Following Supreme Court Ruling, Expansion Of Act 10 Becomes Possibility

Following Thursday’s state Supreme Court ruling upholding Act 10, it’s possible that the next Legislature will try to expand upon collective bargaining restrictions.

From the day Gov. Scott Walker introduced his collective bargaining bill, there were questions about why Walker carved out exemptions in the plan for police and firefighter unions. While some conservatives said they’d go farther, nothing ever materialized.

With Act 10 now upheld multiple times and the next Legislature potentially getting more conservative, an expansion of Act 10 to include police and firefighters is entirely possible. Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald has not ruled it out.

“(We’ll) see what the makeup of the Legislature is based on the November elections and see if there’s a willingness to go there,” said Fitzgerald. “(It’s) pretty hard to say what could create momentum or what concepts might actually make it through the Legislature.”

Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca said he had no doubt Republicans would expand Act 10 if they got the chance. Barca said that didn’t mean they should.

“Well let’s be clear: There’s two issues here,” Barca said. “One is whether or not something is constitutional, and the other issue is whether or not it’s advisable and beneficial for the citizens of our state.”

Another issue lawmakers may have to grapple with is how to respond to the court’s ruling on voter ID. Justices upheld the law, but they also said it was illegal for the DMV to require people to produce any documents that cost money when they apply for an ID to vote.

Tempering that decision somewhat is the fact that the voter ID law is still on hold, having been previously overturned by a federal court.