Therefore, it is the opinion of the Chair that Article IV, Section 26 of the Constitution and Joint Rule 12 (2) (b) do not apply to passage of Senate Bill 100, and the point of order is not well taken.
Senator Fred A. Risser
President of the Senate
Senator Davis appealed the ruling of the chair. The question was: Shall the decision of the chair stand as the judgment of the senate? The ayes and noes were demanded .... [Display of roll call vote omitted; ayes-18, noes-14.] So the decision of the chair shall stand as the judgment of the senate.
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Assembly Journal of October 14, 1981 .......... Page: 1229
Point of order:
Representative DeLong rose to the point of order that Assembly Bill 46 [relating to retroactive application of an employer election to apply an early normal retirement age under the state teachers retirement system] required a three-fourths vote of all elected members for passage under Article IV, Section 26 of the Wisconsin Constitution. Representative DeLong also rose to the point of order that Assembly Bill 46 was required to be referred to the Joint Committee on Finance under section 13.10 of the Wisconsin Statutes if the bill came under Article IV, Section 26 of the Wisconsin Constitution. The speaker took the point of order under advisement. [It appears that no ruling was given; no further action on bill.]
Retirement systems: referral of proposal to joint survey committee on
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Senate Journal of June 18, 1987 .......... Page: 239
[Point of order:]
Senator Davis raised the point of order that senate amendment 47 to senate substitute amendment 1 [to Senate Bill 100, relating to state finances and appropriations, constituting the general executive budget bill of the 1987 legislature, and making appropriations] was not properly before the senate.
[Ruling of the chair:]
The Senator from the 11th, Senator Davis, has raised the point of order that pursuant to Section 13.50 (6) (a) and Joint Rules 41 and 42 senate amendment 47 to senate substitute amendment 1 to Senate Bill 100 (the Executive Budget Bill) was required to be referred to the Joint Survey committee on Retirement Systems and have a report submitted.
530 Senate amendment 47 does contain provisions affecting the public retirement system.
Section 13.50 (6) (a) directs that:
"No bill or amendment thereto creating or modifying any system for, or making any provision for, the retirement of or payment of pensions to public officers or employes, shall be acted upon by the legislature until it has been referred to the joint survey committee on retirement systems and such committee has submitted a written report on the proposed bill."
Joint Rule 41 (b) directs that:
"Executive budget bills introduced under section 16.47 (1) of the statutes are exempt from the fiscal estimate requirement under par. (a) but shall, if they contain provisions affecting a public retirement fund or providing a tax exemption, be analyzed as to those provisions by the respective joint survey committee."
Joint Rule 42 (b) reads in part as follows:
"Bills affecting a public retirement fund shall be referred to the joint survey committee on retirement systems under section 13.50 of the statutes."
The question is whether the language above requires each amendment to be referred to the Joint Survey committee on Retirement Systems and that a written report be submitted on each amendment.
Several previous rulings of the chair have application in this case. On October 10, 1973 (1973 Senate Journal page 1691) in response to a point of order raised by Senator McKenna that a retirement bill was improperly before the senate for a number of reasons, one being that a report was not received on all amendments; the chair's ruling reads in part as follows:
"there is no requirement for a report by the committee on amendments".
On November 9, 1977 (1977 Senate Journal page 140) the chair ruled on a point of order raised by Senator Sensenbrenner that the Joint Survey committee on Retirement Systems was required to act on senate substitute amendments 1 and 2 to Special Session Senate Bill 2.
The chair's ruling reads in part:
"To read Senate Rule 54 as requiring such a report for each amendment and substitute amendment would be a perversion of the rules and present unlimited opportunity for delay."
Section 13.50 (6) (b) reads as follows:
"No bill or amendment thereto creating or modifying any system for the retirement of public employes shall be considered by either house until the written report required by par. (a) has been submitted to the chief clerk. Each such bill shall then be referred to a standing committee in the house in which introduced. The report of the joint survey committee shall be printed as an appendix to the bill and attached thereto as are amendments."
Since the statutes require the bill to be referred to a standing committee after a report is submitted it is clear that the bill and amendments thereto are to be referred at the time of introduction and that rereferral of amendments after an initial report was submitted was not contemplated, nor is it required.
Tax exemption bills which are handled by a statutory committee similar in structure and operation to the joint retirement committee, are required to have only a single report and rereferral upon introduction of an amendment is not required.
531 Joint Rules 41 and 42 relate to preparation of fiscal estimates. Joint Rule 41 (2) clearly states that:
"Fiscal estimates are required on original bills only and not on substitute amendments or amendments."
Therefore, it is clear to the chair that reports are required under these rules only for bills.
It is therefore the opinion of the chair that a referral of senate amendment 47 to senate substitute amendment 1 to Senate Bill 100 to; and a report by, the Joint Survey committee on Retirement Systems, is not required and the point of order is not well taken.
Senator Fred A. Risser
President of the Senate
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Assembly Journal of March 20, 1986 .......... Page: 939
Point of order:
Representative T. Thompson rose to the point of order that Assembly Bill 54 [relating to prohibiting investment of public retirement trust funds in certain investments relating to the Republic of South Africa] was not properly before the assembly under section 13.50 (6) (b) of the Wisconsin Statutes because the bill required a report from the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
[Note:] Speaker Loftus agreed with a narrow interpretation of s. 13.50 (6)(a), stats., that the bill did not create, modify or make any provision for the retirement of "public employes". The speaker also pointed out that whether or not the bill was referred to the JSCRS would have not effect on the bill's ultimate legality "if passed and signed into law. The Wisconsin supreme court recently stated that the failure of the legislature to follow procedural statutes governing legislative consideration of proposals has no effect on the validity of the resulting law"; State ex rel. La Follette v. Stitt, 114 Wis. 2d 358 (1983).
