Weekly Insider, September 28, 2020

SEPTEMBER 28, 2020

LAWMAKER SERIES

MORE THAN JUST MASKS.

BY SENATOR HOWARD MARKLEIN (R-SPRING GREEN)

*Guest columns express the views and opinions of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of WPT or its members.

Governor Tony Evers issued two significant orders this week. One of the orders extends the mandate to wear masks until November 21, 2020. The other, which was necessary in order for him to extend the mask mandate, creates a new Executive Order that gives the Governor extremely broad authority to take action without any input from the state legislature.

The broad authority the Governor has taken with Executive Order #90 (EO 90) is much more than Emergency Order #1, which extends his mask mandate until November 21, 2020. EO 90 proclaims a new public health emergency and designates the Department of Health Services (DHS) as the lead agency. It gives the agency authority to “take all necessary and appropriate measures to prevent and respond to COVID-19.”

This is the same authority the Governor created in Executive Order #72 (EO 72), which he issued on March 12, 2020. EO 72 was used to create Emergency Order #28, the “Safer At Home” order, which closed our economy and was ruled to be unconstitutional by the Wisconsin Supreme Court on May 13, 2020.

The new order – EO 90 – enables the Governor to do the exact same things he did last spring. He can take statewide, blanket approaches again no matter what the data or reality is in our communities. I am very concerned about how this could potentially impact our small businesses, employers, schools, churches and, frankly, all of us.

I am worried that the Governor will label some of our small businesses as non-essential, like he did in March. Will some of our small shops, salons and restaurants be forced to close again? Will we be able to attend church?

I have talked with leaders at our local hospitals in the 17^th Senate District. I have analyzed the data related to positive tests, hospitalizations and deaths in our communities and throughout the state. While positive tests (cases) have risen, hospitalization rates and death rates have not. There is no correlation between positive case numbers and hospitalizations and deaths. In fact, over the last two months, our average daily hospitalization count is 335 people statewide. This means that only .006% of our state is hospitalized for COVID-19 on a daily basis.

If you listen to the Governor or watch the news, you would think that the vast majority of our state is infected and suffering from COVID-19. This is simply not the case. Our hospitals are not overrun. We have ample resources. The majority of those who test positive are recovering, if not completely asymptomatic. And these positive cases are not translating to a rash of hospitalizations and deaths!

The Executive Order process is meant to enable the Governor to respond quickly to emergencies when time is of the essence. However, EO 90 is simply to refresh the authority of the Governor and to continue a mandate which has already been in action for several months during which time, the Governor could have worked with the legislature. The Governor is using the Executive Order process to sidestep the legislative process. This is wrong.

I firmly believe that the Governor has overstepped his authority. It is time for him to work with the legislature on any future actions related to COVID-19. At this time, he has not reached out to us or made any effort to work with us.

I have sent numerous letters and messages to the Governor and his team to collaborate on a number of different issues. I don’t know who is writing his letters for him, but I consistently receive a letter in response that blames me and criticizes me for the issue, rather than offering any willingness to collaborate and work together. I have made the effort. It has not been reciprocated.

Unfortunately, this lack of collaboration forces the legislature to consider our options to restore the fundamental checks and balances that make our democracy work. The people I serve deserve a voice.

I am ready to vote “yes” on a Joint Resolution to terminate EO 90. I believe that any action the Governor wants to take on this issue should be approved by the state legislature. We may disagree with him. Our constituents may disagree with him. He may have to work harder to make a case for his position, and so will we. The bottom-line is that we, as legislators, are accountable to you and you deserve to have a voice.

As always, please do not hesitate to connect with me to provide input, ideas or to seek assistance. Send an email to sen.marklein@legis.wisconsin.gov or call 608-266-0703.

NEWS FROM THE CAPITOL AND AROUND WISCONSIN

JUST IN: CONSERVATIVE GROUP FILES MOTION FOR IMMEDIATE INJUNCTION FROM GOV. EVERS LATEST DECLARATION

From WILL: The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) filed a motion for an immediate injunction in a lawsuit in Polk County Circuit Court challenging the emergency declaration Governor Tony Evers ordered on July 30, and extended on September 22, in response to COVID-19. WILL filed a lawsuit on August 25, on behalf of three Wisconsin residents and taxpayers, to challenge the ability of Governor Evers to seize emergency powers more than once to address the same crisis.

WILL is also challenging Gov. Evers' emergency declaration from July, which expired today. Arguments will be heard by the Wisconsin Supreme Court this week.

