Hamilton Consulting Group will continue to provide updates throughout the upcoming legislative floor period and the recall efforts.
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Recall Effort Moving Forward
The recall effort against Governor Walker and four state senators has been active now for nearly a month.
While the organizers aren't providing daily totals, it appears they will not have any problem gathering enough signatures to trigger a recall election against the Governor, and at a minimum three of the four state senators.
The most recent available number that has been put out to the public was the total of 300,000 in the first 12 days. Signature collection ends on January 17, where some estimate the total number collected calling for a recall will exceed 700,000.
After the signatures are turned in they will need to be certified by the Government Accountability Board (GAB). The signatures, as well as how they were collected, will receive great scrutiny and could be challenged legally. The process that ensues following submission of the signatures to the GAB contains enough ambiguity that estimates on when elections are held have ranged from late March until June. It is also unknown at this point as to whether or not the Senate recall elections will occur on the same day as the gubernatorial election.
Ambiguity not only exists on the timing of the elections but as to who will be challenging Gov. Walker as well. Oft heard names to fill out the Democratic ticket include Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, Congressman Ron Kind and State Senator Tim Cullen. No one has announced as of yet, although Sen. Cullen has indicated interest in running if enough signatures are collected.
In the state Senate races, the speculation surrounds current and former Democratic elected officials as the challengers in recall efforts against sitting Republican Senators Van Wanggaard from Racine, Pam Galloway from the Wausau area, and Terry Moulton from Chippewa Falls region.
Governor Walker Signs Special Session Tort Reform Bills
On Wednesday, Dec. 7, Gov. Scott Walker signed into law two of the remaining special session tort reforms bills recently passed by the Legislature. The two bills the Governor signed were:
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Mining Legislation Introduced
By Emily Kelchen, The Hamilton Consulting Group
The long anticipated mining bill was released by Assembly Republicans on Thursday, Dec. 8. The 183-page bill would create new statutes to govern ferrous (iron) mining, which is currently regulated in the same manner as non-ferrous (non-iron minerals like gold or copper) mining. This bill comes at the request of Gogebic Taconite, a company which is proposing to build Wisconsin's largest ever iron mine. Proponents of the bill point to the job creation potential of the mine, while opponents worry environmental standards will be sacrificed to gain those jobs. Proponents counter that the text of the bill is the best indication so far that it is possible to retain Wisconsin's strong environmental standards while still taking advantage of the state's rich natural resources. The bill will be formally introduced on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 10 a.m. during a public hearing held by the Assembly Committee on Small Business, Jobs and the Economy. The committee will meet in Milwaukee at State Fair Park. This article breaks the mining process down into stages and provides a brief discussion of the proposed changes at each stage. Read more...
Legislation Would Limit "Double Dipping" by State Employees
By Lane Oling, Intern, The Hamilton Consulting Group
The Assembly Committee on Insurance held a hearing November 17, on two bills that would limit the ability of public employees who retired, and were later rehired to collect a salary and a pension simultaneously.
Currently, under Chapter 40, this practice is legal. State workers can retire, start collecting their pensions and then go back to work 30 days later to earn a salary in the new position.
This practice is sometimes called "double dipping." Double dipping is often alleged when a public employee retires from one public sector job, receives their pension, and then is rehired into another public sector job and receives a salary in addition to the pension.
Wisconsin Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Case Deciding Default Judgments
By Andrew Cook, The Hamilton Consulting Group
The Wisconsin Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Johnson v. Cintas Corp. No. 2, et al., 2011 WI App 5, 2009AP2549, which is the latest in a number of recent cases accepted by the Court dealing with default judgments.
The issue is whether a default judgment is void because the summons and complaint names the wrong corporate defendant and thus personal jurisdiction is not obtained over the correct corporate entity.
EPA Proposes Changes to Clean Air Act Standards for Boilers and Incinerators
After facing criticism from industry and lawmakers, the Obama administration on Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, proposed easing rules aimed at reducing toxic air pollution from industrial boilers and incinerators.
The EPA released its latest version of the boiler emission standards on December 2, 2011. The changes cut the cost of implementation by nearly 50 percent from the original 2010 proposed rule while maintaining health benefits. Some of the key changes the EPA is proposing include:
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Daubert Summit - CLE Seminar: Jan. 11, 2012
The Wisconsin Civil Justice Council (WCJC), in partnership with the Wisconsin Defense Counsel (WDC) and the Wisconsin Association of Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC), is presenting a comprehensive education and training event regarding the recently enacted rules governing expert opinion testimony in Wisconsin (2011 Wisconsin Act 2). The major sponsors of this event are the Wisconsin Insurance Alliance (WIA) and The Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA).
Titled "Daubert Comes to Wisconsin-CLE Summit on Expert Opinion Evidence," the program is primarily for in-house counsel and trial lawyers who are engaged in the defense of civil litigation as well as those lawyers who represent businesses and professionals, and whose litigation fate relies heavily on the admissibility - or non-admissibility - of expert testimony.
The Summit will be held on Jan. 11, 2012 at the Milwaukee Marriott West.
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