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State Trying to Stop Collective Bargaining Decision

To avoid confusion on whether or not Act 10 is in effect, J.B. Van Hollen is asking the court for a stay while the case is being appealed.

As expected, Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen Tuesday filed a motion to stay the latest decision about Act 10, the collective bargaining law.

Last Friday, Dane County Circuit Court Judge Juan Colas ruled that parts of Act 10 are unconstitutional because the law violates the guarantee of freedom of speech and citizens' freedom of association. Colas also determined that Act 10 does not offer equal protection under the law because it creates a separate class of state workers.

In his motion to the Dane County Circuit Court, Van Hollen outlines his belief that the decision will be overturned on appeal. Until the appellate court rules, Van Hollen believes a stay is appropriate to avoid any confusion for municipalities and school districts that have negotiated contracts based on the rules of the collective bargaining law.

“Act 10 addressed real and significant financial problems faced by local governments. It makes no sense to force a return to a broken system before the appellate process is completed," he said in a written statement to media.

The decision comes after the Madison teachers union and a Milwaukee city employee union filed suit. Colas' decision comes after US District Judge William Conley upheld parts of Act 10, but also declared portions of the law unconstitutional. In Conley's ruling, he rejected the equal protection argument, but he also ordered that automatic dues withdrawals be reinstated by May 31 because public safety employee unions are not held to the same standards.

After Colas' decision was announced, Gov. Scott Walker issued a statement saying he is confident this latest set-back will be overruled on appeal.

"The people of Wisconsin clearly spoke on June 5," Walker wrote. "Now, they are ready to move on. Sadly a liberal activist judge in Dane County wants to go backwards and take away the lawmaking responsibilities of the legislature and the governor. We are confident that the state will ultimately prevail in the appeals process."

