Thursday, April 25, 2013
A lawsuit filed by unions representing Madison teachers and city of Milwaukee employees over the state's collective bargaining law may be headed to the State Supreme Court.
A state appeals court is urging the Wisconsin State Supreme Court to take on an Act 10 lawsuit filed by two unions, which challenged the constitutionality of the collective bargaining limitations Gov. Scot Walker imposed on almost all public unions in 2010. The Supreme Court could take the case without waiting for an Appeals Court decision, but whether is does so is at the high court's discretion. If the Supreme Court doesn’t take the case, then the Appeals Court would need to take it. A certification filed by a panel of three judges from the 4th District Court of Appeals, asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to take the case because “a number of public unions have filed suits against municipalities over Act 10 provisions, which have left …
Monday, November 12, 2012
New report says the Racine Unified School District has seen a big reduction in pension and health care costs because of changes in state's collective bargaining law.
The controversial state law that eliminated most collective bargaining rights for school employees reduced benefit costs for the Racine Unified School District by $18.4 million last school year, according to a report released Monday. The bulk of the savings came from reductions in the district's share of employee retirement costs, the report by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance said. In the 2010-11 school year, Racine Unified paid $7.99 million toward pension costs for workers; in 2011-12, that dropped to about $25,378, the report said. The district also saved more than $10.4 million in health insurance costs, according to the report, which was based on data that public school districts provide to the state Department of Public Instruction…
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
The village took issue with the police union contract, specifically with their insurance provision.
Plans to have a state arbitrator choose between the contract offers from the Caledonia police officers union and the village were thwarted after the village officials challenged an insurance provision in the union's final offer. So now the two sides are heading back to the bargaining table to see if they can hammer out a mutually acceptable deal. Bob West, a consultant to the Wisconsin Professional Police Association, said the village sent an email to the state arbitrator stating it believes the union's final offer is not legal because it contained language about co-pay and deductible levels, which the village believes the union can't legally negotiate. The budget repair bill Scott Walker approved in 2011 essentially barred public unions …
Friday, September 14, 2012
A Dane County judge has declared Act 10 — the budget repair bill — as unconstitutional at both the state and federal levels.
The law that ended most collective bargaining rights for public employees was struck down Friday by Dane County Circuit Judge Juan Colas. According to our media partners at Fox 6 News, Colas ruled Act 10 — the budget repair bill — as null and void because the law violates both the state and US Constitutions. Specifically, the law violates the guarantee of freedom of speech and citizens' freedom of association. Colas' 27-page decision is summarized in The Capital Times, quoting the judge's primary reason for his decision as " (Act 10) single(s) out and encumber(s) the rights of those employees who choose union membership and representation solely because of that association and therefore infringe upon the rights of free speech and …
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
State Rep. Robin Vos (R-Rochester), praises changes in state law after Gov. Scott Walker announces the savings from collective bargaining limits for the public sector.
Updated at 3:40 pm to reflect new input from the Governor's office regarding Racine County. A state lawmaker who represents a good part of Racine County is praising Gov. Scott Walker’s announcement that the state’s controversial budget repair law has resulted in $1 billion in savings. Act 10 - the budget repair bill - significantly limited public unions in collective bargaining. State Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, released the following statement after Walker appeared in Manitowoc Monday morning where the governor made the announcement: “The fiscal reforms are paying off for Racine County and the entire state. The $1 billion in savings is just the beginning of the benefits from the smart choices that were made for the financial future of …
Sunday, April 15, 2012
For months Caledonia officials have been saying they want police and fire union employees to pay what the non-union employees are paying toward pension and health care costs, but those provisions are not included in the village's "final" offer
After months of trying to settle the Caledonia police contract, the village and the union are officially at an impasse and asking the state to intervene. The Wisconsin Professional Police Association, the union that represents Caledonia police employees, and village officials handed in their final offers into Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission on March 31. Now the two sides are waiting for the offers to be certified before they pick an arbitrator, who will choose between the two offers and make the final decision. But neither offer calls for police union members paying 5.9 percent of their wages into their state pensions in 2012 or 2013. That's surprising because several trustees had made it clear earlier that police officers …
Friday, March 30, 2012
A federal judge today said automatic collection of dues and requiring annual re-certification violate unions' First Amendment rights.
Two components of Act 10 - the budget repair bill - were deemed unconstitutional today, according to a federal judge's ruling. Specifically, unions challenged whether or not dues can be automatically deducted from public employee paychecks and that unions must certify with an absolute majority. The lawsuit was filed by a coalition of unions shortly after Act 10 was passed last year. Saying those provisions violate union members' First Amendment rights because public safety employee unions are not subject to the same restrictions, US District Judge William M. Conley issued his opinion Friday. He rejected assertions that the law violates any equal protection under the law clauses, but he ordered that automatic dues withdrawals be reinstated …
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Vos looks back on 2011, and lists what he sees as the highlights of the year.
- GOVERNMENT
- Robin Vos
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Saturday, December 31, 2011
As I look ahead with great optimism for the coming year, I also look back at 2011 and all that we accomplished in the Wisconsin State Assembly. From balancing the state budget to passing important incentives for job creation, I'm proud of what we did for the future of our state. This past month I made a list of the top ten legislative events for 2011 for the WisEye show, Civil Dialogue. Here they are: 10. January 3: Inauguration of Republican Gov. Scott Walker and Republicans who controlled the Assembly 60-39, and Senate 19-14. This victory allowed us to pass important legislation including the legalization of concealed weapons and the passage of photo ID to ensure the security of our elections. 9. July 19: Bill to repeal the early …
The best words to describe Wisconsin politics the last year -- polarized and angry.
Talk politics in Wisconsin and you might lose a friend. This state is deeply divided and things don't seem to be getting any better as the Democrats are set on trying to trigger a recall election of Gov. Scott Walker and several state senators, including Van Wanggaard (R-Racine). Facebook has been rife with groups for and against the recall. From both sides of the issue, the namecalling and accusations of wrongdoing have been abundant. 1. Pro-Recall Group Outs Facebook Page That Boasts About Destroying Signatures 2. Billionaire Curtis Johnson Charged with Sexual Assault in Racine County 3. Sabotage? Caledonia Man Claims He, and Others, Plan to Shred Signed Walker Recall Petitions 4. State Officials Say Holding Onto Signed Walker Recall …
Monday, December 26, 2011
We're celebrating our first year of existence and we're sharing our best stories.
Thousands of you have discovered Caledonia Patch and for that, we are grateful. So we thought we're on day five of a 10-day year in review of the 50 most read stories on Caledonia Patch. After we tally up the winners, we'll list your favorites on Jan. 1. Also, we'd love to get your feedback on what intrigued you the most, that way we'll know where our time should be spent so that we can make your life ridiculously easy. Tell us what you think about these stories, let us know what we could have done differently, and feel free to share other story ideas with us. Also, if you see anything on the list you'd like to see an update on, let us know. We're all ears! 25. Judge Allows Alleged Admission Curt Johnson Made About Sex Assault 24. Hearing …
Ed Holladay
8:47 pm on Friday, April 26, 2013
$$, lol. No, I am not receiving any entitlements. I take it you disagree about putting the pension to use for venture capital. You may have a good point though. Maybe we should take a third of SSI and use that as seed money for new industry. We have to do something to save capitalism. more ›