Monday, February 28, 2011

"Collective Bargaining Showdown"



Airtime: Mon. Feb. 28 2011 | 3:08 PM ET


Opposing views on whether eliminating workers' collective bargaining rights should be on the table when it comes to balancing state budgets, with Tim Phillips president of Americans for Prosperity of Arlington, Virginia, and Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin.

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In the News - February 2011



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Gerrymandering: The Next Protest



A W
isconsin Political Fix
not just another blog
February 28, 2011

By Bill Kraus

The next protest will be about the two thirds (or more) of the state’s voters who are, have been, and will be ideologically disenfranchised by gerrymandered redistricting.

The facts, roughly, are that two senior members of the congressional delegation have reduced the number of congressional districts where a candidate from either party has a real chance to be elected to one.

The state Legislature is less orderly about reducing the numbers of Senate and Assembly districts where the voters pick their representatives than vice versa, but their messy process has produced the same kind of pre-ordination. The results there are that one-third of the Legislature is elected in July when only one candidate files nomination papers for the job.

Another one-third are elected in September when more than one candidate from the gerrymander-favored party dukes it out for that party’s nomination and a sure victory in the November finals.

That leaves one-third of the voters who get to pick a Republican or Democrat to represent them. Actually, it’s really more like one-third of this one-third who live in a district where there will be a real contest for those few seats.

It’s easy to tell if you’re in that last one-third of the one-third. You will have a TV commercial every minute for the entire election and will see big spending in every way and every medium by the candidates themselves and by outsiders who are seeking advantage where advantage can be bought, they hope.

This, of course, is why the contested elections are reduced to this smaller number. There is only so much money to go around. The more safe seats there are where strenuous electioneering and big spending is needed the less the desired disenfranchisement. Reduce the battleground elections and save money.

There is, of course, no way to make every state legislative race competitive. If you don’t believe this I invite you to frustrate yourself, try running a Republican for the state Assembly in Portage County or a Democrat in Green Lake County.

The fact is though that we could get much more competition into these races than we currently have.

It would be cheap and easy. All that needs to be done is to take the drawing of legislative district lines out of the hands of the Legislature.

Iowa did this decades ago.

They have many more competitive races, many fewer places where the fix is in.

Thanks to our neighbors to the west we don’t even have to re-invent the wheel. All we have to do is adopt the Iowa plan.

If we do this, we will take one more divisive issue off the legislative agenda. We will also save the state money that otherwise will be spent to get experts to carve us up into docile districts that favor whichever party that happens to be in the majority at the end of each census taking decade.

More importantly we will free legislators’ time to deal with the problems that affect us--the voters--instead of just the problems that affect them.

Ready to protest yet?

If so, start painting signs and telling the good government groups to do something beyond wailing and gnashing their teeth about the Supreme Court’s indifference to the collateral damage of their recent decisions about money in politics. The Supreme Court is not going to change its mind about money and is not involved in redistricting legislation.

This is something your legislators can do. It is unlikely that they will, however, unless large numbers of us make it clear that we would like our franchise back. We would prefer to pick our legislators instead of having them pick us.



Follow Bill Kraus on:
twitter / wmkraus

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Thursday, February 24, 2011

Senate Bill 6 Will Make Wisconsin the Most Restrictive State in the Nation in Which to Vote -- and it is Likely Unconstitutional


Press Release
February 24, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686



Senate Bill 6 Will Make Wisconsin the Most Restrictive State in the Nation in Which to Vote -- and it is Likely Unconstitutional

The Wisconsin State Senate -- with only the 19 Republicans voting -- has scheduled a vote today on Senate Bill 6 - an ill-advised, ill-conceived and totally unnecessary measure that would transform Wisconsin into the most restrictive state in the nation in which to cast a vote at the polls.

The Senate Committee on Transportation and Elections on Tuesday made a few alterations to Senate Bill 6 -- with the three Republicans on that committee all voting to forward the measure to the full State Senate for consideration. A Democratic member of the committee, Sen. Jon Erpenbach of Waunakee, was blocked from voting by phone because the committee chair, Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) didn't like the fact that he and the other 13 State Senate Democrats are still in Illinois. This is the first time in memory that a legislator has been denied the ability to vote in a committee by phone.

Revised Senate Bill 6 slightly expanded the forms of identification - which must all have a photo - that can be used to present at the polls in order to have your vote counted. You must have a Wisconsin driver's license or a Wisconsin Department of Transportation-issued photo ID or a U.S. military ID or a valid U.S. passport or a Tribal ID or naturalization papers. No other form of identification is acceptable. Passage of this revised Senate Bill 6 will make Wisconsin just the 9th state in the nation to require a photo ID to vote and the most restrictive and difficult in which to do so. It will be easier to vote in every southern state in the nation than to vote in Wisconsin.