AWD September 19, 2012 at 04:32 am
Some people get disturbed with me for writing about race preferences all the time, but the quest for equal opportunity has gone absurdly wrong in Wisconsin and the Nation. Skin color quotas disguised as affirmative action are unacceptable, unfair and un-American. In my own insignificant way, I’ll continue to call it out.
Steve ® September 19, 2012 at 04:47 am
omg brenda is actually going to defend public unions as not being puppets to the democratic socialist party.
Steve ® September 19, 2012 at 04:49 am
89 and 94, your genes are patriots!
John Feia September 19, 2012 at 04:50 am
That is really unfortunate. It is a very derisive position to pursue and benefits no one in a democratic society. You have every right to say how feel, but like I said, in my opinion it is really unfortunate.
Terry September 19, 2012 at 08:48 am
There is an old quote that if you give 1000 monkeys a typewriter and let them type for 1000 hours, one of them will produce a play by Shakespeare. AWD finally said something I agree with.
Affirmative action is unacceptable. Period. And I agree that public unions usually work contrary to the concept of public service, and thus should be limited. But like most things he posts, his use of it is twisted and unhealthy. To begin with, hes wrong. Almost all government agencies are forbidden by policy, and in some cases statute, to consider racial makeup as part of their hiring decision. There are some pseudo governmental agencies that still can use affirmative action, such as universities, but in federal, state, and local government hiring it is forbidden. If you travel the state, you will find, that with some exceptions, the racial make up of the public employees matches the racial make up of the community they draw from. Second, not for a moment do I believe his comments about it come from a noble disagreement with the concept of affirmative action. I've seen enough of his postings to know that it is just old fashioned racial hatred.
Keith Schmitz September 19, 2012 at 11:15 am
Bingo! Now we know why you are against public employee unions. Thanks for confirming my suspicions.
Keith Schmitz September 19, 2012 at 11:16 am
Workers need to be organized because business is organized -- Teddy Roosevelt
Keith Schmitz September 19, 2012 at 11:18 am
Guess what self-loathing fascists, I put up the offer to pay Hoffa a long time ago. I'm in the book.
To Hoffa, hiding behind his screen identity is far more important than the $50. It will be a check, written out to whomever, whose identity will be posted.
robert heule September 19, 2012 at 11:31 am
June 5th was not a mandate for sticking it to public employee unions. I was the way the recall movement conducted itself, and most of us know so. Furthermore,people do not like recalls at that level. As much as I like Tom Barrett he was not the candidate that could have won the recall. Neither was Falk. Walker will not be re-elected in '14. people do not like him, but again they do not like the process.
Tansandy September 19, 2012 at 11:57 am
Once again the unions and the Democrats can not win at the ballot box, so they will keep trying to legislate from the bench!!! How many more elections, recalls, and partisan judges will we have to go through? I'm tired of my vote being always in jeopardy! Talk about being disenfranchised.
Bob McBride September 19, 2012 at 12:13 pm
At a cost of $7.2MM to taxpayers for the Walker recall alone, that's a pretty expensive lesson to learn for those, like yourself, who weren't able to see that while you were busying yourself with the recall process. Particularly since polls leading up to the actual recall pretty much mirrored the results from start.
You're right. People don't like recalls. Most people understand that elections are not lifetime appointments and that if the person elected doesn't do a satisfactory job, they can be replaced at the next regularly scheduled election. Another thing people don't like and that your side is apparently blind to as well at this point, is having their local budgets hanging out in limbo while you guys waste time and more taxpayer money challenging legislation in court and getting sympathetic judges to rule in your favor, knowing full well it's going to be overturned at the State Supreme Court level. But what the hell. It's taxpayer money and if it mucks up the works, who cares, right? It's more important that you use all means at your disposal to continue to attempt to overturn the results of the last election in any way you can. You've learned nothing.
H.E. Pennypacker September 19, 2012 at 12:27 pm
Failed wannabe business man Keith Schmitz needs to repay his loan from the Village of Shorewood, or forever be known as a deadbeat no talent ass clown-H. E. Pennypacker
Bob McBride September 19, 2012 at 12:32 pm
So in other words, Keith's so cheap or such a sore loser that he's adding conditions to the wager, after the fact.
I'm pretty sure no such conditions were laid out up front. And I believe Hoffa offered him a way of contacting him so he could provide him with a mailing address for the cash. You deserve every bit of the crap and poop people dish at you constantly, Keith.
Michael McClusky September 19, 2012 at 01:25 pm
@AWD Are you aware that the US Supreme Court has recently agreed to hear the Bakke case again? It, of course, was a landmark decision concerning college admissions based on race. One of the justices has recused herself from the case, which would leave a 5 to 3 conservative majority to hear the arguments.
robert heule September 19, 2012 at 01:40 pm
No institution in this more blatantly partisan(which is not what the constitution intended) than the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Next spring the citizens will have an opportunity to fix that by defeating Justice Patience Roggensack.
robert heule September 19, 2012 at 01:44 pm
Excuse me, I forgot to use the word "state" after "this" in the first line of my comment.
Bob McBride September 19, 2012 at 01:45 pm
It's only partisan if it tends to rule in a direction other than the one you'd prefer. If it was stocked with lefties who always ruled for the Democrats when issues such as this one hit its docket, you'd call it impartial, fair and balanced.
Cut the crap.
robert heule September 19, 2012 at 02:01 pm
J.B. Van Hollen should concentrate more on insisting on stricter drunk driving laws. He lobbies the legislature not to go too far in its attempts to get tougher. In 2006, a popular southwest side Milwaukee bar was handing out coasters with the Tavern League of Wisconsin printed on one side and elect J. B Van Hollen the other. You can see where his priorities are.
Greg September 19, 2012 at 03:22 pm
I don't think the discussion is about business/employee relations. Our government could never be described as organized.
James R Hoffa September 19, 2012 at 03:33 pm
The original terms of the bet were that Hoffa was to meet with Schmitzy in persona at a public location of his choosing no later than two (2) weeks after the June 5 election had concluded.
Hoffa asked Schmitzy on numerous occasions to name a location, date, and time. Instead, Schmitzy finally replied with this: "Keith Schmitz 6:47 am on Thursday, June 7, 2012 What's you address. I'll mail you the check." And Hoffa responded with this: "James R Hoffa 4:59 pm on Thursday, June 7, 2012 Schmitzy - I thought you wanted to meet up in persona? I was looking forward to it. If not, you can send my winnings to: Subway c/o: James R Hoffa 1088 Milwaukee Ave Burlington, WI 53105 Leave the 'pay to' blank, as my real name obviously isn't James R Hoffa :-) I'll be sure to report back on Patch when I've received your correspondence! It was fun none-the-less and I'm sorry that things didn't work out as you would have liked to have seen them. No hard feelings." http://mountpleasant.patch.com/articles/how-did-gov-scott-walker-survive-the-recall Thus far Hoffa has not received payment from Schmitzy. Isn't the internet marvelous?!?!
Scot Bartels September 19, 2012 at 03:37 pm
I could be wrong but the way I understand it is that they need to FIRST go to the same judge to ask for a stay and then after that they can go to teh appellate court.
John Feia September 19, 2012 at 04:51 pm
@ H.E.
What does character assassination have to do with the topic? Comments like yours make you look like the "ass clown"
robert heule September 19, 2012 at 05:01 pm
NObama, At least I was in a condition to read and understand what was on the coasters. If you think my post is a lie, I wonder if you were there to give your version of what they stated.
Bren September 19, 2012 at 05:31 pm
Terry, I'm afraid I'm more cynical than you. I think more politicians are "for sale" than not and it starts early. However, the savvy ones know how to maintain a measure of balance. I suggest these Tea/GOP candidates, some of whom don't seem to understand what the job they ran for even is, lack what Paul Ryan's philosophical idol, atheist passport bride adulteress B-Novelist Ayn Rand calls "rational self-interest." Thus a Scott Walker slashes his own state in two in his slavish zeal to serve his benefactors, why a representative in Florida (R-55) submits a piece of ALEC legislation without even copy/pasting it onto her own letterhead, etc., etc., etc. This is a problem.
I don't know which candidates your union is supporting, Terry, but I am certain that they are funding candidates that are best for the union/you. My father was a lifelong private sector union member and his dues were largely allocated to non-political issues (pension, representation, etc.). His investment is rewarding him now as a retiree. Steve, you and I disagree in our interpretations of socialism. I've lived in a country with a benign form of socialist government and I can tell you it is different. Some folks here employ the terms "socialism" and "communism" interchangeably, indicating extensive desk-top naptime during civics class. Think about government as a neighborhood or business association, formed to improve the operating climate. Not the enemy, not a teat, etc.
Greg September 19, 2012 at 06:14 pm
Please list how Governor Walker has served his benefactors, with his slavish zeal. Do you honestly believe that the special interest unions, that supported Falk and Barrett, in the recall elections, were not expecting something in return? Neither of them showed any measure of balance.
Greg September 19, 2012 at 06:16 pm
Unless it is Democrat control.
Terry September 20, 2012 at 09:13 am
I guess it is a question of cynicism Bren. Are the politicians for sale, or is it just that the interests of the financial supporters lie in similar paths. Did the unions buy Baldwins support, or are they supporting here because their interests match? Although I disagree fundamentally with her in almost every issue, I will at least give her the courtesy of assuming that she is a true believer not a pawn. Same with Walker and his supporters. (Thompson I do believe is for sale. Never wanted him to be the nominee)
As far as the response; "I don't know which candidates your union is supporting, Terry, but I am certain that they are funding candidates that are best for the union/you", I believe that it shows a fundamental difference in how we view the world. The only one to decide, in my opinion what candidate is best for me... is me. It is a very socialist approach to assume that the union knows better than I do, and will support who they want, even over my objections. Don't worry young man, pappa union knows what is best for you. If the state was doing this, it would be called fascism. When the union does it, well its just good progressive liberalism.
Keith E. Hendrickson September 20, 2012 at 04:02 pm
Funny how the state Supreme Court already said Act 10 was constitutional when they overturned Sumi. We have an activist Judge trying to overturn a already constitutional bill because unions and their sheep like Bren doesn't understand that the taxpayers and supreme court made their case on June 5. You lost, get over it.
His ruling is full of crap it will definitely be overturned because the basis of their argument is child's play. By the way, thank Tom Barrett for making Walker a ROCK STAR!
jt September 22, 2012 at 04:35 am
hoffa, you do realize that to refer to one's self in the third person is the sign of a mental illness don't you? please seek help!
jt September 22, 2012 at 04:40 am
news flash for all you good folks. obama leads romney by 14 points in wisconsin right now. and walker was called to testify in front of the court in the case of one of his former aids. your cookie is starting to crumble. mostly because of the true colors of the radical tea party!