After the bill was passed by the assembly, a similar point of order was raised in the senate. President Risser agreed with the broad view that a bill
affecting the investment of trust fund moneys had an impact on the retirement "system" and referred the bill to JSCRS (Sen.Jour. 3/26/86, p. 807).
The speaker [Loftus] ruled the point of order not well taken.
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Senate Journal of March 26, 1986 .......... Page: 807
[Point of order:]
Assembly Bill 54, relating to prohibiting investment of public retirement trust funds in certain investments relating to the Republic of South Africa.
Read a second time.
532 The question was: Adoption of senate amendment 1?
Senator Stitt raised the point of order that Assembly Bill 54 was not properly before the senate.
[Note:] Although the bill had passed the assembly without a report from the joint survey committee on retirement systems, further legal research had indicated that such a report was required under s. 13.50 (6) (a), stats., because of the bill's possible impact on the state's retirement "system" in the broad sense of that word.
The chair [Pres. Risser] ruled the point of order well taken.
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Assembly Journal of March 1, 1984 .......... Page: 837
Point of order:
Representative R. Travis rose to the point of order that Senate Bill 568 [relating to retirement benefits and funding those benefits] was not properly before the assembly because senate amendments 1 and 3 had been adopted by the senate in violation of section 13.50 of the Wisconsin Statutes. The amendments had not been referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement System.
[Note:] In State ex rel. LaFollette vs. Stitt, 114 Wis. 2d 358 (1983), the court held that it will not .... "invalidate legislation when it finds that the legislature has violated a procedural statutory provision in
passing an act. Unless that claim is that the legislative procedure violated some constitutional provision or right, this court will not, under separation of powers concepts and affording the comity and respect due a co-equal branch of state government, interfere with the conduct of legislative affairs" ....
See also Jefferson's Manual, 3-p and 17-s.
The speaker [Loftus] ruled that, based on past precedents, Article IV, Section 8, of the Wisconsin Constitution and State ex rel. LaFollette vs. Stitt, each house of the legislature was the judge of its own procedures and he could not rule on the germaneness of senate amendments. The point of order was ruled not well taken.
Assembly Journal of March 1, 1984 .......... Page: 836
[Retirement amendment must be referred to joint survey committee:]
Representative Johnson moved that assembly amendment 8 to Senate Bill 568 [relating to retirement benefits and funding those benefits] be laid on the table.
[Note:] A.Amdt.8 changed the contribution rate for prior service credit.
Although s. 13.50 (6) (a), stats., requires retirement amendments to be referred to the joint survey committee, that statute cannot be a license permitting a single legislator, by introducing an amendment, to prevent consideration of a proposal by the legislature.
533 Speaker Loftus ruled the amendment out of order under section 13.50 of the Wisconsin Statutes because it had not been referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
Assembly Journal of June 21, 1983 .......... Page: 274
Point of order:
Representative Stitt rose to the point of order that assembly amendment 4 to Senate Bill 83 [relating to state finances and appropriations, constituting the executive budget bill of the 1983 legislature, and making appropriations] was not properly before the assembly under section 13.50 (6) (a) of the Wisconsin Statutes because it had not been submitted to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems for a report on the "Invest in Wisconsin" provisions. The speaker took the point of order under advisement.
Assembly Journal of June 21, 1983 .......... Page: 276
The speaker [Loftus] ruled the point of order, raised by Representative Stitt on assembly amendment 4 to Senate Bill 83, not well taken because the
"Invest in Wisconsin" sections of the amendment do not affect the Wisconsin Retirement Fund's employe contributions, employe eligibility and fund payments. Also, the amendment contains a provision which guarantees the rate of return from the general purpose revenue fund.
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Assembly Journal of March 16, 1978 .......... Page: 3862
Point of order:
Representative Hauke rose to the point of order that assembly amendment 210 to assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 1220 [budget review bill] was not properly before the assembly under Wisconsin Statutes 13.50 (6) (a).
The speaker [Jackamonis] ruled that assembly amendment 210 to assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 1220 was not properly before the assembly because the amendment had not been submitted to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
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Senate Journal of February 4, 1976 .......... Page: 1644
[Point of order:]
Senator Whittow raised the point of order that the bill [Senate Bill 227, relating to exemption of federal retirement system benefits from state income tax] must be referred to Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems. The chair took the point of order under advisement.
Senate Journal of February 24, 1976 .......... Page: 1797
On February 4, 1976, Senator Whittow raised the point of order that Senate Bill 227 must be referred to Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
534 The chair rules that Senate Bill 227 should not be referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems. Senate Bill 227 relates to federal retirement system benefits, while s. 13.50 (6)(a), Wis. Stats., applies to bills relating to the state retirement system.
Respectfully submitted
FRED A. RISSER
President pro tempore
Senate Journal of January 29, 1976 .......... Page: 1609
[Point of order:]
Senator Sensenbrenner raised the point of order that the bill [Assembly Bill 481, relating to miscellaneous changes requested by various state agencies, granting rule-making authority and providing penalties] must be referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems. The chair took the point of order under advisement.
Senate Journal of February 4, 1976 .......... Page: 1639
On January 29, 1976, Senator Sensenbrenner raised the point of order that Assembly Bill 481 must be referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
The chair rules that pursuant to s. 13.50 (6)(a), Wis. Stats., Assembly Bill 481 should be referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems.
Respectfully submitted
MARTIN J. SCHREIBER
Lieutenant Governor
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