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lolitics: ....
Apparently, the Republicans stripped the fiscal portions from the bill and then passed the destruction of collective bargaining bill. wtf. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK.
APPARENTLY, IT REALLY IS NOT ABOUT SAVING THE STATE BUDGET. (no fucking shit, right?)
RAGE, I has it
eta: for posterity, the ORIGINAL WORDING OF THE ARTICLE.
Madison — The Senate abruptly passed a controversial budget-repair bill Wedneday night - without Democrats - and sent the measure to the Assembly, which is expected to pass it Thursday.
The bill eliminates almost all collective bargaining for public workers.
It passed 18-1, with Sen. Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) casting the no vote. None of the 14 Senate Democrats was present.
Democrats have been able to block a vote on the bill for three weeks because 20 senators had to be present to vote for it. Republicans control the house 19-14.
But late Wednesday, a committee stripped some elements from the bill that they said allowed them to pass it with a simple majority present. The most controversial parts of the bill remain intact.
The Senate abruptly sent the budget-repair bill Wednesday to the committee of legislators from both houses at about 4 p.m. and the committee convened at 6, taking action within minutes.
The Assembly earlier had passed the original measure and now must take up the version from which fiscal matters were removed.
The budget-repair bill by Gov. Scott Walker would end most collective bargaining for public employees and has been at a stalemate for three weeks because Democrats have boycotted Senate sessions. Those 14 Senators have been in Illinois since Feb. 17, denying quorum to majority Republicans.
State Sen. Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) said Wednesday night he attempted to drive back from Illinois to Madison to get to the Capitol before Republicans passed by an 18-1 margin the modified budget-repair bill that focused on collective bargaining.
"Right now, I'm trying to figure out what the hell they're going to do,"Larson said when reached by telephone as he was driving. "I'm not going to be the 20th vote. This is on the Republicans' heads right now. If they decide to kill the middle class, it's on them."
"This is a travesty is what it is,"Larson said about the vote. "I can't sit by and let them kill the middle class."
Larson said Republicans will pay a political price for curtailing collective bargining for public-sector employees.
"Everyone who is party to this travesty is writing their political obituary,"Larson said.
To pass spending measures, 20 senators must be present, but Republicans hold just 19 seats. But Republicans would not need any Democrats to be present to pass the collective bargaining changes as a standalone bill because it is not fiscal in nature.
Attorney Robert Dreps, an expert on the state open meetings law, said he did not believe the conference committee could meet with such short notice.
State law generally requires a 24-hour notice for public meetings, but can be called with just two hours notice when more notice is impossible or impractical, said Dreps, who has represented the Journal Sentinel in the past.
"I can't imagine how they can meet that standard," he said.
Demonstrations have rocked the Capitol for weeks as public workers have protested the changes to collective bargaining. Protests were quiet much of Wednesday, but grew louder as word of the conference committee meeting spread.
Protesters were chanting, "Shame!" and "This is not democracy!"
Opponents of the measure were calling for more protesters to descend on the Capitol Wednesday night.
The conference committee consists of Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau), Senate President Mike Ellis (R-Neenah), Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller (D-Monona), Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald (R-Horicon), Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) and Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha). The Fitzgerald are brothers.
Miller was not at the meeting. He's in Illinois with the other Senate Democrats.
Earlier in the day, Republicans fined Democrats for missing the Senate session and lawmakers learned they may have more time to resolve the budget impasse.
Walker had been steadfast in saying he would not negotiate on his budget-repair bill, but in recent days made offers to Democrats to slightly scale back some of his proposal with a separate piece of legislation.
Miller said Walker's approach of making changes in separate legislation was unacceptable because Democrats are not sure they can trust Walker.
Walker's bill would close a $137 million gap in the fiscal year that ends June 30, sharply curtail collective bargaining for most public employees, make public workers pay more for their pensions and health care, allow the no-bid sale of state power plants and give Walker's administration broad powers over the state's health care programs for the poor.
Walker had wanted the Senate to approve the budget-repair bill as written, but then have lawmakers make a few changes Democrats want in the state budget they will pass months from now. That approach raises concerns for Miller because state law makes it illegal for legislators to promise a vote on one bill in exchange for a vote on another one - a practice known as logrolling.