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Rees Roberts June 6, 2013 at 10:21 pm
Mike Devine June 11, 2013 at 08:52 am
Rees; When the Sacred village Board cloaked the building of a new Village hall for over $17 million,Read More it was brought to there attention to build TWO new fire stations. One south, one north. Instead they built the Taj Mahal and a distance fire station. Maybe the two remaining Trustees could orate their decision for the residents.
Neigbors at green ridge June 18, 2013 at 01:49 am
Mt Pleasant is in need of competent people ! Who would of built the new headquarter on 90th St ?Read More Wouldn't of it made sense to build by the Fire Department on HWY 31 ? Would of made sense you would of at least met the village taxpayer half way ! Oh another thing I noticed Chief Police do your patrol officers think its cool with there phone in there hand while driving its very obvious there not talking business ! If any one gets hit by a patrol car make sure they receive a ticket for inattentive driving !
Chris Larsen June 7, 2013 at 09:40 am
Typical John. Long on vitriol and talking points but no ideas of his own. And what have you done forRead More your district this term John? Have you met with the Boards in the Villages and Towns you represent? Listening sessions in Mt Pleasant or Sturtevant? Que the crickets.......
C. Sanders June 13, 2013 at 12:07 am
John Lehman ... Long on wind and short on accomplishment. another politician on auto-pilot until theRead More next election.
Walker celebrates after defeating the liberal unionista blue fisters
Steven W. Smith June 8, 2013 at 07:40 am
Hmm "make a stronger Wisconsin than ever". Yup Scottie, 44th in the country is the beat!Read More Soon 50th? Inverted math? "The recall brought us closer together" You won spending 6-1 using a majority of out of state $, had 5 times longer to campaign and won because one side failed to confront the second battle of recalls as a whole vs Scotties recall. "For decades we will be able to look up public officials and hopefuls, teachers, neighbors, interviewees" so much for freedom of speech & the recall Scott Walker used to become Milwaukee's head of busted political officials. Scott you were hired to represent all citizens of Wisconsin.
skinnyDUDE May 29, 2013 at 11:13 pm
Site definitely got a nice upgrade. Congrats as its like a new window to this world.
Heather Asiyanbi (Editor) May 30, 2013 at 10:33 am
skinnyDUDE - we like it, too ... just wait until the app comes available. It's so cool!
YankeeVictor June 5, 2013 at 10:18 pm
"Team of geniuses"? Your joking of course. My email box is blown off the planet by youRead More guys. What gives? For a couple of months I really thought this was the place to come to find out what was going on. You were giving the JT a real run for the money. Not any more. Maybe it's just me, and if so, I apologize, but there are better places to waste time then the Patch.