{"id":2352,"date":"2023-04-21T17:58:13","date_gmt":"2023-04-21T17:58:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/?p=2352"},"modified":"2023-04-21T18:04:17","modified_gmt":"2023-04-21T18:04:17","slug":"featured-after-losing-state-supreme-court-wisconsin-conservatives-eye-constitutional-amendments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/?p=2352","title":{"rendered":"Featured: After Losing State Supreme Court, Wisconsin Conservatives Eye Constitutional Amendments"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post originally appeared at https:\/\/reforminggovernment.org\/featured-after-losing-state-supreme-court-wisconsin-conservatives-eye-constitutional-amendments\/<\/a><\/p>\n

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With liberals poised to take control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers standing in the way of most Republican policies, some conservatives are calling on state lawmakers to ramp up their use of constitutional amendments to enact or preserve legislation.<\/p>\n

Constitutional amendments offer Republicans an advantage in promoting GOP policies because they only require approval from the Legislature \u2014 the one branch of government conservatives will control after August \u2014 before going before voters.<\/p>\n

Anthony LoCoco, chief legal counsel and director of oversight for the conservative Institute for Reforming Government, said constitutional amendments could be used to protect conservative policies like right-to-work, school choice and elements of Act 10, former Republican former Gov. Scott Walker\u2019s signature 2011 legislation that effectively eliminated collective bargaining rights for most public-sector employees.<\/p>\n

Some of those policies could soon be at risk of being overturned when liberals assume a majority on the state Supreme Court later this summer following the election of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz earlier this month.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously there\u2019s a lot of discussion in the wake of the Wisconsin Supreme Court race about possible challenges to Scott Walker-era reforms, and with respect to the executive branch, it\u2019s going to be difficult to accomplish things legislatively with divided government,\u201d LoCoco said. \u201cBut what conservatives do have is massive majorities in the Legislature, and that\u2019s half of the equation for enacting a constitutional amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution.<\/p>\n

Constitutional amendments must pass two successive legislative sessions before going before voters. They cannot be vetoed by the governor.<\/p>\n

Although most recent constitutional amendments have passed overwhelmingly and largely flew under the radar, it\u2019s likely that referendums on hot-button issues would be more divisive, attracting the hefty sums that have become ubiquitous in Wisconsin elections. It would also be possible for liberal groups to challenge GOP-written constitutional amendments in court, a strategy that would no longer favor conservatives.<\/p>\n

Given the potential policy instability and possibility that divisive proposals might fail, some conservatives are backing only the narrow use of constitutional amendments.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that the Wisconsin Constitution is a foundational document \u2026 it\u2019s not a mere policymaking tool,\u201d said Dan Lennington, deputy counsel for the conservative group Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty. \u201cWhen legislators propose constitutional amendments, they should be very careful and think long term.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt certainly is the right of the people to amend the Constitution, and it\u2019s a good and proper use of the amendment process,\u201d Lennington said. \u201cBut it\u2019s been the most successful and it\u2019s made the most sense when the amendments have been on \u2026 issues that are supported broadly by the public.\u201d<\/p>\n

LoCoco said the possibility of defeat shouldn\u2019t deter Republicans.<\/p>\n

\u201cI encourage people to not be too concerned about the possibility of a failed vote, although certainly it needs to be given consideration,\u201d LoCoco added. \u201cLegislators should be careful when selecting which proposals they think should be added to the Constitution.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are some conservative proposals that the public appears to overwhelmingly support, like expanding the private school voucher program. Just under 60% of registered voters supported expanding vouchers, while 34% were against it and the rest didn\u2019t know or refused to say, according to an April 2022 Marquette Law School Poll.<\/p>\n

Declining to speak about specific policies, Lennington said he didn\u2019t want Wisconsin\u2019s Constitution, which has been amended 148 times, to look like California\u2019s, which has been amended over 500 times.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think anybody has looked at California\u2019s example, of having the voters vote on every single contentious policy issue, as a good example,\u201d Lennington said.<\/p>\n

While the vast majority of Wisconsin\u2019s constitutional amendments didn\u2019t involve costly campaigns, it\u2019s likely that more divisive efforts would attract a lot more money \u2014 and attention.<\/p>\n

Last year, months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Kansas voters were asked to strip abortion protections from the state constitution. Kansans rejected the measure after groups on both sides of the debate spent $11 million to boost their stance on the issue, attracting national attention.<\/p>\n

Potential lawsuits<\/h2>\n

While they can\u2019t be vetoed, constitutional amendments can be challenged in court, which would put the proposals before the same liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court majority that conservatives are trying to avoid.<\/p>\n

