Rep. Mary Hubler, chair of the Assembly Special Committee on Ethics and Standards of Conduct, said Tuesday she doesn't believe that Rep. Steve Nass has made an adequate case to expel embattled Rep. Jeff Wood from his seat.

Hubler, D-Rice Lake, noted that Wood continues to fight two of the charges and suggested lawmakers should allow the legal process to run its course.

"It would be an embarrassment to this place if we voted to expel Rep. Wood and a week later two of the charges were thrown out," she said.

Hubler said she would check with committee members before establishing a date for an executive session and insisted she believed the Assembly still had time to act on Nass' expulsion resolution before adjourning for the year this spring.

She said she was still open to reprimanding or censuring Wood, two other options before the committee. She added that she doubts Nass has the two-thirds support necessary in the chamber to remove Wood, I-Chippewa Falls, noting Nass was the only one to sponsor the resolution.

Nass, R-Whitewater, countered later he had no doubts two-thirds of the Assembly would vote to expel Wood considering the environment members are in and their recent actions to crack down on drunken driving.

"How can a legislator not vote for expulsion under these circumstances and then go home and defend that vote?" he asked.

Nass has previously threatened to use a pulling motion to force a vote on his resolution before the Assembly adjourns. He said today he worries that such a move would be lost in the debate over procedure but still held open the possibility he would try it on the floor.

Listen to Hubler and Rep. Gary Hebl answer questions after the hearing:
http://wispolitics.com/1006/HublerHebl0316.mp3

Listen to Nass' Q&A after the hearing:
http://wispolitics.com/1006/Nass0316.mp3

State Rep. Steve Nass today dismissed Jeff Wood's defense that he should not be expelled from the Assembly because he cannot be disciplined by his fellow lawmakers for actions outside the Capitol.

Nass, R-Whitewater and author of the expulsion resolution, testified before the Special Committee on Ethics and Standards of Conduct today after failing to show up at its first public hearing on the proposal to kick Wood out of the body.

During that first hearing, Wood's attorney insisted lawmakers cannot be expelled by their peers for their actions outside of the Capitol and ticked off a list of past lawmakers accused of more serious crimes who escaped discipline from their peers.

"Of course, this logic might be considered scholarly in the world of trial lawyers, but it is insulting to the people of this state who face real standards of accountability everyday," Nass said as Wood sat with his attorney at a nearby table.

At that first hearing, Wood blamed many of his problems on a lifelong struggle with alcohol and on the anxiety prescription medication he was given to deal with the fall out from his first arrest.

Nass charged that Wood has tried to "play the victim" rather than taking accountability for his actions and that his was a "very lucky man" for only facing expulsion from the Assembly and not a more serious penalty.

"He is no victim when it comes to his personal choices in using drugs and alcohol," Nass said. "Representative Wood's real intent has been to delay and avoid taking responsibility for his own personal failings."

The Assembly has adjourned the MPS special session, too.

The Assembly tried adjourning the special session earlier this year, but the Senate didn't follow suit. Legislative rules require both houses to adjourn a special session within three days of each other. The Senate adjourned the special session earlier today.

Rep. Brett Davis, a Republican from Oregon, tried to pull AB 393 to the floor. It allows the use of the examination results for the evaluation of teacher
performance. It failed on a 51-43 vote.

Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, tried to pull AB 525, which would repeal mandatory minimum coverage requirements for auto insurance passed in the last budget. That failed on a 50-44 vote.

A bill requiring the State Public Defender to take into account when accessing eligibility the anticipated costs of effective representation for the type of case involved has been pulled to the floor. The new rules would make the income standard for eligibility for a public defender the same as that for the W-2 program.

When the Senate passed the bill in January,it was amended to provide the Public Defender Board authority for 45.4 new full-time equivalent general purpose revenue positions. The bill originally provided 49.25 positions.

An amendment from Rep. Mark Radcliffe, D-Black River Falls, to include more funding int he bill for district attorneys and to prohibit layoffs or additional furloughs to DAs was ruled non-germane.

The public defender bill passed on a voice vote.

It appears the Assembly is back on track, though it took a while to get straightened out after some partisan tempers flared.

It began earlier when Rep. Joel Kleefisch, R-Oconomowoc, objected to messaging to the Senate a bill that prohibits using lead as a material in a wheel weight or wheel balancing product.

Democrats then passed over a bill authored by GOP Rep. Dean Kaufert to repeal the sunset clause on the speed limit of operating snowmobiles after dark.

Kaufert, R-Neenah, then objected to the third reading of the next few bills to come up, blocking them from a vote.

After a long "informal" period, the Assembly returned to work. Kleefisch lifted his objection, and Kaufert lifted his. SB 227, which includes emergency meeting provisions and a succession plan for the Legislature, then passed on a voice vote.

The Assembly has stood informal for about an hour as the Dems work out their strategy for the rest of the night. They'll be coming back in 5.

There are only a handful of bills left on the calendar, but there is talk of several pulling motions -- at least one from the Dems and a couple from the GOP -- that will extend the evening.

A bill to provide some procedures for the Legislature in case of an enemy attack or other emergency was blocked by Assembly Republicans.

Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, stalled the bill by objecting to the third reading.

The bill would the Legislature to meet outside of Madison in case of emergency. The bill also would allow legislators to hold a virtual session in case of a pandemic or other emergency prohibits a meeting in the Capitol.

The bill was amended by the voice vote on the Assembly floor to allow for a succession plan for legislators. Under the proposal, county chairs of the party that holds the legislative district would submit a list of interim successor nominees to the state party chair. The state party chair would submit between three and five names to the Senate or Assembly party leader within seven days of the vacancy occurring. The leader would have to name a successor within 14 days of the vacancy.