"This motion for an immediate injunction is a recognition that the executive branch in Wisconsin is, thus far, completely undeterred by the constraints of state law and must be reined in," WILL President and General Counsel Rick Esenberg said.

The motion for an immediate injunction will go before the Honorable R. Michael Waterman on October 5, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. Judge Waterman is a St. Croix County Circuit Court judge who is handling this case because both of the Polk County judges recused themselves from handling the case. Judge Waterman will decide whether the motion for an injunction ought to be granted or denied. If granted, Governor Evers’s emergency declaration could be struck down while the case is under consideration.

UPDATE: FEDERAL APPELLATE COURT HALTS SIX-DAY EXTENSION FOR COUNTING ABSENTEE BALLOTS

A federal appellate court has temporarily stopped the six-day extension granted to Wisconsin for counting absentee ballots after the November election.

U.S. District William Conley, a federal judge appointed by President Barack Obama, ruled last week that any ballots that arrive at local clerks' offices up to six days after Election Day must be counted, as long as they have been postmarked by Election Day. Conley also ruled that poll workers are not restricting to working only in the county which they reside.

The ruling today will temporarily halt that decision pending further review by the appellate court or the U.S. Supreme Court.

Relatedly, U.S. Senator Ron Johnson said today that the Wisconsin Legislature should convene to change the state's laws to allow for absentee ballots to begin being counted earlier than Election Day. There has no been no signal by legislative leaders that they will convene to do so.

DNR BUDGET REQUEST INCLUDES $50 MILLION PER YEAR FOR LAND ACQUISITION

Part of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' budget proposal, which was submitted to Governor Evers last week requests $50 million per year in borrowing authority for the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, and extends the life of the program for another decade than its current authorization, to 2032.

The land acquisition program purchases land on behalf of the state, and funds third party conservation programs in their efforts to purchase land. The program has come under scrutiny from legislative Republicans in recent years, namely over the program's expanded debt load and its impacts on property tax levies.

While the DNR only requested a 0.3% overall increase to its budget, there was no funding requested by Evers' administration for PFAS contamination mitigation. The department has come under fire from Joint Finance Committee Co-Chair John Nygren of Marinette for its lack of such a funding request.

LEGISLATIVE AUDIT BURAU: UNEMPLOYMENT CALL CENTERS ANSWERED ONLY 0.5% OF CALLS FROM MARCH TO JUNE

The nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) last week released its review of the Unemployment Insurance program's call centers. (Briefing Sheet)

LAB found that from April 6 through August 22, only 6.6 percent of initial claims were filed by individuals who telephoned the call centers. The bureau also found that from March 15 through June 30, 38.8 million of the 41.1 million total telephone calls (93.3 percent) to the call centers were blocked or received busy signals, and therefore, did not reach the call centers. Additionally, 6.2 percent of calls were abandoned by individuals before speaking with the cell centers, and only 0.5 percent of calls were answered.

"The spike in calls and initial claims that preceded the Governor's shutdown was a clear forecast of the tsunami of calls and claims that DWD should have absolutely been able to expect when the stay-at-home order was issued," said Rep Samantha Kerkman (R-Salem Lakes), Co-Chair of the legislature's Joint Audit Committee. "This was an unprecedented event, granted, but the anguish and unanswered questions of hundreds of thousands of unemployed Wisconsin workers could have been mitigated had the Department acted quickly to adapt to a known need."

LAB indicated that DWD increased its call center staff from 90 on March 31 to 188 on July 31. Over time, DWD increased the number of hours per week that the program's call centers were available to help individuals file claims. As of July 30, 2020, Wisconsin's call center was open for the second-highest number of hours per week among the call centers operated by seven Midwestern states.

GOV. EVERS ANNOUNCES MORE THAN $5 MILLION IN CARES ACT FUNDING FOR BROADBAND EXPANSION

Governor Tony Evers last week announced that more than $5 million of funding from the federal CARES Act will be awarded for the expansion of high-speed, broadband internet.

Funding will be awarded by the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC), which houses the state Broadband Office, to applicants from the 2020 broadband expansion grants that did not receive funding and are able to connect customers by December 30, 2020, and satisfy the requirements of the federal CARES Act.

"This pandemic further illustrates the need for additional funding to expand broadband," Governor Evers said. "These dollars, along with our investments from the budget that I signed last year, will ensure that we are maximizing our expansion efforts to get folks connected."

