Progressive Thinking

At hearing, he admitted they tried to make the maps more favorable to Republicans in 2011. Now they may be able to draw maps that help them stay in power simply by moving lines.

MADISON - I spent five hours in the State Capitol yesterday for the hearing on the newly gerrymandered maps.

I was a little late getting into the hearing room because there was such a huge and amazing crowd of citizen activists who were also trying to get in. That was great to see!

When I got in, Speaker Robin Vos was in the middle of his testimony as the co-author of the bills (SB621/AB624). A few minutes later, while he was being questioned by the Democrats on the joint committee, he made a killer confession: He admitted that they tried to make the maps more favorable to the Republicans. “Was partisanship used? Yes,” he said.

That’s the whole ball game! We don’t want Republicans – or Democrats, for that matter – to be able to draw maps that help them stay in power simply by moving lines here or there on a map.

Three and a half hours later, I was able to give my testimony, which you can read here:

Reject Gerrymandered Maps

You can view a slightly improvised version on WisconsinEye's recording of the hearing starting at 12:59 p.m.

If you haven’t already, please contact your legislators, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to register your opposition to these bills.

We’re also concerned about the ongoing smearing of the Wisconsin Elections Commission and the endless smoke machine about last November’s elections. Here’s what I wrote about the recent Legislative Audit Bureau report:

LAB Hatchet Job on Wisconsin Elections Commission

Thanks for your concern for our democracy!

Best,

Matt Rothschild
Executive Director
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P.S. Please support our urgent work with a tax-deductible donation today. Just click here.

The Congress allows citizens to advise the DNR Board on issues affecting hunting, fishing and conservation practices in Wisconsin.

EAU CLAIRE - The best policies come from citizens themselves. Subject matter experts, hobbyists or trained professionals are the best advisors lawmakers have when proposing new bills.

The Wisconsin Conservation Congress (WCC) may just be the best example of how policies can be introduced and adopted by citizens’ own initiative. Established in 1934 by the State Conservation Commission – the predecessor to the Natural Resources Board (NRB) – the WCC allows citizens to share their input with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

In 1972, Governor Patrick Lucey signed legislation that legally recognized the WCC. Under Wisconsin State Statues, “The conservation congress shall be an independent organization of citizens of the state and shall serve in an advisory capacity to the natural resources board on all matters under the jurisdiction of the board.”

There are five board members from every county chosen each spring to participate in the Conservation Congress. During the spring meeting, held simultaneously in each county, any citizen present is given a ballot with proposed policy measures for the DNR. This is where Wisconsinites can discuss ideas and express their opinions about what happens in our woods and waterways. It’s often the first place lawmakers look when crafting new bills. Since the 1930s, the WCC guided the Natural Resources Board in their decision-making based on how citizens voted at the spring meetings. It can’t get more democratic than that.

The process by which the WCC works is exactly how policies should be developed in Wisconsin. Unfortunately, during last week’s public hearing in the Senate Committee on Sporting Heritage, Small Business and Rural Issues, we realized that many current legislators are ignoring this formula and dismissing citizen involvement altogether. Recently, lawmakers hastily introduced a package of bills affecting hunting, fishing and conservation practices; soon after, they rushed to hold a public hearing.

Dozens of Wisconsinites and advocacy groups testified during the six-hour long hearing. When the National Turkey Federation testified with concerns about one bill that would affect the turkey hunting season, I asked if they’d been approached and consulted by the bill authors. They said they had not. I asked the same question to members of Trout Unlimited who shared their concerns regarding a bill that increases the stock of brook trout in Lake Michigan; they also responded in the negative.

This went on all day. It became evident that the bill authors had no regard for what Wisconsin sportsmen and women really cared about. The only group, as it turned out, that was consulted and registered in favor of all the bills came from Kansas. Even the Wisconsin Conservation Congress was taken by surprise by this package of legislation they did not ask for.

This is all very troubling, but I can honestly say I’m not too surprised. We should’ve seen the writing on the wall when back in 2011, the Majority Party passed legislation that essentially prevented conservationists from directly offering rule revisions to the NRB. 2011 Act 21 created an 18-step process that can take two-three years to complete. This has made the rule-making process so difficult that Conservation Congress meetings rarely adopt rule changes in even years of the biennium.

