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A conservative law firm is arguing that State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Evers is not following a new state law.
A lawsuit filed by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty argues Evers is ignoring the REINS Act – a law enacted earlier this year which requires all state agencies to have proposed rules reviewed by the Department of Administration and the Governor. Deputy counsel CJ Szafir says it’s an effort to show that “nobody is above the law in Wisconsin.”
Evers is a Democratic candidate for governor, who is hoping to take on Republican Governor Scott Walker in 2018.
The lawsuit was filed directly with the state Supreme Court, which ruled in 2016 that the superintendent has the constitutional power to write rules without oversight from the administration.
A spokesman for the DPI said the issues focused on in the lawsuit were decided in the previous case. Spokesman Tom McCarthy said “the case has no merit, period. The only people that don’t understand this is WILL.”