"That comes dangerously close to logrolling," Miller said of Walker's plan.
Republicans had been reluctant to make changes to the budget-repair bill because the Assembly has already approved it.
Earlier Wednesday, Senate Republicans voted to fine Democrats $100 each for missing the day's session.
The fines passed 18-0. All Democrats were absent, as was Sen. Frank Lasee (R-De Pere).
Lasee had an excused absence in the morning, and was present later in the day.
Fines can be levied under a resolution adopted last week. They can be applied to those who miss two consecutive sessions without an excused absence.
Fitzgerald said Democrats would face another $100 fine if they miss Thursday's session.
That could be the last fine for a while if Democrats remain out of state. Thursday is the last regular session day until April 5, though lawmakers could meet in special session before then to consider the budget-repair bill.
Democrats said the fines would have no effect on bringing them back to the state.
"They've messed with our staffs," said Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton). "They've taken away our parking spaces. They've extorted our paychecks. They've sent the State Patrol after us. And now they've fined us $100 a day.
"I don't know what more they need to do to get the point that it's not working."
Walker's administration said when his budget-repair bill was unveiled last month that it had to pass by Feb. 25 because of a bond deal included in the bill. But officials said Wednesday they may have until early April to secure the bond package.
The budget-repair bill also relies on the restructuring of $165 million in bonds to free up cash for the current fiscal year. Walker's aides said when he unveiled the bill that it needed to pass by Feb. 25 to capture the bond deal, though they later said they had a few days after that.
On Wednesday, the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau issued a memo saying the actual deadline may be in early April because of a move the administration is making.
Pinning down an exact deadline has always been difficult. Under state law, the administration must transfer money within state funds by a certain date to pay off existing bonds in May. Officials need about two weeks before that date to get an opinion from bond counsel, take bids and prepare for issuing the bonds.
Originally, officials said the fund transfers needed to occur on March 16, so the bill needed to pass by two weeks before that. Now, the administration believes it can delay the fund transfers until April 15 by prepaying some short-term debt - giving lawmakers until early April to pass the bill.
In a Wednesday memo to the governor, Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch said the move had never been tried before.
The Republicans voted on fining the Democrats just before going into a closed meeting to discuss the budget-repair bill.
Walker met with the Republicans for more than half an hour. Asked if he was concerned about losing Republicans votes in the Senate as he left the meeting, Walker said, "No, they're firm."
Scott Fitzgerald made the same argument in a news conference, repeating his long-stated claim that he has the votes to pass the measure as written.
"I don't know what else I can do to demonstrate how galvanized we are," he said.
Fitzgerald said he would move forward on the usual schedule to debate the state budget. Walker has proposed deep cuts to schools and local governments to balance a two-year, $3.5 billion shortfall - cuts that he said local officials could handle if collective bargaining is severely curtailed.
Fitzgerald said he anticipates huge crowds for budget hearings next month and may hold them at large sports venues to accommodate everyone. That could mean holding hearings at the Kohl Center in Madison and the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, he said.
Thousands of people - often tens of thousands of people - have protested at the Capitol for weeks because of Walker's budget-repair bill.
Timeline
4 p.m. - Senate meets without notice to convene a conference committee on the budget-repair bill with two hours' notice.
6 p.m. - The committee meets and with no debate quickly advances a version of the measure dealing with collective bargaining.
6:10 p.m. - The Senate meets and without debate passes the new version of the measure, sending the bill to the Assembly.
Thursday - The Assembly is expected to pass the measure and send it to Gov. Scott Walker.
Bill Glauber in Milwaukee contributed to this report.
The source is really hoping this is the most epic April Fool's Joke, ever. Even though it isn't April. Or epic.
APPARENTLY, IT REALLY IS NOT ABOUT SAVING THE STATE BUDGET. (no fucking shit, right?)
RAGE, I has it
eta: for posterity, the ORIGINAL WORDING OF THE ARTICLE.
Madison — The Senate abruptly passed a controversial budget-repair bill Wedneday night - without Democrats - and sent the measure to the Assembly, which is expected to pass it Thursday.