Despite these changes, I still attend the meetings in my county because I trust the discussion to be honest and sincere. I also introduced a bill to reinstate the power of the WCC. As we’ve seen this year, there are people, like Fred Prehn, who don’t respect our democratic processes or Wisconsin’s conservation record. We can avoid bad policies and protect Wisconsin’s natural resources by restoring the voices of the WCC. The Senate must also act and approve Governor Evers’ appointment to the NRB.

The best legislators are wise enough to consult with citizens who know best how a policy will affect the state. No one should think they know all they need to know simply from their own experiences. That’s not to say that all advice given is perfect right away, but it’s all part of the process. The Wisconsin Conservation Congress has worked well for Wisconsin – and it’s what we need today to preserve our natural resources for the next generation of Wisconsinites.

MADISON - Meet the new gerrymander, same as the old gerrymander.

Wednesday, Speaker Vos and Majority Leader LeMahieu unveiled their new district maps for the state, and they’re just as bad as they were last time around, as I explain here:

Stop the GOP Re-Rigging of Our Maps

The bills were introduced as SB621/AB624 for legislative maps and SB622/AB625 for congressional maps.

>> A joint committee public hearing on the new maps has been scheduled for October 28 at 9 a.m. Plan to attend the hearing as well as the Wisconsin Fair Maps Coalition press conference prior to the hearing at 8:30 a.m. This will most likely be the only public hearing on the bills.

>> Please contact your state legislators before the hearing on October 28 and tell them to vote against these re-rigged maps. And urge Gov. Evers to veto these bills if they arrive on his desk.

We also have got to get rid of the filibuster. The logjam in Congress just stalled the Freedom to Vote Act, which is a crucial bill for safeguarding our democracy, as I noted here:

Pass the Freedom to Vote Act

My colleague, Iuscely Flores, wrote an important story this week about a package of bills in the state legislature that would address the gross disparities in maternal and infant mortality in Wisconsin. Please check it out:

Wisconsin Needs Birth Equity

>> You can use this online tool to contact your legislators to support Birth Equity in Wisconsin.

And we also published a piece about who is behind the ludicrous idea to have an open season on Sandhill cranes:

Ag, Hunting Groups Favor GOP Sandhill Crane Hunt Proposal

Thanks for reading, and thanks for taking action.

Best,

Matt Rothschild
Executive Director
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P.S. Please support our urgent work with a tax-deductible gift. It’s easy. Just click here. Thanks!

Sen. Smith writes about his “Stop & Talks”, one way he uses to get out and have conversations with residents throughout the 31st Senate District.

EAU CLAIRE - For many, a favorite thing to do this time of year is taking a drive to enjoy the natural beauty of our state. I often mention how fortunate we are in Wisconsin to have such a beautiful landscape all year-round, particularly now when the fall colors really draw attention and attract driving tours.

When asking folks to meet with their legislator, it’s understandable why they’re not too thrilled. Most people would prefer to be out-and-about, enjoying the beauty Wisconsin has to offer. When elected officials schedule office hours or listening sessions, it’s not always convenient for folks. Usually they’re scheduled in the town hall during business hours when people are at work. It always bothered me when I scheduled office hours and sat there alone waiting for someone to show up. It even felt like I was hiding while people drove by without knowing their elected representative was inside for them to talk to.

That never really sat right with me. Elected officials should be more accessible to their constituents. It should be as convenient and easy as possible for you to connect with your legislator. We should be where you are.

That’s why I constructed a 6 foot sign for the top of my 1999 Dodge Ram that I can fold down when driving, but then lift up for drivers to see when I’m parked in a place that they can easily pull into. It’s your chance to Stop and Talk.

Although I’m not able to schedule mobile office hours every day, or even every week, I enjoy this way of connecting immensely. Even though I thought—like most of us—that I knew how to listen, I’ve honed my listening skills even more since being parked near the side of the road talking with constituents.

Life teaches us that building relationships is vitally important. Whether it’s with family, colleagues or friends, relationships make life better. But relationships rely on trust. And that’s where listening skills are necessary. If we only have conversations so we can be heard, then we’re missing something. Nobody is 100% correct on everything; we can learn a lot from others if we really listen.