The succession plan would kick in if there are nine or more simultaneous vacancies in the Senate, and 25 or more in the Assembly.

The Senate passed a bill last week to create the provisions for legislative meetings in case of emergency, but the succession plan was nixed before the bill came to the Senate floor.

A bill to allow venues to create resale zones for ticket re-sell has been sidelined.

After failing to derail an amendment that would have allowed individuals who have five or fewer tickets to sell a single ticket outside the zones, bill co-author Rep. Josh Zepnick, D-Milwaukee, tabled the bill.

The Assembly approved using $17 million in general fund supported borrowing to renovate Carlson Hall at UW-Whitewater.

The bill was approve on a 53-41 vote.

Assembly Minority Leader Jeff Fitzgerald has repeatedly taken the Dem majority to task for not doing enough on jobs this session. So today on the floor he offered a bipartisan package of 10 bills he says would create jobs, bundling them together in a special resolution he wants considered for the next floor session on April 13.

Four of the bills are from Dem authors, and six are from Republican authors.

The resolution will be forwarded to the Assembly Committee on Rules for consideration.

See the resolution here.

A victim of a "gender-based" crime would be allowed to file a civil action against the perpetrator under a bill approved in the Assembly.

Under the bill, a gender−based act is defined as one committed, at least in part, on the basis of the victim's gender or a physical intrusion that is sexual in nature and that the actor commits under coercive conditions.

A victim would have seven years to commence the civil suit or, if the victim is under 18, within seven years of the victim's birthday. A victim may recover damages for emotional distress, punitive damages, and investigation or litigation costs, including attorney fees.

Also approved was legislation to provide a penalty enhancer for a crime based on gender.

The Assembly approved a bill that would allow police officers to force a driver to submit to an intoxication test if the driver has been involved in an accident even though the office may not have probable cause to believe the individual is intoxicated.

Under the bill, if a vehicle operator is involved in an injury- or death-causing accident, the officer may request the person to submit to a test before arrest, regardless of whether the officer detects the presence of alcohol or another drug.

The bill passed on a voice vote.

In addition to the calendar of bills before the Assembly, expect some pulling motions as legislators try to bring pet bills to the floor tonight.

Assembly Democrats held a press conference prior to their floor session this morning to tout three bills they say continue to "advance Wisconsin's business interests."

The featured bill on the agenda today was AB 767, which would change the composition of the Small Business Regulatory Review Board create a new Office of the Small Business Advocate within the Department of Commerce. Its authors said the bill would create a stronger voice for small businesses in the state regulatory process.

"Obviously, we expect businesses to follow our environmental laws, our worker protection laws. We're not changing that," said Rep. Peter Barca, D-Kenosha. "What we are changing is we're saying help them to comply, and if there's minor violations ... work with them."

Democrats also showcased SB 190 -- which Rep. Bob Turner of Racine said would prevent automatic extensions of business property leases without written notice -- and SB 399, which Rep. Donna Seidel of Wausau said would build on recent efforts to expand bonding for capital projects by local governments.

Seidel said the bill allows local economic development groups to act as a conduit for tax exempt bonding, and said California has seen billions in investment from a similar program over the last 20 years.

"Small, local units of government throughout the state many times are not even aware of how to tap into the market, or they simply lack the infrastructure in their own areas or the expertise to do so," Seidel said.

The Assembly is now in partisan caucus after passing several opening resolutions.

Listen to the press conference here.

The Senate approved legislation prohibiting health insurance policies and governmental self-insured health plans from using an insured persons alcohol consumption or use of a controlled substance as a basis for denial of coverage.

Sen. Bob Jauch, co-author of the bill, said Wisconsin would be the 14th state to adopt the standard.

"This practice is simply wrong," he said. The bill passed unanimously.

Among the other bills approved was a legislation that creates an exception from the definition of collection agency for health care billing companies. That bill passed on a 23-9 vote. The nine Dems who voted against it cited consumer protection concerns.

Sen. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, tried to conclude a special session on MPS reform following the announcement that Wisconsin will not get first-round Race to the Top funds.

The session, called for by Gov. Jim Doyle in December, has continued for months as Democrats fail to find agreement on how to reform the ailing district. Doyle and Taylor are proponents of changing the governance system of the district to give the mayor the power to hire the superintendent and broad budget powers.

Taylor, who co-authored a bill for mayoral control, said she planned to talk with mayoral control opponent Sen. Spencer Coggs, D-Milwaukee, and come up with a solution. But for the time being, the special session should end.

"We have failed," Taylor said.

"We might as well adjourn the special session because we missed the boat," Taylor said. "The ship is gone."

UPDATE: On a voice vote, the Senate closed out the special session.

The Assembly attempted to close the special session in January, but legislative rules require that both houses close a session within three days of each other.

Both chambers of the Legislature will be on the floor today, with the Assembly scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. followed by the Senate at 11 a.m.

The Assembly calendar includes legislation to allow the Legislature to meet outside of Madison in case of emergency. The bill also allows legislators to hold a virtual session in case of a pandemic or other emergency prohibits a meeting in the Capitol. The bill originally included a succession plan for legislators, but that was pulled prior to approval by the Senate last week.

In the Senate, lawmakers will consider legislation prohibiting health insurance policies and governmental self-insured health plans from using an insured persons alcohol consumption or use of a controlled substance as a basis for denial of coverage.

*See the Assembly calendar.

*See the Senate calendar.

*Watch the sessions on WisconsinEye.