A bill meant to protect the Great Lakes remains stalled in committee hearings Tuesday, largely along party lines.
The state Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee met to discuss the Great Lakes Water Resources Compact bill, an agreement between states bordering the lakes.
The bill addresses the withdrawal and use of water from the basins of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River.
Committee Chair and Sen. Mark Miller, D-Monona, said the bill has been in progress for over five years. The 150-page first draft of the bill was brought to the committee with over 30 new amendments Tuesday, which drew disapproval from Republican committee members.
State Sens. Neal Kedzie, R-Elkhorn, and Dale Schultz, R-Richland Center, requested the vote on the bill be postponed, in a statement sent to the committee.
According to Kedzie and Schultz, the committee and the general public need to have time to scrutinize all of the nuances of the significant piece of environmental legislation.""
Both Republicans and Democrats on the committee said they supported the legislation, although they disagreed on how to amend the bill.
According to Kedzie, the process is not complete. A vote Tuesday would have limited public input on the bill.
In response to Kedzie and Schultz's request the vote on the bill was moved to Wednesday morning.
""We need to manage resources and protect our citizens,"" state Sen. Robert Jauch, D-Poplar said at the committee hearing, who favored voting on the bill Tuesday.
Gov. Jim Doyle supports the bill, though Republicans in control of the Assembly have previously stated they want to amend it before it would pass.
