MADISON, WI (WSAU-WRN) — A State Representative from the Green Bay area is calling for the elections office to be moved from Madison to Wausau.
Assembly Bill 511 would require the state to move the Elections Commission out of the Capitol and into Central Wisconsin in three years. The proposal comes from Green Bay Republican David Steffen with support from Marshfield’s Donna Rozar, Appleton’s Ron Tusler, and Clint Moses of Menomonie.
Steffen says in today’s world threre just isn’t a need to have everything all in one place. “It made sense 173 years ago to have everything together. When a person like myself had to get on a pony and put on a powdered wig to get to someone elses’ office and sit by whale oil light to make a decision. That’s no longer the situation.”
Steffen says not only is Wausau centrally located but it’s also easily accessible along two major highways (WI 29 and US51/I 39). He adds rent would also be much cheaper than it is in Madison. “Their lease is expiring at the end of the year for office space that costs twice that of almost every other community in the state,” said Steffen.
Under the current version of the proposal the Elections Commisison would have to finalize the move by April 15th, 2024 but could hold meetings in other locations “as would best serve the citizens of the state.” Steffen adds if the expierement works, it could be a model for other departments to follow.
“They are perfectly suited, perfectly sized, and perfectly timed for us to dip our toe into the water of moving some of these things out of the Madison swamp,” he said.
The bill doesn’t say if the lawmakers have a specific location or office building in mind to house the Elections Commission.
The Bill has been referred to the Government oversite committee. Click here to see the bill.
