A response to Gregg Underheim's opening statement
With all due respect to Mr. Underheim, I do not want the participators of this forum to be misled or confused by such wording as "our regulatory climate has been a problem."
This statement made by Mr. Underheim is to promote his support for Assembly Bill 655, otherwise coined as the "Job Creation Act." While many construction company owners and politicians in Madison feel as though this Bill was great progress, nearly every environmental group in the state deems it as a horrific attack on our environment.
Opposers of this Bill include: WDNR, George Meyer & the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, Clean Wisconsin, Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group, Sierra Club, River Alliance of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Gaylord Nelson & The Wilderness Society, Wisconsin Greens, Milwaukee County Labor Council, AFL-CIO, and the Clean Water Action Council.
In fact, the Attorney General's office stated that the "Job Creation Act" “appears more to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, intended more to eat out citizens’ natural resources, clean air and clean water, than to significantly deliver or save any jobs!”
Even if you don't believe the expert knowledge from our state's environmental groups, a study done by UW Professor Jon Udell that involved the participation of 270 Wisconsin manufacturing executives (providing 24 percent of the state's manufacturing jobs) showed that Wisconsin ranks above average among the states as a location for manufacturers. In particular, these executives gave an above-average ranking to the attitude of government toward business (which includes regulations and legislation).
No where in this report is it stated that a "regulatory climate" is limiting Wisconsin job growth and the economy. Instead, job retention and growth was shown to be achieved best through “a quality labor force, worker attitudes, stability and quality of life in the region.”
If this is in fact about standing up for the public interest, Mr. Underheim, please recognize that the people want to sustain Wisconsin's rich environmental heritage. They want to have clean lakes and waterways that aren't polluted freely with Mercury and other toxic emissions. They want corporations to be held accountable for environmental destruction. And they want their political leaders to be held accountable for allowing such destruction.
Justin R. Mitchell
This statement made by Mr. Underheim is to promote his support for Assembly Bill 655, otherwise coined as the "Job Creation Act." While many construction company owners and politicians in Madison feel as though this Bill was great progress, nearly every environmental group in the state deems it as a horrific attack on our environment.
Opposers of this Bill include: WDNR, George Meyer & the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, Clean Wisconsin, Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group, Sierra Club, River Alliance of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Gaylord Nelson & The Wilderness Society, Wisconsin Greens, Milwaukee County Labor Council, AFL-CIO, and the Clean Water Action Council.
In fact, the Attorney General's office stated that the "Job Creation Act" “appears more to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, intended more to eat out citizens’ natural resources, clean air and clean water, than to significantly deliver or save any jobs!”
Even if you don't believe the expert knowledge from our state's environmental groups, a study done by UW Professor Jon Udell that involved the participation of 270 Wisconsin manufacturing executives (providing 24 percent of the state's manufacturing jobs) showed that Wisconsin ranks above average among the states as a location for manufacturers. In particular, these executives gave an above-average ranking to the attitude of government toward business (which includes regulations and legislation).
No where in this report is it stated that a "regulatory climate" is limiting Wisconsin job growth and the economy. Instead, job retention and growth was shown to be achieved best through “a quality labor force, worker attitudes, stability and quality of life in the region.”
If this is in fact about standing up for the public interest, Mr. Underheim, please recognize that the people want to sustain Wisconsin's rich environmental heritage. They want to have clean lakes and waterways that aren't polluted freely with Mercury and other toxic emissions. They want corporations to be held accountable for environmental destruction. And they want their political leaders to be held accountable for allowing such destruction.
Justin R. Mitchell
posted by Miles Maguire at 4:12 PM
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