But on Tuesday, the Republicans on the committee also included a provision that makes Senate Bill 6 even more onerous and restrictive than it was when it was introduced. They extended the current and long standing residency requirement of 10 days to 28 days, which will likely mean that thousands of new Wisconsin residents will be prevented from registering to vote in some elections.

There are also questions about whether removing the fiscal note attached to the legislation so that the Senate can vote to pass Senate Bill 6 without a required quorum of 20 Senators present -- and then adding the fiscal note later -- is constitutional.

An unfunded Senate Bill 6 would almost certainly be stuck down by the courts as unconstitutional as applied because if the state does not bear the cost of paying for DOT- issued photo IDs, then it would be tantamount to a poll tax -- which was outlawed by the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

If the Senate later "reattaches" a fiscal note there will be questions about whether its passage without one is valid and constitutional.

And the fiscal note would be considerable. It would likely cost millions of scarce tax payer dollars to implement in order to pay for the state-issued photo ID cards, the expansion in the number of Department of Motor Vehicle offices and hours to handle the increased issuance of the photo ID cards, training and administrative costs for poll workers, and education of the public about the new, much more restrictive law.

In a period of huge budget deficits and strained state and local finances, is this a new and significant expense Wisconsin taxpayers should be forced to shoulder?

Does Wisconsin really want to make it more difficult for all of its citizens to vote than even in Alabama or Mississippi, and have a one of the lowest voter participation rates in the nation?

The vote today in the Wisconsin State Senate by Republican Senators is a no-brainer. NO!

__________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Governor Walker's Actions Reflect Agenda of Koch Industries


Press Release
February 23, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686



Governor Walker's Actions Reflect Agenda of Koch Industries

Common Cause in Wisconsin isn’t an expert on the fiscal challenges facing Wisconsin or how the state should answer them. But it’s clear that the course chosen by Governor Scott Walker, a bill to end long-held collective bargaining rights for government employees, reflects the political agenda of one of his most generous campaign contributors.

“Governor Scott Walker had little or nothing to say about collective bargaining rights during his campaign last fall, yet he now depicts those rights as public enemy number one to the state’s fiscal health,” said Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin. “It’s no coincidence that his second largest campaign contributor, Koch Industries, has a long history of support for political action groups and think tanks hostile to public employee unions.”

Through its political action committee, Koch Industries, the nation’s second largest privately-held company, dropped a $43,000 political action committee contribution into Walker’s campaign treasury last Fall. Koch Industries executives gave Walker thousands more. Koch also contributed $1 million to the Republican Governors Association which in turn spent $65,000 in independent expenditures for Walker and an additional $3.4 million attacking Walker’s opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. And Americans for Prosperity, one of several political action groups founded and largely funded by Charles and David Koch, has taken the lead in organizing demonstrations on behalf of the governor’s plan.

Even before Walker took office last month, executives from Americans for Prosperity were at work fomenting a showdown with Wisconsin’s public employee unions, Tim Phillips, the group’s president, told the New York Times. Phillips also spoke at an Americans for Prosperity - organized rally last Saturday in Madison, Wisconsin, and said that Wisconsin public employees are “pampered.”

Phillips is reportedly paid $300,000 per year with funds largely supplied by Koch Industries.

“Gov. Walker began his term by pushing $117 million in future tax breaks for businesses through the state legislature,” said Bob Edgar, president of national Common Cause. “Now he’s loudly attacking collective bargaining for public workers and quietly pushing for authority to sell state-owned utilities to private investors, without notice or competitive bidding. His efforts look suspiciously like payback to his corporate benefactors. At the least, they are another reminder of the need for full disclosure and limits on corporate, union, and other special interest spending on our elections in Wisconsin and nationally.

“Koch Industries and other corporate citizens have legitimate interests in Wisconsin, but their demonstrated willingness to push large amounts of money into state politics has given them a dangerously outsized voice, one now demanding a return on its investments.”

__________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

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Tuesday, February 22, 2011

State Senate Republicans Poised to Pass Unconstitutional Voter ID Legislation


Press Release
February 22, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686




MOST RESTRICTIVE VOTER ID LEGISLATION IN THE NATION ABOUT TO BECOME ILLEGAL?

At 1:00 PM (or after adjournment of the State Senate today) the Wisconsin State Senate Committee on Transportation and Elections is scheduled to hold an executive session on Senate Bill 6 -- legislation that would require voters in Wisconsin to show a Wisconsin Driver's license or Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT) - issued photo ID at their polling place (or by 4:00 PM the next day at their local elections board office) in order for their vote to be counted.

