State Senate approves carjacking bill

Legislation on voucher schools, opiates passes

MADISON - The state Senate Wednesday approved bills to tackle carjackings and drug abuse, overhaul regulations on voucher schools and make Veterans Day a state holiday.

Senators voted 25-7 to raise penalties on carjackings following the recent death of a widely respected city home inspector who was shot and killed during an attempted car theft by young men with criminal records. Six Democrats joined all Republicans in voting to send the bill to the Assembly.

“This has gotten to be a badge of honor,” Sen. Van Wanggaard (R-Racine), a former police officer, said of youth engaged in the crime.

Some Democrats, meanwhile, said the proposals would raise costs within the state’s more than $1 billion-a-year prison system without any proof that they will work. They pointed to the high rate at which teenagers reoffend after being imprisoned in Lincoln Hills School for Boys, the state’s youth prison under federal investigation.

“Trying to lock up more kids isn’t working in the state of Wisconsin,” Sen. Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) said.

Senate Bill 58 would create a specific felony of carjacking with fines of up to $50,000 and prison sentences of up to 15 years. The proposal also would increase penalties for repeatedly taking a car to up to $25,000 in fines or up to 12 years and 6 months in prison.

There were 464 carjackings in Milwaukee in 2016, down 9% from the 2015 level of 512, but still up sharply from 2014, when there were 354. One prominent case was the March shooting of Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services employee Greg “Ziggy” Zyszkiewicz, who was killed shortly before he would have retired.

Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) said she had deep sympathy for poor teenagers drawn into crime. But she said there had to be consequences for violent crime.

“Everybody deserves safety in their workplace, no matter where that is ... I’m not asking you to vote for this bill or against this bill. But I’m voting for this bill,” Johnson said.

Sen. Tim Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) joined Johnson in supporting the bill and Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) voted against it with Larson.

Opiates. Those who overdose on drugs would receive protections from prosecution when authorities help them under Special Session Assembly Bill 3, provided that they seek drug treatment. The bill, which passed 32-1, is aimed at ensuring people call for help when someone overdoses.

Special Session Assembly Bill 5, which passed on a voice vote, would extend the state’s voluntary and involuntary commitment programs for alcoholics to those who habitually use drugs.

Both bills passed the Assembly on bipartisan votes in May, so approval in the Senate sends them to Walker.

Voucher schools. Senators approved, 28-5, a fast-tracked bill to eliminate some accountability requirements for private schools that receive taxpayer-funded vouchers, including those that dictate standards for meeting average attendance levels and promoting students from one grade to the next.

But Senate Bill 293 would also require that the schools conduct background checks on employees similar to those required of public school teachers and would impose penalties on schools that knowingly falsify information. The bill would also allow public schools that lose special-needs students to private voucher schools to recoup those funds from state and local taxpayers.

GOP lawmakers, school choice advocates and the state Department of Public Instruction say the bill eliminates unneeded provisions in state law. The bill now goes to the Assembly.

The Senate also sent several more bills to the Assembly on voice votes:

Veterans Day. Senate Bill 113 would end Wisconsin’s status as the only state in the nation to not recognize Nov. 11 as a state holiday. The bill would increase overtime costs for law enforcement, prison and health care workers by $547,000 a year for state taxpayers.

Democrats unsuccessfully sought to give private-sector veterans the day off, saying that giving the day to just state workers misses the point.

Barber bills. The Senate Wednesday also approved two bills to relax regulations on barbers, hairdressers and manicurists.

Senate Bill 108 would eliminate continuing education requirements for licenses in those professions and make it easier for workers to transfer licenses from other states. Senate Bill 109 would relax restrictions on instructors in those fields and on licensed workers practicing their profession outside their normal workplace.