Governor Jim Doyle concedes, he had his doubts about whether he'd ever be able to sign the Great Lakes Compact : “I often said . . . that it may well be a day that Hades froze over, that I would sign this bill.” At a cool and windy signing ceremony on Milwaukee's lakefront, Doyle says the compact will give individual governors increased power to safeguard the lakes, by preventing Great Lakes states from cutting deals to sell off water. Before that happens, everyone must be on board with the compact language: lawmakers in Ohio and Pennsylvania have yet to approve the compact, which also must be approved by the U.S. Congress. Still, Doyle calls the compact signing an event future generations in Wisconsin will recall with pride.