The 2019-2021 biennial budget, which was signed by the Governor Evers last year, provided $48 million over the biennium for broadband expansion grants. For the 2020 round of funding, $24 million was made available. The PSC received 143 applications requesting $50.3 million for large and small projects. In March of this year, the PSC awarded 72 grants to extend high-speed internet access to as many as 3,182 businesses and 46,537 homes, including 39,778 locations that are currently un-served.

AUGUST LOCAL UNEMPLOYMENT DATA RELEASED

The Department of Workforce Development last week released the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates of unemployment and employment statistics for Wisconsin's metropolitan areas, major cities and counties in Wisconsin for August 2020.

In brief, the non-seasonally adjusted data for Wisconsin shows:

Metropolitan Statistical Areas: Preliminary August 2020 unemployment rates declined in all of Wisconsin's 12 metro areas over the month. The largest decline occurred in the Janesville-Beloit metro area.
Municipalities: Preliminary August 2020 unemployment rates declined in all of Wisconsin's 33 largest cities. The largest decreased occurred in the city of Beloit.
Counties: Preliminary August 2020 unemployment rates declined in 71 of Wisconsin's 72 counties over the month. The largest decrease occurred in Dodge County.

WEEKLY INITIAL UNEMPLOYMENT CLAIMS

Weekly Unemployment Insurance Claims:

Sunday, 1,631 (2020) vs. 324 (2019)

Monday, 4,220 (2020) vs. 803 (2019)

Tuesday 2,616 (2020) vs. 537 (2019)

Wednesday 2,243 (2020) vs. 449 (2019)

Thursday 2,092 (2020) vs. 449 (2019)

Friday 1,891 (2020) vs. 461 (2019)

Saturday 532 (2020) vs. 108 (2019)

Up-to-date information can be viewed by clicking here.

WEEKLY MEMBER POLL

Click here to take this week's poll

By clicking the link, you acknowledge that it is the policy of WPT to publish all comments that are submitted by members each week, which often include broad differences of opinion. WPT does not take responsibility for the individual views and opinions expressed herein. It is the right of WPT to remove responses that that the organization deems inappropriate.

WEEKLY MEMBER POLL RESULTS

Gov. Evers has fired DWD Secretary Caleb Frostman over the ongoing unemployment backlog. Good move or bad move?

does it really matter?

He has to blame someone.

They should al be relieved of their duties including the Governor. What incompetence.

I dont feel that this department recieved the kind of help it needed and someone else was put to blame. Should have put in those office workers for the state that stayed at home to work in this department to facilitate meeting the needs. The delays in this were shameful.

Sounds like he had it coming

There is more to it than this man

He needs someone who can handle a difficult job, getting the funds out to the people who need them.

so who is going to do a better job?

He's not doing the job, he should go!

Not totally all his fault, when unemployment was low, getting through that phone system is like having your teeth pulled. Republicans and democrats share in this extremely, poorly ran department. Its needs a huge overhaul, as an employer required to pay into it, I expect better use of the monies put into this system....and while I'm complaining, the workers comp in our state really needs an overhaul.

Evers is way over his head and blames the republicans. He needs to go

How can you blame one guy?

He should fire more of his picks....

This is a good move IF the firing speeds up the payments to those who need them.

Penalties for non performance should start at the top. Lets hope the new pick is up to the herculean task.

not sure if it's really him or inherited problems - probably both

6 months over due, many more need to go

Evers created a mess for himself that willhaunt him politically.

Evers is a tool -- the buck stops with

It surely took Gov. Evers along time to figure out DWD problems

Gov. Evers hired Frostman, they both should fired.

If they can't get the job done, they need to be replaced!

It is time that govt works for the people

DWD and the Governor should have been adding employees and increasing to 3 shifts, like any other business would have done. Common sense is lacking with this administration.

The backlog of unemployment claims is unacceptable

Were you surprised to see that almost all state agencies and departments are requesting budget increases?

Everyone bellies up to the trough.

When has government not asked for more money

Pigs at the through

When have they not requested an increase?

Why not ask

It seemed more like just half the agencies asked for increases, but that doesn't mean that each agency will get what they asked for.

These agencies are still giving raises. Employees should be happy they have a decent job with benefits. Now is not the time to be handing out more money.

Big government never gets smaller.

They are headed by democrat appointees, they like to "make jobs" by regulations so they need more state union workers!

The democrats think there is no end to the money

Government always needs more more more... they don't understand how to cut their own waste to make their budgets work.

I think due to the lack of revenue ALL state agencies and departments should be at 0 increase or better yet a slight decrease. Now is not the time for any increases.

Not surprised. These agencies don't know any better than to keep asking for more money.

Hogs at the trough.

cost of living has gone up give give give

Ask for more and hope you get what is needed.

