State Bar of Wisconsin

Senate passes state budget; conference committee expected to resolve differences 

By Adam Korbitz, Government Relations Coordinator, State Bar of Wisconsin

June 18, 2009 – The state Senate passed its version of the proposed 2009-11 biennial state budget on Wednesday, June 17, by a 17-16 vote largely along party lines. Seventeen Democrats voted for the bill and all 15 Republicans voted against it, joined by one Democrat.

Because the Senate version differs significantly from the Assembly budget passed on June 13, both houses are expected to establish a conference committee to reconcile the differing versions of the budget prior to final legislative approval and review by the governor. Legislative leaders and the governor have said repeatedly they want to complete action on the budget by June 30, although work on past budgets has often extended beyond that date.

Fortunately, like the Assembly version of the budget, the Senate version also contains a number of initiatives supported by the State Bar of Wisconsin, including expanded financial eligibility for State Public Defender representation and a significant boost in state funding for indigent civil legal services. These initiatives were first added to the budget by the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee, which completed action on the proposed state budget, Assembly Bill 75, on May 29, and now have not been modified by either house.

As with the Assembly, among the budget changes adopted by the Senate were amendments completely removing provisions that would have modified rules governing contributory negligence and joint and several liability, thereby retaining current law. However, the Senate – like the Assembly -- kept budget provisions allowing the stacking of auto insurance policies and requiring increased coverage minimums. In addition, the Senate added a controversial provision requiring drivers in Wisconsin to purchase auto liability insurance.

Unfortunately, unlike the Assembly, the Senate did not restore $5.4 million in cuts that Joint Finance had made to the Department of Justice budget. However, in failing to restore the cuts, the Senate left intact a provision Joint Finance had added to create a $1 million annual appropriation in the Department of Justice to provide $1,700 raises each year to approximately 600 assistant district attorneys and assistant state public defenders. The Assembly had made the creation of that appropriation discretionary, not mandatory, but the Senate budget retains the appropriation’s mandatory nature.

Because Senate leadership chose to work from the Joint Finance version of the budget rather than last week’s Assembly version, changes made by the Assembly are not included in the Senate budget unless the Senate affirmatively included them.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau’s summary of the changes proposed by the Senate democratic caucus can be found online, and a summary of the changes by the Joint Finance Committee can be found here. A complete history of the legislation can be found on the Wisconsin Legislature’s Web site.

Continue to monitor WisBar.org and visit the State Bar’s Government Relations page for updated budget information.

Related articles:

Assembly passes state budget; Senate action expected this week – June 15, 2009
Assembly plans to take up state budget Thursday – June 10, 2009
Joint Finance completes budget: the good, the bad and the ugly – June 1, 2009
Joint Finance expands SPD eligibility, boosts indigent civil legal services – May 27, 2009
Governor and legislative leaders outline new deficit reduction plan – May 22, 2009
State budget crisis deepens – May 13, 2009
Joint Finance Committee Approves Budget for Courts, Related Agencies – April 22, 2009
State Bar update on 2009-11 state budget – April 8, 2009
State agency briefings address Governor’s budget proposal – March 25, 2009
Joint Finance Co-Chairs announce public hearing schedule for budget bill – March 10, 2009
State Bar of Wisconsin responds to Governor Doyle’s budget – February 25, 2009
State Bar President praises initiatives in Governor’s budget proposal – February 17, 2009

Rotunda Report is a new newsletter, issued once every two weeks, from the State Bar of Wisconsin that highlights legislative, judicial and administrative developments that impact the legal profession and the justice system. It is produced by the Bar’s Government Relations Team and is distributed free to attorneys, public officials and others who help shape public policy in Wisconsin. We invite your suggestions to make the Rotunda Report more informative and useful and we encourage you to visit our Web site for the most current information about justice-related issues.

© 2009, State Bar of Wisconsin