not fall lightly on the shoulders of every person in this body.
Again, I want to thank my colleagues for entrusting me with this Chair, my husband and children for their support, all of our fantastic Legislative staff, and the people of Wisconsin for the honor that they have given each and every one of us.”
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President Felzkowski introduced the Senators returning from the 106th Session: Senators Jacque, Carpenter, Hutton, Larson, LeMahieu, Nass, Jagler, Spreitzer, Marklein, Cabral-Guevara, Wanggaard, James, Quinn, Hesselbein, Tomczyk, Smith and Kapenga.
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With unanimous consent, Senator LeMahieu addressed the members from the rostrum.
Remarks of Majority Leader LeMahieu
“Thank you, Mrs. President. So two years ago, I stood in this chamber and talked about the opportunity ahead of this body. I’m proud to stand here today and say that we seized it. In this chamber, we deliberate and delivered legislation that overhauled the funding of local government to make it more equitable and inflation proof. We provided K-12 schools with the largest increase in spendable resources ever, and approved the largest expansion of the school choice program since its inception. We made sure that Wisconsin remained a major league state by keeping the Milwaukee Brewers until 2050. The legislature also passed a series of tax cuts that would have benefited our economy, had not Governor Evers vetoed them. Today more opportunity awaits us. Wisconsin is approaching a crossroads. In one direction, we can create prosperity and in the other direction, we can create hardship. More than 4 billion dollars of taxpayer money is sitting in a bank account here in Madison while rising prices impact the families who sent us here to serve them. Governor Evers has made his position clear. He wants to use that money to grow the size of government and send Wisconsin backwards. In 2010, the state was facing a multibillion-dollar deficit. Schools, local governments, and the state itself were broke. It took remarkable discipline and important reform to pull Wisconsin off its path of financial ruin and put us on the path we are still on today. In this chamber, we will do everything in our power to keep Wisconsin moving on that path forward. Our top priority is returning the surplus to the taxpayers, strengthening our economy, and passing a responsible balanced budget. Outside forces will try to knock us off that path and push us toward failed liberal policies, higher taxes, bloated government, and multibillion-dollar deficits. They will fail. We will move forward by remembering where we have been. Prosperity is a policy decision. It doesn’t happen by accident, and in this chamber, we will choose prosperity for Wisconsin families through limited government and lower taxes. May god continue to bless Wisconsin and our great nation. Thank you.”
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With unanimous consent, Senator Hesselbein addressed the members from the rostrum.
Remarks of Minority Leader Hesselbein
“Hello - It is an honor standing before you as the Senator of the 27th Senate District and leader of the Senate Democrats.
A warm welcome to the Senators standing before me, their staff, family and friends and those watching on Wisconsin Eye at home. This is an exciting day for the State of Wisconsin.
I’m standing before you with six new Democratic members. My colleagues, new and seasoned are eager to work across party lines to improve the lives of people living in their districts and those living across our state.
I’ve been thinking about this day for weeks, and how excited I am to work with YOU for the people of Wisconsin. I know you share that enthusiasm.
I firmly believe that - at the end of the day - more unites us than divides us. We typically agree on the goal, right? We want people to have affordable healthcare and prescription drug coverage, we want folks to live with financial security, we want parents to have healthy families, and we believe our kids should be safe in school and thrive. We want people to retire with dignity.
However, we often disagree on how we can reach solutions. My goal for this year and my challenge to each of my colleagues is to work with each other, our constituents, and experts in the field to achieve the solution.
There is a lot of dysfunction happening in Washington DC. I think we all agree on that. Let’s make a promise today that we won’t let the partisan bickering, public squabbles, nonsense, and nastiness to get into our chamber. That’s going to take work. Let’s commit to having an open door policy, to listen to ideas no matter who has them, and talk about the real issues impacting people’s lives.
Let’s show Wisconsinites that their legislators, that this Senate body is a force of good and has their best interests at heart.”
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Report of Committees
The joint committee on Legislative Organization reported and recommended:
Senate Joint Resolution 1
Relating to: the session schedule for the 2025-2026 biennial session period.
Introduction.
Ayes: 6 − Senator Felzkowski, Representative Vos, Senators LeMahieu and Feyen, and Representatives August and Krug.
Noes: 4 – Senators Hesselbein and Smith, and Representatives Neubauer and Haywood.
MARY FELZKOWSKI
Senate Chairperson
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Relating to: the session schedule for the 2025-2026 biennial session period.
hist198406The question was: Adoption of Senate Joint Resolution 1? The ayes and noes were required and the vote was: ayes, 19; noes, 14; absent or not voting, 0; as follows:
Ayes - Senators Bradley, Cabral-Guevara, Dassler-Alfheim, Felzkowski, Feyen, Hutton, Jacque, Jagler, James, Kapenga, LeMahieu, Marklein, Nass, Quinn, Stafsholt, Testin, Tomczyk, Wanggaard and Wimberger - 19.
Noes - Senators Carpenter, Drake, Habush Sinykin, Hesselbein, L. Johnson, Keyeski, Larson, Pfaff, Ratcliff, Roys, Smith, Spreitzer, Wall and Wirch - 14.
Absent or not voting - None - 0.
Adopted.