The measure - which would make Wisconsin the most restrictive and difficult state in the nation in which to cast a vote - may also emerge from the executive session as unconstitutional as applied -- which could cause the State to have to incur millions of dollars in legal costs to defend an indefensible measure in the numerous lawsuits which would soon follow its enactment into law.

Press reports have said the Republican Senators on the Committee may vote to strip the fiscal note from the bill so they can move ahead with bringing it for a vote by the full Senate while Senate Democrats remain out of state. Such a move would mean the state would not pay for the additional costs to make DOT- issued photo identification cards available to voters who requested them and that would be tantamount to a poll tax -- forcing voters to have to pay the state in order to vote.

Poll taxes were widely used in the southern United States for years to deny African-Americans the ability to vote and were struck down by Courts decades ago (24th Amendment to the Constitution). Even without removing the fiscal note, Senate Bill 6 is thought to be unconstitutional by many experts because of the undue burden that it places on voters. In its current form, Senate Bill 6 would make it more difficult and burdensome to vote than it is in Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina and even Georgia -- which currently has one of the nation's most restrictive voting laws. Of those four southern states, only Georgia requires a photo ID.

If press reports prove to be correct, Wisconsin Senate Republicans would not only be pushing through the most restrictive voting bill in the nation, but one that is likely to be illegal as well.

The Members of the State Senate Committee on Transportation and Elections are:

Senator Mary Lazich (Chair)
Senator Joseph Leibham (Vice-Chair)
Senator Frank Lasee
Senator Jon Erpenbach
Senator Spencer Coggs

We will have more to say about this after the committee vote today.

_________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

Want Good Government?
Join Common Cause in Wisconsin!
Holding Power Accountable Since 1970

http://www.commoncausewisconsin.org/

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Monday, February 21, 2011

State Senator Jon Erpenbach Will Participate in Election/Campaign Finance Reform Forum at UW-Madison Tonight


Press Release
February 21, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686



State Senator Jon Erpenbach Will Participate in Election/Campaign Finance Reform Forum at UW-Madison Tonight


Wisconsin State Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) will participate this evening in the Common Cause in Wisconsin reform forum being held this evening from 6:30 to 8:00 PM on the 4th floor of the Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison.

Erpenbach, a long-time legislative leader in support of campaign finance and ethics reform, was originally scheduled to be a panelist this evening but the decision by Wisconsin Senate Democrats to leave the state last week in order to slow down Governor Scott Walker's fast tracked budget repair bill, left his participation in doubt.

But today we received word that Erpenbach would call in and participate by phone from "an undisclosed location in Illinois."

The forum will will examine political reform issues such as proposed photo voter ID legislation, the influence of special interest money in Wisconsin politics including the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizen United v. F.E.C. decision here, public financing in the current Wisconsin Supreme Court election and the need for redistricting reform.

Diverse opinions about these issues will be expressed by panelists and by the audience at tonight's event. Panelists include Senator Erpenbach, former State Representative Spencer Black of Madison, conservative blogger and journalist David Blaska, UW Political Science Professor David Canon, Common Cause in Wisconsin Director Jay Heck, Wisconsin State Journal editorial page editor Scott Milfred and UW History Professor John Sharpless, the Republican nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives in the Second Congressional District in 2000. The audience will also ask questions and participate. The moderator of the forum will be UW Political Science Professor Barry Burden.

For more information, go here.

__________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

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Thursday, February 17, 2011

CC/WI to Hold Public Forum at UW-Madison on Election Issues


Press Release
February 17, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686



PUBLIC FORUM AT UW-MADISON
TO TACKLE VITAL POLITICAL REFORM ISSUES

Monday Evening, February 21st at the UW Memorial Union


6:30 - 8:00 PM

4th Floor - "Class of 1924" Room
University of Wisconsin - Memorial Union
800 Langdon Street, Madison, WI

The Wisconsin Legislature is right now on a fast track toward passing a bill that would completely transform Wisconsin from one of the easiest states in the country in which to cast a ballot to one of the most difficult. Senate Bill 6 stipulates that the only forms of identification that can be used to vote are a drivers license (with a photo) or a photo ID issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles (which is free – but only if you request that it be free!).

If passed and enacted into law in its current form, Senate Bill 6 would make Wisconsin the most restrictive state in the nation in which to vote -- more restrictive than Alabama, Mississippi and South Carolina. And, it would cost millions of dollars of scarce taxpayer money to implement. Is it worth it? Is it necessary?

