This Week in the Legislature: Week of June 29, 2015  

2015-17 State Biennial Budget

The Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) has not met since May 29. It is uncertain whether or not the committee will meet this week.  

 

To view WCA's communications to the JCF, please click here

Prevailing Wage

According to The Wheeler Report, "Speaker Vos will hold a press conference at 11 a.m. on Monday to announce a prevailing wage plan. According to various media reports the plan is a 'scale back', not a full repeal. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says it is expected the plan would eliminate the law for technical colleges and raise the cost threshold for when the law is triggered for other units of government." 

 

Transportation
Several weeks ago legislative leaders in both houses announced transportation tax and fee increases are no longer on the table following Governor Walker's veto threats.

At this time, legislators are working on a plan to reduce the $1.3 billion in transportation bonding offered by the Governor. It is likely the Governor's proposed bonding will be reduced by $500 to $800 million. While WCA continues to advocate for new transportation revenues, we also believe the bonding levels proposed in the Governor's budget are unsustainable.

WCA is encouraging all counties to act to bring this important issue to the forefront and share with us specific projects that will be impacted if this level of cuts is realized and no sustainable funding source is identified. 

WCA, working in conjunction with the Transportation Development Association, the League of Wisconsin Municipalities and other groups, have created a sample resolution calling attention to the need to properly fund transportation in the state.  We at the Association are encouraging all counties to pass this resolution and forward on to WCA via fax at 608.663.7189 or via email at [email protected]
 

 

See the sample resolution on transportation here.

 

View the Local Government Institute's three minute white board video on funding local transportation here.  (Be sure to share!)

 

See a story here from the Marshfield News Herald on how one community will be impacted by transportation cuts.


Budget Webinars

The WCA Government Affairs Team is hosting weekly budget webinars on Mondays during state budget deliberations. An email with additional detail and registration information will be sent early each week. The deadline for registering for each webinar is 8:00 a.m. on the day of the webinar.

Webinars are recorded each week and placed on the WCA website under Legislative>State Budget>2015-2017 State Budget>WCA Webinars shortly after the conclusion of each webinar.  Budget webinars will resume the Monday following the next meeting of the JFC.

Committee Hearings for the Week of June 29, 2015
Note: The Committee hearings and bills listed below reflect action on legislation impacting county government.  See a complete listing of weekly hearings here


There are no hearings on bills impacting county government this week.


For a listing of all bills impacting county government and WCA's positions on those bills, please visit the WCA website.    

 

WCA Upcoming Meetings
For a complete listing of upcoming WCA meetings, please click here.

July 16 - WCA Taxation and Finance Steering Committee
July 17 - WCA Agriculture Steering Committee
July 17 - WCA Judicial and Public Safety Steering Committee
July 17 - WCA Environment and Land Use Steering Committee
July 17 - WCA Transportation and Public Works Steering Committee
July 20 - WCA Health and Human Services Steering Committee
July 22 - WCA County Organization and Personnel Steering Committee
July 23 - WCA Executive Committee
July 24 - WCA Board of Directors

Questions? Contact Our Government Affairs Team  
If you have any questions about anything happening at the state level, please feel free to contact any member of the WCA Government Affairs Team at 866.404.2700 or via email:

Kyle Christianson - Director of Government Affairs 
Sarah Diedrick-Kasdorf - Deputy Director of Government Affairs 
David Callender - Government Affairs Associate 
Daniel Bahr - Government Affairs Associate 
 
Member Services: WisPolitics & The Wheeler Report
Members of the Wisconsin Counties Association are eligible for a
free email subscription for WisPolitics.com and  The Wheeler Report.

These daily email updates are an invaluable resource for those interested in keeping up with the day-to-day activities of the Legislature and include in-depth "insider" information on state politics.
 

 

To begin your free subscription, please contact Amy Dias of WCA at 866.404.2700 or
with your name, your county name and the email address where you would like subscriptions sent.   
Wisconsin Counties Association
22 East Mifflin Street, Suite 900
Madison, Wisconsin 53703
866.404.2700