A case\u00a0currently before the Wisconsin Supreme Court\u00a0challenges the validity of \u201cMarsy\u2019s Law,\u201d a constitutional amendment approved by about 75% of voters that purported to increase victims\u2019 rights.<\/p>\n

Marsy\u2019s Law added 16 new rights for victims while eliminating a reference in the Constitution to a fair trial for the defendant.<\/p>\n

The case made its way to the state\u2019s highest court after a Dane County judge said the statewide ballot question inadequately spelled out the effect the amendment would have on the rights of people accused of crimes. Attorneys defending the proposal argue the question communicated the amendment\u2019s essential purpose.<\/p>\n

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is slated to rule on the case this summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn any of these proposals, the devil is certainly going to be in the details in terms of how the amendments are worded,\u201d LoCoco said.<\/p>\n

Lawsuits challenging constitutional amendments could take different forms.<\/p>\n

Just before voters were asked to decide the parameters of judges\u2019 use of cash bail this April, a group\u00a0challenged the measure in court, saying the measures weren\u2019t submitted to election clerks on time. The group unsuccessfully sought to remove the questions from the ballot before the election but the case is ongoing.<\/p>\n

No new constitutional amendment has been introduced since the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf and when there are, we\u2019ll continue to study each one carefully,\u201d said Jeff Mandell, a Stafford Rosenbaum attorney who co-founded the liberal group Law Forward. \u201cAnd make sure that when the people are asked to change the founding charter of our state, that they\u2019re asked to do so in a way that complies with the rules and complies with the basic principles of democracy that the Constitution exists to uphold.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI generally think that it is inappropriate and unwise to be putting the solutions to whatever the policy debate of the day happens to be into the Constitution,\u201d Mandell said. \u201cThe Constitution is really supposed to be a much more long-term document.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spokespeople for Evers, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, didn\u2019t respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n

Previous efforts<\/h2>\n

Since the adoption of the state Constitution in 1848, voters have weighed in on 200 proposed constitutional amendments. Of those, 148 have been approved, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau.<\/p>\n

Most recently,\u00a0two-thirds of Wisconsin voters\u00a0in the April 4 election approved a\u00a0pair of constitutional amendments\u00a0giving judges more options for keeping people arrested for violent crimes in custody pending trial.<\/p>\n

Conservatives wrote those amendments and celebrated their passage, though both Protasiewicz and her conservative opponent, Dan Kelly, said they supported the measures.<\/p>\n

But voters embracing any proposed amendment is not a foregone conclusion. In 2018, only 38% of voters supported a\u00a0proposal to eliminate the office\u00a0of the state treasurer.<\/p>\n

Evers last September called on the Legislature to advance a proposal that, if passed by a statewide vote, would create a binding referendum process\u00a0whereby voters could collect signatures and file petitions to force votes on state laws or constitutional amendments.<\/p>\n

The Democratic governor\u2019s proposal, which was broached as a means to let voters decide whether to repeal state laws like the current near-complete ban on abortions in Wisconsin, was swiftly dismissed by legislative Republicans.<\/p>\n

More on the way<\/h2>\n

Other proposed constitutional amendments that were approved by the Legislature for the first time last session could be coming before lawmakers in the months ahead. If approved a second time, the proposals would appear before voters on the next statewide ballot.<\/p>\n

Republicans in January introduced for second consideration a resolution that would give the Legislature final say over how the governor\u00a0spends federal funds allocated to the state. Republicans sought to secure more control over the money last session after Evers oversaw the distribution of billions in federal COVID relief funds pumped into the state.<\/p>\n

Another proposal would bar the state from receiving\u00a0private funds to help administer elections. Republicans proposed it in response to private election grants provided to cities in 2020 by the Chicago-based Center for Tech and Civic Life that they said were used to unfairly increase turnout in the Democratic strongholds of Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Kenosha and Racine.<\/p>\n

A staffer for Sen. Eric Wimberger said in January the Green Bay Republican plans to introduce the joint resolution for second consideration this legislative session.<\/p>\n

Another proposal would amend the constitutional provision declaring that, \u201cEvery United States citizen age 18 or older who is a resident of an election district in this state is a qualified elector of that district.\u201d\u00a0The amendment\u00a0would clarify that \u201conly a United States citizen\u201d could vote in any district. That measure is meant to head off initiatives in other states to allow noncitizens to vote in some local elections.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This post originally appeared at https:\/\/reforminggovernment.org\/featured-after-losing-state-supreme-court-wisconsin-conservatives-eye-constitutional-amendments\/ With liberals poised to take control of the Wisconsin…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":1942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-institute-for-reforming-government"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2352"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2354,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2352\/revisions\/2354"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wifamily.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}