May 16, 2011
The Joint Committee on Finance is set to take up the Working Lands Initiative on Wednesday, May 18. This may be our last chance to preserve a strong farmland protection program in Wisconsin. We need direct contact with lawmakers and the governor. Contacting members of Joint Finance now is extremely important. By next Wednesday, it will be too late.
Several lawmakers are working on an amendment to keep most of the Working Lands Initiative intact. But opponents of farmland protection are working overtime to eliminate key parts of the program. Lawmakers need to hear from us. We represent the voices of citizens across the state, not special interests. Please contact lawmakers with these messages:
There are some key members of Joint Finance who can help steer us to victory. Contacting them is a high priority.
On the Senate side: Senator Sheila Harsdorf, R-River Falls; Senator Luther Olsen, R-Ripon, and Senator Joe Leibham, R-Sheboygan. Sen. Harsdorf in particular has emerged as a leader.
On the Assembly side: Representative Robin Vos, R-Burlington, co-chair of the Joint Committee on Finance; Rep. Representative Pat Strachota, R-West Bend, and Representative Dan Meyer, R-Eagle River.
Also, we need to reinforce our support for the work of Rep. Ed Brooks, R-Reedsburg; Rep. Keith Ripp, R-Lodi; Rep. Rep. Gary Tauchen , R-Bonduel; and Rep. Al Ott, R-Forest Junction. They have been working to forge a compromise amendment.
A special thank you to John Torinus, who so eloquently states the importance of the Stewardship Program in this post, which originally appeared on his blog, johntorinus.com. “Doctor Herp” called about 6 p.m. on a cold and rainy night recently and asked if we wanted to check out salamander matings in an ephemeral pond on [...]
