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MADISON… The State Assembly voted Tuesday to pass a constitutional amendment to restrict the governor’s veto power. According to Representative Terry Musser (R-Melrose) the resolution passed 94-1 and will go to a statewide referendum on April 1st, 2008.
Musser said of the amendment, "This is an important and controversial issue. The people of Wisconsin should decide how much veto power they want the Governor to have."
Currently, state law allows the Governor to veto single words from a bill to create new sentences, which can completely change the meaning of the legislation. Any Wisconsin governor, who possesses the most powerful veto pen in the country, could use it to completely change the intentions of any bill that crosses his desk.
The amendment will prevent the Governor from taking multiple sentences and piecing them together into one with what is often referred to as the "Frankenstein veto". It will not completely take away veto power from the governor. He will still be able to strike words from single sentences, erase single sentences and reduce a dollar amount appropriated by the legislature.
When you go to vote on April 1st, the ballot will read:
"(Partial veto) Shall section 10 (1) (c) of article V of the constitution be amended to prohibit the governor, in exercising his or her partial veto authority, from creating a new sentence by combining part of two or more sentences of the enrolled bill?"
A yes vote would limit the veto power of the Governor, and a no vote would leave the veto power as it is.
A similar amendment was approved in 1990, when Wisconsin voters took away the Governor’s ability to veto individual letters to form new words. While this amendment would further restrict the Governor’s ability to create new laws and ideas from completely unrelated words, he would still possess the most powerful veto in the nation.
Representative Musser welcomes your views on this or any state issue and may be contacted at State Capitol - Room 11 West, Madison WI 53702, 1-888-534-0092 or
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