The bill eliminates almost all collective bargaining for public workers.
It passed 18-1, with Sen. Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) casting the no vote. None of the 14 Senate Democrats was present.
Democrats have been able to block a vote on the bill for three weeks because 20 senators had to be present to vote for it. Republicans control the house 19-14.
But late Wednesday, a committee stripped some elements from the bill that they said allowed them to pass it with a simple majority present. The most controversial parts of the bill remain intact.
The Senate abruptly sent the budget-repair bill Wednesday to the committee of legislators from both houses at about 4 p.m. and the committee convened at 6, taking action within minutes.
The Assembly earlier had passed the original measure and now must take up the version from which fiscal matters were removed.
The budget-repair bill by Gov. Scott Walker would end most collective bargaining for public employees and has been at a stalemate for three weeks because Democrats have boycotted Senate sessions. Those 14 Senators have been in Illinois since Feb. 17, denying quorum to majority Republicans.
State Sen. Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) said Wednesday night he attempted to drive back from Illinois to Madison to get to the Capitol before Republicans passed by an 18-1 margin the modified budget-repair bill that focused on collective bargaining.
"Right now, I'm trying to figure out what the hell they're going to do,"Larson said when reached by telephone as he was driving. "I'm not going to be the 20th vote. This is on the Republicans' heads right now. If they decide to kill the middle class, it's on them."
"This is a travesty is what it is,"Larson said about the vote. "I can't sit by and let them kill the middle class."
Larson said Republicans will pay a political price for curtailing collective bargining for public-sector employees.
"Everyone who is party to this travesty is writing their political obituary,"Larson said.
To pass spending measures, 20 senators must be present, but Republicans hold just 19 seats. But Republicans would not need any Democrats to be present to pass the collective bargaining changes as a standalone bill because it is not fiscal in nature.
Attorney Robert Dreps, an expert on the state open meetings law, said he did not believe the conference committee could meet with such short notice.
State law generally requires a 24-hour notice for public meetings, but can be called with just two hours notice when more notice is impossible or impractical, said Dreps, who has represented the Journal Sentinel in the past.
"I can't imagine how they can meet that standard," he said.
Demonstrations have rocked the Capitol for weeks as public workers have protested the changes to collective bargaining. Protests were quiet much of Wednesday, but grew louder as word of the conference committee meeting spread.
Protesters were chanting, "Shame!" and "This is not democracy!"
Opponents of the measure were calling for more protesters to descend on the Capitol Wednesday night.
The conference committee consists of Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau), Senate President Mike Ellis (R-Neenah), Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller (D-Monona), Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald (R-Horicon), Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) and Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha). The Fitzgerald are brothers.
Miller was not at the meeting. He's in Illinois with the other Senate Democrats.
Earlier in the day, Republicans fined Democrats for missing the Senate session and lawmakers learned they may have more time to resolve the budget impasse.
Walker had been steadfast in saying he would not negotiate on his budget-repair bill, but in recent days made offers to Democrats to slightly scale back some of his proposal with a separate piece of legislation.
Miller said Walker's approach of making changes in separate legislation was unacceptable because Democrats are not sure they can trust Walker.
Walker's bill would close a $137 million gap in the fiscal year that ends June 30, sharply curtail collective bargaining for most public employees, make public workers pay more for their pensions and health care, allow the no-bid sale of state power plants and give Walker's administration broad powers over the state's health care programs for the poor.
Walker had wanted the Senate to approve the budget-repair bill as written, but then have lawmakers make a few changes Democrats want in the state budget they will pass months from now. That approach raises concerns for Miller because state law makes it illegal for legislators to promise a vote on one bill in exchange for a vote on another one - a practice known as logrolling.
"That comes dangerously close to logrolling," Miller said of Walker's plan.
Republicans had been reluctant to make changes to the budget-repair bill because the Assembly has already approved it.
Earlier Wednesday, Senate Republicans voted to fine Democrats $100 each for missing the day's session.
The fines passed 18-0. All Democrats were absent, as was Sen. Frank Lasee (R-De Pere).
Lasee had an excused absence in the morning, and was present later in the day.
