The Common Council met 08/02/2023. There were two WI Act 12 related items on the agenda. Act 12 was the recently passed legislation that, among other things, increased the amount of shared tax revenue dollars that local municipalities receive from the state. The low amount of shared revenue that municipalities were receiving prior to the passage of this legislation was something Mayor Woodford has pointed to as a major contributing factor in cities not having enough money and needing to rely on borrowing/debt in order to fund operations.
Mayor Woodford set aside a few minutes early in the meeting to thank the local chapter of the League of Women Voters and Appleton Concerned Taxpayers for their advocacy and educational efforts related to improving shared revenue.
As an action item, the Common Council also took up Resolution 7-R-23 which would have expressed thanks for the passage of Act 12. The resolution as originally submitted by Alderpersons Vered Meltzer (District 2) and Chris Croatt (District 14) thanked a number of politicians on both sides of the aisle by name for the passage of Act 12.
A substitute version submitted by Alderperson Denise Fenton (District 6) removed reference to any individuals except for Governor Tony Evers and also expressed concern that Act 12 “contains further limits on local control related to public safety, public health and allowing our citizens to express their views via advisory referenda”.
The substituted version was recommended for approval by the Finance Committee by a vote of 3-2; however, neither version of the resolution ended up being passed which voted 6-9 against the resolution.
I’ve prepared a transcript of Mayor Woodford’s recognitions as well as the discussion and vote on Resolution 7-R-23.
Alderperson Sheri Hartzheim (District 13) kicked off discussion of the resolution by reiterating her well-established opposition to “actionless” resolutions that simply make a statement or send a letter. Additional she felt that the amended version of the resolution was “a bipolar passive-aggressive piece. Not only does it proclaim that the Common Council of the City of Appleton praises and expresses gratitude for the Act, but in the next whereas clause it slaps the hands of state legislators for not performing the redistribution or the writing of the legislation in the liking of this particular resolution’s authors or the amending author. This is a statement of political leanings of some of the members of the Council, not a statement of how many of the citizens of Appleton feel or as I feel about Act 12 or the practice of revenue sharing itself.”
Other alderpersons had issues with items in Act 12 itself which left them voting against this resolution. Alderperson Patrick Hayden (District 7) listed several items within the legislation that he disagreed with and believed incorrectly limited the power of local governments. “One example is banning Local Advisory Referendum questions on everything except projects funded with property tax. So, if we have issues with fair maps, marijuana legislation, or abortion rights, our city can no longer pass referendums on those. The money that comes from this can only be spent on emergency medical services, police, fire protection, and public works. It also prohibits our local public health officer from issuing mandate to close any business in response to an outbreak or epidemic. These are just three examples of ways that we’re being micromanaged through this bill, along with getting the revenue sharing. So, I have a lot of concerns about what’s baked in the bill that we’re saying thank you for that limits our ability to act as a Common Council.”
Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9) shared Alderperson Hayden’s concerns and, additionally, did not think the resolution was thanking the people it should be thanking. “I don’t see the League, I don’t see the mayor’s name, I don’t see all the others who were part of the process as we’ve heard, trying to move this ball forward and thank those individuals. Who we’re thanking are the people that are forced to make this vote and finally recognize that it’s, you know, a decade or more since we should have done that. So, the thank you, for us a little hollow to me, because it’s not directed that people that we really need to be thanking.”
Alderperson Nate Wolff (District 12) thought that unless the Council was united they shouldn’t pass it.
Alderpersons Kristin Alfheim (District 11) and Katie Van Zeeland (District 5) both supported the resolution and believed it was basic politeness to thank the people who changed how shared revenue was handled. Alderperson Alfheim said, “The reality is what we are arguing about is whether we should send a thank you note or not. Old school says if something good happens, you send a thank you note.”
Alderperson Van Zeeland pointed out, “An important part of politics and something I think our citizens would like to see more of is building relationships and compromise. And I think saying ‘thank you’ is part of that. This body has had no problem in the past asking the legislature to take action, and so it’s only right to say ‘Thank you.’”
Alderperson Fenton, who had authored the version of the resolution that ended up before the Common Council, explained that when the original version was read before the Common Council, her first thought had been, “I can’t support this.” She shared similar concerns about it as Alderperson Hayden. “[T]he restrictions on local control are fairly abhorrent. And the City of Appleton and cities our size didn’t fare badly at all. Milwaukee was essentially punished just for being Milwaukee in in Act 12.” She did not want something to pass that was just a pat on the back to specific named legislators when other legislators who had put time and effort into holding townhalls and not been mentioned. She also said that her state representative [presumably Lee Snodgrass] had specifically told her that she preferred to not have her name on this resolution.
All of those issues prompted her to come up with the replacement language for the resolution. “I’m a little grateful. I’m not very grateful. I don’t think you’ve done perfectly. I think you’ve done okay, and you’ve made a—they’ve made a step towards righting the wrongs of the past more than a decade. But I did want it said that it’s not all good.”
Alderperson Meltzer who sponsored the original version of the resolution said, “I did not anticipate or intend for it to be controversial in any way, and I really, really appreciate my colleague Alderperson Fenton for the amendment that really, I think, made it a much more meaningful statement. And I think that while we struggle over the years to get work done, I think we also have to be cognizant, not just of the relationships that we’re building, but the relationships that other groups and networks throughout our state are building around the work that we’re doing. So, I think that, again going back to the presentations that the mayor did today to the League of Women Voters and the Concerned Taxpayers, I think that there is definitely something important here in how people were able to unite across very diverse ideologies to lobby around a singular issue together. And I think that that was good work, and we can continue doing more good work going forward.”
The Council went on to vote on the resolution with 6 alderpersons voting in favor of it and 9 voting against it.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1099777&GUID=6EB2E9A5-E608-4DEC-B4D9-FD48291CA63D
One thought on “Common Council Votes Down Resolution Expressing Thanks For Passage Of Act 12; Mayor Woodford Recognizes Efforts Of League Of Women Voters And Appleton Concerned Taxpayers In Getting Act 12 Approved”