Also this year, partisan legislative and Congressional leaders will draw new voting districts -- a process that happens just once every 10 years. Here in Wisconsin, this process is done behind closed doors, without public participation or input. Legislators spend millions of taxpayer dollars to pay expensive lawyers to help them “choose” their voters by creating partisan, uncompetitive districts. Is reforming Wisconsin’s current redistricting process necessary if we ever hope to have more competitive elections?

These and other campaign and election reform issues are more vital than ever as we deal with the continuing fallout of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United vs Federal Election Commission— a decision that, among other things, allows corporations, labor unions and other interest groups to use unlimited money from their general treasury coffers to run outside communications, providing these entities with far greater influence on the outcome of elections at both the federal and state levels. And Wisconsin has yet to enact into law legislation to require many of these outside groups to disclose who they are. Is this "free speech" or is it a perversion of democracy?

How will the Citizens United decision affect Wisconsin? How can we find out who is really behind those vicious attack ads? If Photo Voter ID is enacted into law, will it prevent voter fraud? Or will it disenfranchise students, urban dwellers, minority groups, the elderly and disabled -- and ultimately depress voter turnout in Wisconsin? And should redistricting be taken out of the hands of partisan legislators?

These important political reform issues will be the focus of discussion in Madison this coming Monday during a "Reform Forum" organized by CC/WI entitled:

"The Future of Wisconsin Elections:
the Pros and Cons of Reform"

Panelists will include:

State Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton)
Conservative Blogger and Journalist David Blaska
Political Science Professor David Canon of the UW-Madison
History Professor John Sharpless of the UW-Madison
Editorial Page Editor Scott Milfred of the Wisconsin State Journal
Executive Director Jay Heck of Common Cause in Wisconsin

 UW Political Science Professor Barry Burden will serve as Moderator.

Please join us at this free public forum for what we anticipate will be a lively debate.

Full details can be found here.

__________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

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Monday, February 14, 2011

Anti-Reform Outside Groups and Lawyers Run Interference in State Supreme Court Election



Common Cause in Wisconsin Reform Update - February 14, 2011
  1. Outside Interest Groups and Out-of-State Lawyers Attempt to Torpedo Supreme Court Election
  2. Former Legislator & Educator Cal Potter to Join CC/WI State Governing Board
  3. UW-Madison Forum on February 21st to Debate Photo Voter ID, Campaign Finance Reform, Redistricting and More



1. Big world, national and state events last week understandably overshadowed the news about an attempt by anti-reform, outside special interest groups and their out-of-state lawyers to undermine Wisconsin's Impartial Justice Law and to try to interfere in the State Supreme Court election.

Ecstasy over the Green Bay Packer's Super Bowl victory, the outbreak of freedom in Egypt, and Governor Scott Walker's proposal to end collective bargaining rights of state employees all overwhelmed our other news. But last Tuesday, on February 8th, Wisconsin Right to Life, Milwaukee millionaire George Mitchell and Indiana-based national anti-reform lawyer and supreme guardian of the corrupt status quo in American politics -- James Bopp filed a temporary restraining order to stop Wisconsin's landmark Impartial Justice Law from being in effect during the current election for the Wisconsin Supreme Court seat currently held by the incumbent, Justice David Prosser.

Bopp and Company sued to have the Impartial Justice Law overturned within weeks of its enactment into law in December of 2009 and a second lawsuit was filed shortly after that. But the verdict on those lawsuits was not expected to come until June of this year when the United States Supreme Court hands down its decision in an Arizona public financing case with some of the same issues as the Wisconsin lawsuit.

But Wisconsin Right to Life, Mitchell and Bopp didn't want to wait. They arrogantly declared that because they expect the U.S. Supreme Court to rule in their favor in June in the Arizona case, that the matching funds provision of the Wisconsin Impartial Justice Law as well as the lowered contribution limits in our law ($1,000 down from $10,000 to candidates who decide not to abide by spending limits and utilize public financing) should not apply to the current State Supreme Court Election.

A federal district court will rule on this invasive action in early March. Meanwhile, three of the four candidates in the February 15th Primary, including Justice Prosser, have wisely decided to abide by spending limits and use public financing instead of taking contributions from private sources. The 2011 election will be far less costly than state Supreme Court elections in 2007, 2008 and 2009. And less negative. And citizens will have far more confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the court as a result. Let's hope the courts agree and prevent the anti-reformers from ruining this election.



