Chapter 6:
STYLE AND FORM OF PROPOSALS
jr51
J
oint Rule 51.
Use of LRB legal services. A proposal may not be introduced or offered unless it has been put in proper form by the legislative reference bureau. Only the persons authorized by this rule may use the drafting services of the legislative reference bureau to have proposals prepared for introduction. Persons authorized to use the drafting services are:
jr51(1)
(1) Any member or member‐elect of the legislature and, on behalf of each committee thereof, the chairperson. The members and committees may authorize others to submit instructions for them, but for each draft prepared on such authorization the name of the member or committee authorizing the draft shall be made part of the record.
jr51(2)(2) Any agency, as defined in section
16.70 (1e) of the statutes, created under chapter 13, 14, 15, or 758 of the statutes.
jr51(3)
(3) The chief clerk of either house for drafting requests pertaining to the operation of the legislature.
jr51m
Joint Rule 51m.
Analyses on substitute amendments. The legislative reference bureau, if time permits, may prepare in plain language an analysis of a substitute amendment, to be reproduced with the substitute amendment when it is offered.
jr52
J
oint Rule 52.
Format; text display; structure of proposals. All proposals shall be reproduced on paper 8-1/2 by 11 inches. Each bill shall have a title, an enacting clause, and subject matter disposed of in one or more sections and shall have the arrangement and wording prescribed by the following:
jr52(1)
(1) The title of all bills shall state, in the fewest words practicable, the subject to which the bill relates and shall be drawn up in one of the following forms or a form similar to one of the following forms:
jr52(1)(a)
(a)
An Act to repeal....
;
to renumber....
;
to consolidate and renumber.... ;
to renumber and amend....
;
to consolidate, renumber and amend....
;
to amend....
;
to repeal and recreate....
;
and
to create.... of the statutes; and
to affect 19.. laws, chapter...., section.... [to 1981] and 19.. Wisconsin Act.... [starting 1983], section.... ;
relating to: .... .
jr52(1)(b)
(b)
An Act relating to: ( authorizing, providing, etc.) ..... .
jr52(1)(c)
(c) Any bill may include 2 or more types of actions and treat both general statutory law and nonstatutory law, but the various types of actions used shall be listed in the order shown in par.
(a), and, if both statutory and nonstatutory law are treated in the same manner, the statutory law must be cited first.
jr52(1)(d)
(d) The relating clause shall record any of the following:
1. Expressly granting rule‐making authority, or providing an exemption from rule‐making procedures, or providing an exemption from or extending the time limit for emergency rule procedures.
2. Requiring a referendum.
3. Expressly providing for a penalty.
4. Making, continuing, or renewing an appropriation.
jr52(1)(e)(e) Executive budget bills under section
16.47 (1) of the statutes, other lengthy bills that encompass multiple subjects and that are to be introduced at the request of the governor or the committee on organization of either house, bills proposing bulk revision of one or more entire chapters of the statutes, reconciliation bills introduced by the committee on organization of either house, and revisor's correction and revisor's revision bills are not subject to the requirements of pars.
(a) to
(d), and instead may use a descriptive title similar to the following example: “An Act to amend and revise chapter .... and to make diverse other changes in the statutes;
relating to:...."
jr52(2)
(2) The analysis by the legislative reference bureau shall follow the title.
jr52(3)(3) The enacting clause, required by
section 17 (1) of
article IV of the constitution, shall follow the analysis and shall read as follows: “The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:"
jr52(4)
(4) The subject matter of the bill shall follow the enacting clause and be displayed in one or more sections that, except for budget bills or other bills of unusual length, shall be numbered consecutively. Substitute amendments may follow the section numbering of the bill. Each section shall begin in one of the following forms:
jr52(4)(a)
(a)
Section.... (A designated part) of the statutes (or 19.. laws, chapter...., section.... [to 1981] and 19.. Wisconsin Act.... [starting 1983], section.... ) are (repealed) (renumbered....) (consolidated and renumbered....).
jr52(4)(b)
(b)
Section.... (A designated part) of the statutes (or 19.. laws, chapter...., section.... [to 1981] and 19.. Wisconsin Act.... [starting 1983], section.... ) are (renumbered.... and amended) (consolidated, renumbered.... and amended) (amended) (repealed and recreated) (created) to read:
jr52(4)(c)
(c)
Section ..... (provisions of new, nonstatutory material).
jr52(5)
(5) Any proposal, substitute amendment, or amendment that proposes to amend an existing law or legislative rule, and any joint resolution that proposes to amend a section of the state constitution, shall display the full text of the unit of the law, rule, or constitution that is being amended, with any matter to be stricken out typed with a line through the matter, and any new matter underscored. This requirement does not apply to:
jr52(5)(a)
(a) Reconciliation bills introduced by the committee on organization of either house and revisor's correction or revisor's revision bills.
