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Wisconsin "Job Creation Act" Would Create Environmental Havoc
Wisconsin AB 655, known as the "Job Creation Act," has been trumpeted by Republican legislative leaders as a sweeping regulatory reform bill that would make it easier for businesses to operate, by accelerating approval of air and water permits. Actually, it is a bill that compromises the health of Wisconsin's environment. With little notice to the public and heavy involvement by the state's various business lobbyists, the bill was originally introduced with only days remaining in the regular 2003 legislative session. After protest, from both the public and Democratic legislators, the bill's authors were asked to scale back some of the provisions that would weaken Wisconsin's environmental laws. In December, a compromise was reached in principle, but the new "compromise" bill, according to an internal analysis prepared by administration officials, does not contain the compromises agreed upon. According to a memo from two Department of Natural Resources staffers to the agency's chief negotiators and the governor's legislative liaison, the bill "reverts to many of the provisions of the original drafts of SB 313/AB 655 and will lead to significant habitat destruction and adverse impacts on public rights in navigable waters." One provision contained in the new bill, touted as the "final bill," sanctions the use of "general" permits, which are much less regulated, and would be issued for a broad range of activities that affect lakes and streams. The new version also fails to restore existing statutory standards that protect water quality, habitat, or other rights in public waters. Similar to its first introduction, drafts of the amended version were first made available for review at 8 a.m. on January 7, and the Assembly Committee on Job Creation began a hearing on AB 655 at 8 a.m. on January 8, in which the amended version was adopted. No public hearings were held on the new version. Wisconsin's Attorney General voiced concern, saying that it would be difficult to evaluate the implications of the of 79-page bill in such a short time. Amidst all of this, no proof has been offered whether or not the bill would actually create jobs. It seems that the supporters of the bill are not interested in actually creating jobs or in having a full and fair hearing of their proposal. Instead, they are pushing their bill through the legislative process as fast as they can, without public input or discussion. Perhaps, they are afraid that such discussion would reveal that, while this bill does nothing to create jobs, it does plenty to weaken environmental standards.
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