This is an opinion piece by Republican Wisconsin state Sen. Dan Knodl, a current Assembly candidate.
While you were enjoying your favorite items on the grill and a cold beverage over the holiday weekend, the new politically motivated majority on the state Supreme Court was taking advantage of the public’s distracted attention to slip through a number of controversial actions.
Since the news cycle has already moved on, I’d like to take this opportunity to bring you up to speed.
First, the state Supreme Court made a major ruling that threatens to throw our upcoming elections into chaos. Two years ago, the court ruled that state law does not authorize election clerks to receive absentee ballots through a drop box—they may only receive ballots in the municipal office or via the mail. Now, the court has reversed course and overruled its previous decision, not for any legal reason, but solely because the makeup of the Court has changed to a liberal majority.
I have chaired the Senate committee pertaining to elections over the past year, and during that time we have held several hearings on legislation aimed at improving the election process and addressing concerns some Wisconsinites have about election integrity. This new court decision undermines these efforts, putting into question the principles of one person, one vote, and the security of our ballots.
There is no state law that permits ballot drop boxes, yet the Court has effectively created one, but without concrete procedures in place around their security.
The second ruling concerns the separation of powers between the governor and the Joint Finance Committee (JFC), our state’s budget-writing body. In 1989, the legislature created the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program (KNSP). This program purchases private land for public use for outdoor recreational activities and to preserve environmentally sensitive areas. Since then, JFC has always required a majority vote to move forward with most projects over $250,000, pursuant to the legislature’s constitutional authority over the appropriation of funds.
However, the court has now ruled that once the biennial budget appropriates funds for the KNSP, the legislature cannot exercise oversight authority on the DNR’s expenditure of those funds. This is another usurpation and undermining of the separation of powers, and it appears that Governor Evers and his liberal allies on the Supreme Court will take advantage of this ruling to strike down much of the legislature’s role in executing oversight of the executive branch. This is the liberal court majority’s attempt to insert themselves as a super-legislature.
This decision echoes another decision voters will have before them on August 13th: should the power of the purse lie with the state legislature or the governor?
Finally, Dane County Judge Frost delivered a chilling blow to the taxpayers of Wisconsin by striking down portions of the Act 10 law passed in 2011. This law reined in the bloated power of public sector unions, which they had been using to impose arbitrary, ever-increasing costs on the taxpayers. The passage of this law has saved taxpayers over $31 billion and kept local governments and schools solvent. This decision is under appeal and I have faith in the appellate court to overturn this misguided decision.
Unfortunately, the decisions of our State Supreme Court will hold until the Court again respects the separation of powers and seeks to be a court of judicial review and not an extension of the legislature that seeks to create law in our state.