jr52(5)(b)
(b) Appropriation sections that only increase or decrease the amount of an existing appropriation, which shall instead indicate the amount by which the applicable appropriation is increased or decreased, and the purpose of this increase or decrease.
jr52(5)(c)
(c) Proposals in which identical words are substituted for other words in existing law, if the laws in which the existing words occur are enumerated.
jr52(6)
(6) All parts of the statutes and of other laws that are intended to be superseded or repealed should be specifically referred to, so far as practicable, and expressly superseded or repealed. This directive is not intended to affect judicial construction.
jr52(7)
(7) Except as necessary to revise the relating clause of the affected proposal or substitute amendment, an amendment may not change the title of the proposal. When a substitute amendment or proposal is reproduced with all adopted amendments engrossed therein, or when the proposal is enrolled after passage, or adoption, and concurrence, the legislative reference bureau shall make the required changes in the title so that the title correctly lists all provisions affected by the proposal.
jr53
J
oint Rule 53.
Incorporation of law into the statutes. jr53(1)(1) It is the policy of this state that law of continuing application is incorporated into the statutes. The assignment of statute numbering to any part of a bill is indicative of a legislative intent that this text be incorporated into the statutes.
jr53(2)
(2) In general, provisions of the following types need not be incorporated into the statutes:
jr53(2)(a)
(a) An increase or decrease in the amount of an existing sum certain appropriation, but the dollar amount by which the existing appropriation is increased or decreased must be reflected in the appropriation total as shown in the statutes in the schedule under section
20.005 (3) of the statutes.
jr53(2)(b)
(b) A conveyance of real property or of a real property right or interest to or from the state or its political subdivisions.
jr53(2)(c)
(c) A declaration of intent or purpose.
jr53(2)(d)
(d) A directive or request for a limited‐term study.
jr53(2)(e)(e) A creation of a committee as defined in section
15.01 (3) of the statutes.
jr53(2)(f)
(f) A ratification of a collective bargaining agreement for state employees.
jr53(2)(g)
(g) A change in the authorized state building program.
jr53(2)(h)
(h) A position authorization.
jr53(2)(i)
(i) A change in the authorized state trunk highway system.
jr53(2)(j)
(j) An amendment to an existing nonstatutory provision.
jr53(2)(k)
(k) A temporary transitional provision, not extending beyond July 1 of the even‐numbered year of the legislature's next biennial session.
jr53(2)(L)
(L) A provision affecting the timing of a law's application or nonapplication, not extending beyond July 1 of the even‐numbered year of the legislature's next biennial session.
jr53(2)(m)
(m) Any other provision that is narrow in scope and intended to be temporary.
jr54
Joint Rule 54.
Approval and jacketing of drafts. jr54(1)(1) Before a proposal is jacketed for introduction, the legislative reference bureau shall submit a copy of the draft to the authorizing legislator, chief clerk, or state agency for approval, but substitute amendments or amendments shall be immediately prepared to be offered unless the authorizing legislator, chief clerk, caucus, or state agency requests prior submittal for approval.
jr54(2)
(2) The legislative reference bureau, except as otherwise provided in sub.
(2m), shall provide to the authorizing legislator, chief clerk, or state agency 4 copies of each proposal approved under sub.
(1) and
6 copies of each amendment approved under sub.
(1). One copy is for the use of the requester. The other copies shall, if a proposal, be inserted in the jacket envelope or, if a substitute amendment or amendment, be attached to an amendment jacket.
jr54(2m)(a)(a) The chief of the legislative reference bureau and a chief clerk of either house may enter into a written agreement under this joint rule to have the chief clerk, when the chief clerk's house is sitting in session, receive on the floor of the house copies of drafts of proposals, substitute amendments, and amendments transmitted electronically by the legislative reference bureau, and place the proposals in jacket envelopes and attach jacket cover sheets (stripes) to drafts of amendments and substitute amendments.
jr54(2m)(b)
(b) The legislative reference bureau and the chief clerk may not act under this subsection until the legislative technology services bureau makes the computer programming changes and the legislative reference bureau and the chief clerk make the process changes necessary to permit the legislative reference bureau to transmit and the chief clerk to receive the drafts electronically in the chamber of the house, in a manner that ensures the confidentiality of the drafts, without changing the way the legislative reference bureau jackets proposals, substitute amendments, and amendments electronically.
jr54(2m)(c)
(c) The legislative reference bureau and the chief clerk may not act under this subsection unless the chief clerk states in the agreement that the chief clerk and his or her employees:
1. Will comply with the requirements for confidentiality of drafts with which the legislative reference bureau must comply.
