Assembly Democrats still hope to vote on state employee contracts before the end of the year. Members have been told to keep their calendars open for the next two weeks, in order to convene a special session to vote on the agreements.
State Representative Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) believes a vote will take place, although he’s not sure when it will happen. Currently, he says they’re hoping to come in sometime next week. Before that can happen though, the unions will need to ratify the agreements. Barca says those votes are expected on Friday.
Governor-elect Scott Walker wants the contracts pushed off until next year, after he takes office and Republicans control the Legislature. Barca says they’re already over 18 months late and Walker should instead focus on the next round of talks for contracts due in July.
Barca says it’s unclear right now if the votes are there to ratify the contracts, since lawmakers still don’t have all the details of what’s in them. Briefings on the details are being held for members of the Legislature over the next few days.