Madison, WI – Today, the Senate Special Committee on Oversight of the Department of Justice (SCODOJ) convened for its first meeting. The committee made its initial request for documents from The Department of Justice (DOJ) to aid the investigation into whether or not outside influences are motivating actions and priorities at DOJ.
Through various reporting, it has come to light that the New York University State Impact Center and Bloomberg Philanthropies have placed externally funded legal fellows in state attorney general offices nationwide, including in Wisconsin. These positions are not authorized or funded by the Legislature, and are therefore unaccountable to the taxpayers of Wisconsin.
Over the coming months, SCODOJ will be following Wisconsin law as it investigates the relationship between these outside groups and Attorney General Josh Kaul’s DOJ. All members of SCODOJ will have access to all documents provided by DOJ.
Senate President Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk), chair of SCODOJ, issued the following statement after the committee’s first actions:
As the elected representatives of the people of Wisconsin, it is the Legislature’s duty to conduct oversight of executive agencies and ensure that DOJ is working on behalf of Wisconsinites, not outside groups. I look forward to reviewing the documents that DOJ provides over the coming weeks and getting to the bottom of what is really happening. We must make sure that all actions undertaken by state government are in the interest of Wisconsinites.
