Both measures were scheduled for votes Friday in a specially called session to pass the bills after Republicans reached a compromise following a weekslong impasse. Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, said earlier Friday there was disagreement among GOP senators on whether to require any employer disclosure, and that was the issue holding up the bill.
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The Assembly’s version of the elections board bill, meanwhile, would dissolve the Government Accountability Board, an agency controlled by six nonpartisan judges that runs Wisconsin’s elections and enforces the state’s ethics and campaign finance statutes.
Opponents argue the bills weaken oversight of the state’s elections and ethics laws, while making it easier for shadowy third party interest groups to influence campaigns without the public knowing who is spending on the races.
The Senate Republicans made no changes to the new individual contribution limits except for removing an Assembly provision that would have adjusted the limits for inflation every five years. They didn’t restore the employer disclosure requirements.
“The end result is bad for democracy and for clean and open government in Wisconsin”, he said. All four areas now are overseen by the GAB. “Forty years of court cases have left scattered pieces of not only the state’s unenforceable current law, but also a political process that needs to be navigated, and is completely foreign to anyone who wants to enter into the political arena”, said Fitzgerald.
The GAB, created in 2007 with bipartisan support, has come under increased scrutiny for its part in a 2012 John Doe investigation into alleged violations during Gov. Scott Walker’s recall campaign. There would be no change to the elections board makeup. The bill doubles contribution limits to candidates and clarifies limits on corporate contributions to political parties and committees. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, said during debate on the campaign finance bill.
If approved, the bill would create a basis in statute for the type of conduct for which Walker’s campaign was investigated: allegedly coordinating with so-called issue advocacy groups, or groups that air ads that may mention a candidate but don’t explicitly call for or oppose their election. It also would permit unlimited corporate contributions to political parties and legislative campaign committees, provided the dollars are kept in separate funds.
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The Senate made several changes from what passed the Assembly.
