Assembly passes bipartisan package of bills aimed at improving water quality

MADISON – Assembly lawmakers on Tuesday passed a $10 million package of legislation aimed at improving water quality across Wisconsin.

Lawmakers approved 13 bills that would reduce bacteria, nitrates, poisonous lead and long-lasting chemicals in Wisconsin's groundwater. 

Rep. Todd Novak, a Republican from Dodgeville who worked on the legislation, called the proposals a good start.

"This is going to take some time and this is just the beginning," he said at a news conference. "Clean water is not a Democrat issue or a Republican issue. It's a state of Wisconsin issue."

The package, authored by Democratic and Republican Assembly lawmakers, also pays for additional staff at the state and county levels to improve state laws and regulations and expand land conservation efforts. 

The bills also would provide owners of wells with more money to reconstruct them to make water safer. 

Farmers also would be eligible to receive more state funding to reduce the level of nitrogen used each growing season for their crops, and the state's agriculture department would add a staff member focused on grazing techniques for livestock to allow grasses to replenish.   

And another proposal allows state officials to collect and dispose of foam products used by firefighters that contain so-called "forever chemicals" known as PFAS that can contaminate groundwater.

The proposals were made by a panel of lawmakers convened by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos after a study of some private wells in southwestern Wisconsin previously flagged as tainted were found to still be contaminated with fecal matter. 

Rep. Katrina Shankland, D-Stevens Point, said Tuesday the measures should be a starting point for lawmakers on the issue and wanted her colleagues to do more during the next legislative session.  

Lawmakers will have to wait until 2021 after the two houses convene for the year by March at the latest, a self-imposed deadline put in place by the Legislature's Republican leaders.  

The proposals come after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers proposed new regulations aimed at farmers and their use of manure and fertilizer. The regulations would target regions that are susceptible to nitrates, a source of groundwater pollution.

Pharmacy regulation

Lawmakers on Tuesday also passed Assembly Bill 114 that would regulate so-called pharmacy benefit managers, middlemen who oversee prescription drug coverage for employers and insurance companies.

The occupation has been under scrutiny in recent years as consumers question whether the price of prescription drugs could be lowered if drug costs negotiated by benefit managers were under more government oversight.  

"Any time you shine light on a subject, it's helpful," said GOP Rep. Michael Schraa of Oshkosh, one of the bill's lead backers.

The bill would require pharmacy benefit managers to register with state officials who oversee the insurance industry and require benefit managers to inform patients of less expensive prescription options.

Some benefit managers, health systems and insurers have opposed the legislation, saying it conflicts or duplicates regulations in federal law. 

Assembly lawmakers also voted 97-0 to pass a bill that spends $15 million to add 22 beds for patients who require mental health services, overseen by two hospitals in Eau Claire and Chippewa counties.  

The action comes after Evers vetoed a similar measure in the current state budget. Rep. Jodi Emerson, D-Eau Claire, suggested Evers would back the bill, however.  

The lawmakers also approved Assembly Bill 687, which would push back by eight years a requirement that Mount Pleasant build a new fire station to accommodate anticipated development spurred by a proposed Foxconn Technology Group manufacturing facility.  

Under a 2018 law that included billions of dollars in incentives for Foxconn, Mount Pleasant was required to build a new fire station within seven years. The bill passed Tuesday would give the village 15 years to build it. 

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz of Oshkosh said the legislation is the latest sign Foxconn's project is likely not to meet the expectations of Republican lawmakers who pushed legislation under Gov. Scott Walker to strike a deal with Foxconn that included billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies.

Vos, whose district includes the Foxconn site, said it was merely a sign the village was being prudent and wouldn't build the fire station prematurely. He said Hintz and Democrats were misleading the public about the company's progress in the area. 

Under another measure passed Tuesday, the Assembly will join a call for a constitutional convention that would consider constitutional amendments to restrain federal spending, put limits on the power of the federal government and impose term limits on members of Congress. 

The measure, Assembly Joint Resolution 77, is similar to a call for a constitutional convention the Legislature made in 2017 in hopes of amending the Constitution to balance the federal budget. 

Vos, who has been in office for 15 years, said he opposes term limits but is not afraid of a national debate on the issue.

Article V of the U.S. Constitution allows a convention for proposing amendments to be held if two-thirds of the states — 34 — call for one. To take effect, any amendments passed at a convention would have to be approved by three-quarters of the states, or 38.

Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

Contact Molly Beck at molly.beck@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MollyBeck.