Kaul merges enforcement, protection units
MADISON - Attorney General Josh Kaul plans to beef up enforcement of the state’s environmental and consumer protection laws by merging two units into a single operation at the Department of Justice.
The Democratic attorney general said he can assign one more attorney on environmental cases by putting the environmental protection and consumer protection units under one umbrella. The new entity will be called the public protection unit.
“I view this unit as being a watchdog for Wisconsinites,” Kaul said in an interview.
Under the new setup, the Department of Justice will need one supervisor instead of two for environmental and consumer protection cases. That will allow one of those positions to be used for front-line legal work, Kaul said.
Lawyers in the new unit will be able to help each other so the department will have more flexibility when it handles complex cases, Kaul said. The unit will share paralegals and other support staff, freeing up additional resources.
“My view is that that will enhance our ability to do both — consumer protection work and environmental work,” Kaul said.
The move comes as Kaul seeks to distinguish himself in these areas from his predecessor, Republican Brad Schimel, whom Kaul beat in the November election.
He’s already tried to put attention on consumer protection matters. Last week, Kaul sued Purdue Pharma arguing it contributed to the nation’s opioid epidemic by deceptively marketing its OxyContin painkiller. Purdue has denied wrongdoing.
The suit came days after Kaul joined 42 other states to sue 20 makers of generic drugs alleging they conspired to manipulate prices and reduce competition. On environmental enforcement, Kaul said DOJ is still doing “catch-up work” after Schimel devoted less attention to such efforts.
Kaul noted referrals for environmental actions come from the state Department of Natural Resources. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers took control of that agency in January, after defeating Republican Gov. Scott Walker in November.
“I do know that the DNR is now again committed to effectively enforcing our environmental laws,” Kaul said.