After the Department of Justice discovered almost 7,000 untested sexual assault kits in hospitals and law enforcement agencies across the state in 2014, Attorney General Josh Kaul and local lawmakers introduced the first state guidelines in Wisconsin on how to process them.
However, a new Republican proposal to handle potential backlogs of sexual assault kits could unravel a bipartisan plan to address the issue.
Rep. David Steffen, R-Green Bay, who initially proposed a bipartisan bill last year with Kaul, introduced a new option for the Assembly which includes more comprehensive instructions to keep sexual assault kits for a longer period of time.
However, the proposals are likely to lose Democrat support.
After initially refusing to hold a public hearing, Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Health Rep. Joe Sanfelippo, R-New Berlin, opposed the preliminary bill.
Sanfelippo said the new and stronger requirements for the bill explains his support.
“This is a much better bill — comprehensive — and it provides a better way for us to make sure a backlog doesn’t occur in the future,” Sanfelippo said.
Under the original bill, which was passed by the Senate with widespread bipartisan support but stalled in the Assembly, health care professionals who collect sexual assault kits would be required to notify a law enforcement agency within 24 hours of collection if the survivor wants to report the assault.
The new bill includes most of the initial proposals, but also incorporates more partisan policies that Republicans would favor.
For example, there would be a requirement for law enforcement to notify U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of immigrants in the country illegally who are under arrest for sexual assault.
Another proposal would allow sexual assault survivors access to private school vouchers even if they wouldn’t otherwise qualify based on income.
Democratic Madison lawmakers, like Rep. Chris Taylor and Rep. Melissa Sargent, criticized the new bill, believing it has little chance for bipartisan support and puts politics above sexual assault survivors.
Kaul stated this legislation would undermine the current bipartisan agreement to prevent a future backlog of sexual assault cases because of the new partisan provisions.
“The legislation today is transparently intended to allow Assembly Republicans to pretend to support legislation that can help prevent another backlog, when in reality they are preventing such legislation — AB 214 — from becoming law,” Kaul said.
state news writer
