The head of a special committee charged with developing a version of the Great Lakes Compact for Wisconsin lawmakers to ratify says they just needed more time.
State Senator Neal Kedzie dissolved his study committee this week, after realizing it wouldn't meet a September 15th deadline. Kedzie says too many roadblocks were holding up an agreement and members weren't quite at that point where they could resolve those differences.
Governors from the eight states bordering the Great Lakes have signed the agreement, but it must be ratified by each state's legislature. With more time, Kedzie believes they could reach a deal that would pass in Wisconsin. He says the committee was about four-fifths of the way through the work needed to reach a resolution on the issue.
Kedzie is now concerned about competing versions that will likely be introduced in the legislature. The Elkhorn Republican says those partisan attempts will differ greatly from the joint effort the committee had been working on, and the issue will become too entangled in politics.
If an extension were granted for the committee, Kedzie says he'd be willing to continue working on the Compact.
AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (MP3 1:08)
