Dear Republican Colleagues:
Unfortunately, the leadership of both houses have decided that Senate Bill 28 (AB 25) – The Right of First Refusal Bill (ROFR), must be rammed through the legislative process to placate the powerful special interests in the Wisconsin utility industry. I will not use this email to debate the policies contained in SB 28/AB 25, since any reasonable person that has reviewed the language and the arguments from both sides has easily determined that the proposal is horrible public policy. The ROFR bill is anti-competitive, anti-consumer and dripping in the gravy of crony capitalism.
Sadly, the debate in the Capitol surrounding ROFR is not about fair and effective energy policy for the ratepayers of this state. ROFR is nothing more than the most blatant example of everything wrong with politics in Wisconsin.
A very powerful and well-financed special interest is heaping massive amounts of influence on legislators of both parties to buy what they want in the form of SB 28/AB 25. Despite the army of utility lobbyists storming the Capitol every day (and at every fundraiser), the ROFR bill does not, at this time, have 50 Republican votes in the Assembly or 17 Republican votes in the Senate.
Republican leadership in both houses will either inappropriately prevent a roll call vote on the floor and/or make deals with the Democrats to get enough votes to pass SB 28/AB 25 over the opposition of rank-in-file Republican members. I remind Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu that they are trying to cut deals with the party that believes in “INSEMINATED PERSONS”!
To make matters even worse, we now have an amendment in both houses (SA 1 to SB 28 and AA 1 to AB 25) that was developed by the utility lobbyists and introduced by legislators claiming it is a magic compromise that makes ROFR Great Again. Nothing could be further from the truth. The amendment developed by the utility lobbyists is dubious in legal terms and a sham to give Republicans cover to vote for ROFR. I hope my Republican colleagues in both houses will reject this brazen attempt to deceive the people of Wisconsin.
Today, I call on Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu to do the right thing by killing the ROFR bills and preventing a brawl amongst Republicans. President Trump in his first 40 plus days in office has shown that the people will stand with a leader that fights for them and rejects the negative influence of special interests.
To my Republican colleagues, in the event our leadership can’t find the right path, I call on you to publicly state your positions on ROFR and to demand roll call votes in both houses, if ROFR moves forward to the floor.
Steve Nass
Senator
11th State Senate District