When asked what I enjoy most about my job as a Senator, the answer is always the same: listening to people’s stories. I’m so privileged that people will share their most personal life stories with me. Some stories bring tears while others bring smiles. When I listen and learn from a personal story, we build that trust that forms a relationship. Even if it’s brief, it is a relationship that impacts me as I work with my colleagues, vote on legislation and as I grow as a person.

If you haven’t yet seen me on the road or wonder when and where the next Stop and Talk might be, here’s how it works. I used to do Stop and Talks during my free time at the spur of the moment, but then there were many people who commented saying they wished they had known where I would be. Or they’d say they saw me, but were unable to stop because they were on a tight schedule.

Now we do a better job of scheduling when and where I’ll be with my truck. The pandemic in 2020 impacted our ability to connect with people, but with vaccinations, face masks and social distancing, I’m out crisscrossing the district to hear from you.

The best way to know when and where I’ll be is by following me on my Facebook page @SenSmithWI. I’ll usually post when and where I’ll be a couples days in advance. Otherwise, when you’re on that drive through western Wisconsin enjoying those fall colors, stop by when you see my big, red truck and share your thoughts. I look forward to listening to you.

Sen. Smith writes about the public hearing for Senate Bill 454, which aims to improve early childhood literacy, and how state lawmakers can better support parents and children with a reading disability.

MADISON - Constituents expect their legislators to solve problems. I know that’s what is expected of me and it’s what I enjoy doing. It’s truly satisfying coming up with new ideas that make a positive impact on people’s lives.

We hear concerns and suggestions from constituents for how to fix the problem. In fact, many bills we propose come directly from the minds of the people we’re elected to serve.

Public hearings happen nearly every day in the Capitol for legislators to hear about an issue and how a bill can help fix it. Last week was no different. I serve on the Senate Committee on Education and I attended the public hearing for Senate Bill 454, which aims to improve early childhood literacy. The bill authors introduced this legislation intending to help students with reading disabilities, like dyslexia. Improving early childhood literacy is an issue we can all support. However, I do have serious concerns about the unintended consequences of this bill and the failure to address the actual problem.

Currently, school boards and independent charter schools are required to assess students from four-year-old kindergarten to second grade on reading readiness. This bill overhauls the assessment practices Wisconsin has in place. Ultimately, this will impact the way students are taught by implementing more testing for all students, thus delaying the time needed to actually intervene and improve an individual student’s reading ability. Additionally, I found it problematic that there was little input from teachers and the bill specifics that schools must use private companies for this testing.

What may seem incredible to some is that the bill authors modeled this legislation after Mississippi. Before you jump to conclusions, you should know that Mississippi really has made strides in raising the level of reading competence over the last eight years. They’ve almost reached the same level that Wisconsin scores have been at for the last thirty years. They did this through reading assessments and by making the investments needed to provide teachers with training and schools with specialists.

Senate Bill 454 only focuses on discovery, not the investment in services. Undoubtedly, the sooner a parent or educator identifies a child’s reading difficulties, the better. But, also the sooner we invest in the services that child will need, the better. Mississippi also implemented a strict retention policy to hold students back a year, which raises some concerns about how they raised their scores.

We are well aware there is a problem with reading proficiency in Wisconsin, especially for students of color, but it doesn’t make sense for us to implement more testing to identify a problem we already know exists.

Some of my committee colleagues and I attempted to raise concerns, but the committee chair dismissed them and made the decision to not allow any more questions. There just seems to be no appetite to actually fix these problems.

We then heard testimony after testimony from parents who have experience taking their child to a clinic to be “evaluated by a private neuropsychologist.” This might cost them anywhere between one to two thousand dollars. After their diagnosis they then might spend $600 per month for private tutoring.

Throughout this six-hour hearing, all I could think about was how disingenuous we were being to these desperate parents who seemed to believe this bill would fix everything. But we wouldn’t be funding a neuropsychologist for school districts who already can’t afford one more staff person. Nor would we fund more specialists trained to tutor students with reading disabilities. All the legislature is willing to do is mandate more class time on assessments, so the teacher might be able to tell parents that they will need to find private tutoring to help their child.

Wisconsinites expect their legislators to fix problems, not push the problem onto someone else. This bill is telling parents, “We want to assess your child’s reading skills, but you’re on your own for helping them.” If the Legislature is serious about closing Wisconsin’s achievement gap, we need to put our money where our mouth is and move bills forward that will truly make a difference.