Bureaucrats just cant help themselves! SPENDspendSPEND

They think there a pot of gold a the end of the rainbow and flowing with money

nobody in government knows how to reduce spending. These people should all get fired too!

Covid-19 to blame

They always request more whether they need it or not. They seem to have no conception of what a budget is. Does not seem to matter how much revenue is expected, they still demand more.

I was surprised any of them requested decreases!

The JCRAR committee has extended the work search waiver for those receiving unemployment benefits. Good move or bad move?

Aside from the 'normal' rules regarding work searches.... For some people, exempting a work search makes sense. Exempting because of a lay-off without reasonable expectation of returning to work? ... NO.

The idea is good but most didn't REALLY look for work

There are plenty of jobs to be had

Some will be able to find jobs, but some won't. Who knows how long this health crisis will last.

Get off the rocking chair!!! there's tons of work out there!!!!!

Bad move. You can't keep these people who are capable of working on the state's payroll. People who are able to go look for a job, should go look for a job. Everyone is hiring.

They are unemployed by counties that do not want people working for their own "safety", why would you put them and others at risk by sending them out to find work? Let them stay home and live off the stupid people working through the so called "pandemic"

As an employer who is hiring, I don't want a bunch of people applying for jobs and wasting our time when they don't intend to work.

Were looking for employees and can't find them. Where are they? At home on a long paid vacation. Getting paid more than they're normal weekly paycheck. Why look for a job?

Being a business that could use some new good employees I would like to see some options for hiring.

work search has little relevance in our current situation.

there are a lot of jobs out there, instead of sitting doing nothing while on unemployment there has to be something they can do to better their situation.

get back to work

People think they can live off the government all the and need not to work

We have open position and NO ONE applies! No wonder when there's free money and no incentive to seek employment!

The paper has pages of job listings. No incentive to work

There are numerous job openings in Wisconsin.

Way too many jobs unfilled with no viable applicants.

A judge ruled late Monday afternoon that ballots may be counted for up to six days after the November election, as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. Good ruling or bad ruling?

IMHO.... Just as with releasing election results from a cosed poll while other polls with the same question / position are open is prohibited..... NO (national) election results from closed polls (east coast) should be released until ALL polls nation-wide (Hawaii) have closed.

Maybe the recipients of the ballots should mail them six days earlier

Someone wants to keep counting till they get the results they want

Horrible ruling!! Everyone knows when election day is, not 6 days after. Very easy concept

Property taxes only need a postmark by the deadline as well as many other things and they are still considered " timely"

They should not need a full six days. If an election is on Tuesday, absentee ballots should be counted with in 2 more days or completed by Thursday night. I have worked the polls and there is no reason to drag things out that long.

Why not give them a year?!? good grief!

THIS IS WRONG!! Voters will have plenty of time to get the ballots in. This will lead to more corruption and delays.

We've learned from the last election, ballots are not getting counted soon enough.

Vote in person if yuou can. If you need absentee ballot, turn it in early. Clerks have enough to do without late absentee ballots.

But no longer,, and no adding ballots after that date

Voting is a right but you have the responsibility to do it in a timely manner. A lack of planning is not an excuse

I do not trust the results of this election already. There have been too many cases of voter fraud in our state recently and this is ripe for more "dirty deeds" being done. The spring election for the state supreme court is a fine example. Absentee ballots from republican district lost or thrown out, no questions asked....conservatives may surprise the democrats if this election is not viewed as a fair one, a sleeping giant will be awakened, and we may actually see conservatives riot!

Mail in voting of any kind is open to fraud. If they really needed to get a mail in ballot then they should have to be sure to get them in on time or before.

Good idea - EVERYONE should be encouraged to vote. By extending the timeline to count the votes, we can be confident that votes will be counted.

This is going to be a ********* show.

This should encourage more people to vote. You will be counted no matter how poorly the USPS handles the mail.

Why all in such a rush?? get it right. Hanging chads anyone?

Socialism at its finest

Bad ruling but probably necessary.

They need to arrive on election day or before

The legal system has become a joke and are always changing the rules all the time

Why set a date if a liberal judge, can change it. NOV 3RD. is election day not a week or later.

People have plenty of time to get their ballots marked and returned well ahead of the Nov. 3rd. deadline. The left is just using this as a way to cheat the election!

Election Day should be the day not dayssssss

No reason whatsoever to change the rules

Mail can be slow

No reason why voters cannot mail ballots six days ahead of the election instead of needing six days after the election for their ballots to arrive.