2. Provide, maintain, and supervise the equipment and the jackets for the electronic transmittal to the chief clerk as if the equipment and jackets were under the immediate supervision of the legislative reference bureau.
3. Submit directly to, and only to, the member any proposal in its jacket and any substitute amendment or amendment with its jacket attached.
jr54(2m)(d)
(d) The legislative reference bureau may not transmit a draft of a proposal, substitute amendment, or amendment to the chief clerk under this rule unless the member requesting the draft waives confidentiality of the draft and requests the legislative reference bureau to transmit the draft under this rule.
jr54(3)(a)(a) Jacket envelopes for proposals, and amendment jackets for substitute amendments and amendments, shall be identified by red for proposals, substitute amendments, and amendments introduced or offered in the senate, and shall be identified by black for those introduced or offered in the assembly.
jr54(3)(b)
(b) Each amendment jacket shall contain blanks to identify the substitute amendment or amendment by number, to list the date it is offered, and to enter the name or names of the member, members, or committee of the house of origin that offered the substitute amendment or amendment. Each amendment jacket shall allow sufficient space to add, if appropriate, the name of the individual or organization requesting that it be offered.
jr54(3)(c)
(c) Each jacket envelope shall be large enough to hold the papers pertaining to the proposal without the papers being folded.
jr55
Joint Rule 55.
Authors and cosponsors. jr55(1)(1) Any bill or joint resolution may have, following and separate from the names of the authors of the bill or joint resolution, the names of one or more cosponsors from the other house.
jr55(2)
(2) When a proposal or amendment is introduced or offered by request, the name of the person requesting introduction or the offering of the proposal or offering of the amendment shall be made a part of the record of the proposal.
jr56
J
oint Rule 56.
Clerical corrections in legislative proposals and amendments. jr56(1)(1) The chief clerks and the legislative reference bureau shall correct all minor clerical errors found in any proposal or amendment. Any correction under this rule shall be entered by the chief clerk in the history file for the proposal of the house having possession of the proposal.
jr56(2)
(2) The current edition of Webster's new international dictionary is the standard on questions of correct spelling, word usage, and proper grammar.
jr56(3)(3) Except as enumerated in pars.
(a) to
(e), corrections under this rule require in each instance the specific prior authorization of the presiding officer of the house having possession of the proposal. The following corrections do not require prior authorization:
jr56(3)(a)(a) Inserting the enacting clause required for any bill by
section 17 (1) of
article IV of the constitution, or inserting the usual enabling clause in any resolution.
jr56(3)(b)
(b) Correcting the title of a proposal so that the enumeration of sections affected accurately reflects the statutes, session laws, Wisconsin Acts, sections of the constitution, or legislative rules treated in the proposal.
jr56(3)(c)
(c) Correcting the title of a bill so that the relating clause complies with joint rule
52 (1) (d).
jr56(3)(d)
(d) Correcting the text of the proposal so that it conforms to sub.
(2).
jr56(3)(e)
(e) Correcting erroneous numeric references.
jr57
J
oint Rule 57.
Amendments to state constitution. jr57(1)(1) Every joint resolution proposing an amendment to the constitution introduced for the purpose of a first approval shall, in the closing paragraph, refer such proposed amendment to the legislature to be chosen at the next general election. Every joint resolution proposing the 2nd legislative approval of an amendment to the constitution shall, in the closing paragraph, provide for submission of the amendment to the people in accordance with
section 1 of
article XII of the constitution.
jr57(2)(a) (a) The text of a proposed constitutional amendment is not subject to change when a joint resolution submits such text for “2nd consideration" after the joint resolution was adopted on “first consideration" by the last preceding legislature, unless appropriate changes are made to revert the status of the constitutional amendment to “first consideration."
jr57(2)(am)
(am) While the constitutional amendment has “2nd consideration" status, only the relating clause and those paragraphs of the joint resolution pertaining to the ballot question and to the date of submission to the voters may be changed by amendment.
jr57(2)(b)
(b) Because any change in the text of a proposed constitutional amendment before the senate or assembly for “2nd consideration" reverts that proposed amendment to “first consideration" status, any change shall be presented to the senate or assembly in the form of a substitute amendment that, in its title, its resolving clauses, and its instructions for transmittal to the next succeeding legislature, properly sets forth the resultant “first consideration" status of the proposed constitutional amendment.
jr58
J
oint Rule 58.
Amendments to U.S. constitution. jr58(1)(1) Any amendment to the constitution of the United States, submitted to the legislatures of the several states for ratification, shall be considered in the form of a joint resolution.