Fines can be levied under a resolution adopted last week. They can be applied to those who miss two consecutive sessions without an excused absence.
Fitzgerald said Democrats would face another $100 fine if they miss Thursday's session.
That could be the last fine for a while if Democrats remain out of state. Thursday is the last regular session day until April 5, though lawmakers could meet in special session before then to consider the budget-repair bill.
Democrats said the fines would have no effect on bringing them back to the state.
"They've messed with our staffs," said Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton). "They've taken away our parking spaces. They've extorted our paychecks. They've sent the State Patrol after us. And now they've fined us $100 a day.
"I don't know what more they need to do to get the point that it's not working."
Walker's administration said when his budget-repair bill was unveiled last month that it had to pass by Feb. 25 because of a bond deal included in the bill. But officials said Wednesday they may have until early April to secure the bond package.
The budget-repair bill also relies on the restructuring of $165 million in bonds to free up cash for the current fiscal year. Walker's aides said when he unveiled the bill that it needed to pass by Feb. 25 to capture the bond deal, though they later said they had a few days after that.
On Wednesday, the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau issued a memo saying the actual deadline may be in early April because of a move the administration is making.
Pinning down an exact deadline has always been difficult. Under state law, the administration must transfer money within state funds by a certain date to pay off existing bonds in May. Officials need about two weeks before that date to get an opinion from bond counsel, take bids and prepare for issuing the bonds.
Originally, officials said the fund transfers needed to occur on March 16, so the bill needed to pass by two weeks before that. Now, the administration believes it can delay the fund transfers until April 15 by prepaying some short-term debt - giving lawmakers until early April to pass the bill.
In a Wednesday memo to the governor, Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch said the move had never been tried before.
The Republicans voted on fining the Democrats just before going into a closed meeting to discuss the budget-repair bill.
Walker met with the Republicans for more than half an hour. Asked if he was concerned about losing Republicans votes in the Senate as he left the meeting, Walker said, "No, they're firm."
Scott Fitzgerald made the same argument in a news conference, repeating his long-stated claim that he has the votes to pass the measure as written.
"I don't know what else I can do to demonstrate how galvanized we are," he said.
Fitzgerald said he would move forward on the usual schedule to debate the state budget. Walker has proposed deep cuts to schools and local governments to balance a two-year, $3.5 billion shortfall - cuts that he said local officials could handle if collective bargaining is severely curtailed.
Fitzgerald said he anticipates huge crowds for budget hearings next month and may hold them at large sports venues to accommodate everyone. That could mean holding hearings at the Kohl Center in Madison and the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, he said.
Thousands of people - often tens of thousands of people - have protested at the Capitol for weeks because of Walker's budget-repair bill.
Timeline
4 p.m. - Senate meets without notice to convene a conference committee on the budget-repair bill with two hours' notice.
6 p.m. - The committee meets and with no debate quickly advances a version of the measure dealing with collective bargaining.
6:10 p.m. - The Senate meets and without debate passes the new version of the measure, sending the bill to the Assembly.
Thursday - The Assembly is expected to pass the measure and send it to Gov. Scott Walker.
Bill Glauber in Milwaukee contributed to this report.
The source is really hoping this is the most epic April Fool's Joke, ever. Even though it isn't April. Or epic.
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I have no money, but I am going to give five bucks.
It's worth it.
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live stream inside the capital. hundreds of people.... changing "occupy" and "general strike".
Are we sure Walker isn't a SEKRIT democrat? I mean... how could they NOT SEE THIS COMING?
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Dammit all to hell.
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I'll let you know when I hear about more.
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I'm still stunned this actually happened. I probably shouldn't be. D:
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And what kills me is that the GOP Leader plainly stated that the whole thing was about defunding the unions and making Obama look bad so he wouldn't get re-elected.
Um... yeah, because you don't look like a total fucking asshole who is carelessly using the people you're supposed to be representing to further your own petty fucking goals.
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HOW DO PEOPLE NOT SEE HOW WRONG THIS IS?
ahem. Sorry.
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Or the senators, who are all off in DC having a fund raiser for themselves.
*seethes*