2.
Cal Potter served in the Wisconsin Assembly from 1975 to 1991 and in the State Senate from 1991 to 1998 representing Sheboygan and Manitowoc with integrity and distinction. He was also a strong supporter of many of the government reforms that were enacted into law in the 1970's and which made Wisconsin a national model that other states looked up to as an example of honest, transparent and ethical state government. Those days are gone but we are lucky to have Cal join the Common Cause in Wisconsin State Governing Board this month. You can read why Cal is joining our board and about his impressive background here.



3. Photo Voter ID, disclosure of outside special interest phony issue ads, public financing of Wisconsin Supreme Court and other state elections, the infamous U.S. Supreme Court Citizens United vs. F.E.C. decision and the need (or not) for redistricting reform in Wisconsin are all issues that will be discussed and debated at an upcoming reform forum at the UW-Madison next Monday, February 21st in the Memorial Union. A panel of experts with a wide divergence of views will hash out the subject of political reform in Wisconsin with you - the audience. It's free and so are the refreshments. For all the details go here.



Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

Want Good Government?
Join Common Cause in Wisconsin!
www.CommonCauseWisconsin.org

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Sunday, February 13, 2011

CC/WI Reform Event at UW-Madison on February 21st!



 Is this any way to run an election?
               Voter Photo ID
                          Repeal of Same-Day Registration
                 Disclosure of Money in Politics 
                                         Redistricting
                              the Citizens United Decision



"The Future of Wisconsin Elections:
The Pros and Cons of Reform"

Monday, February 21st, 2011
6:30 – 8:00 PM
UW-Madison Memorial Union - 4th Floor - “Class of 1924”  Room
800 Langdon Street, Madison, Wisconsin 

 ** Event is Free... and so are the cookies! **

Panelists: State Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) - by phone,
Former State Representative Spencer Black (D-Madison - 1985 to 2011),
UW Political Science Professor David Canon,
Editorial Page Editor Scott Milfred of the Wisconsin State Journal,
UW History Professor John Sharpless, Conservative Blogger & Journalist David Blaska,
and CC/WI Executive Director Jay Heck.
 
Moderator: UW Political Science Professor Barry Burden
  
Please come join in the discussion and learn more about:
  • The impact of the U.S. Supreme Court decision on Citizens United vs F.E.C on Wisconsin - good or bad?
  • Photo Voter ID and Same-Day Registration -- the case for and against each
  • Redistricting reform in Wisconsin – if necessary, how do we do it?
  • The disclosure of interest-group “phony issue ads” and other “outside” spending – is this necessary or would it stifle “free speech”?
  • Public Financing – welfare for politicians? Or is it needed to make politicians beholden to citizens, not special interest groups? 
Presented by Common Cause in Wisconsin   
(Underwritten by The Joyce Foundation) 


    Co-Sponsored by:



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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Money in Politics: Yet Another Reason to Love the Green Bay Packers


Press Release
February 1, 2011


CONTACT:
Jay Heck – 608/256-2686




PACKERS STEER CLEAR OF CAMPAIGN MONEY TO FEDERAL CANDIDATES
STEELERS ARE "HEAVY POLITICAL HITTERS"


But Should Packer Execs Be Making Super Bowl Tickets
Available to Elected Officials Over Other Fans?

As if you needed one, here is yet another reason to love and cheer on our beloved Green Bay Packers over the Pittsburgh Steelers (Stealers?) this Sunday.

A recent release from our friends at the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) shows that Packer executives, coaches and other team officials did not try to influence the election of any federal candidates for Congress or contribute to special interest groups in 2010. In fact, they didn't contribute one cent to political candidates for Congress in Wisconsin or anywhere else. Good for them!

By contrast, the Pittsburgh Steelers brass played big-time political cash distribution in the 2010 elections, contributing over $32,000 to candidates for the U.S. House and U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. The Steelers are characterized by the CRP as one of the National Football League's "heaviest political hitters against one of the least" (the Packers).

Team execs and coaches are, of course, legally able to contribute to candidates like any other citizens. But we like it when they channel all of their energy (and cash) into molding a championship team.

There is one area, however, that the Packer "big cheeses" could improve upon. Sunday's Green Bay Press-Gazette reported that the Packer organization is distributing precious Super Bowl tickets to elected officials over other citizens. Again, it is their right to do so, but is it the right thing to do? Common Cause in Wisconsin weighed in with our take in the article. What do you think?


But either way.............GO PACK GO!





_________________________________________

Jay Heck, Executive Director
Common Cause in Wisconsin
152 W. Johnson St., Suite 212
Madison, WI 53703
608/256-2686

Want Good Government?
Join Common Cause in Wisconsin!
http://www.commoncausewisconsin.org/

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