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You still can't carry a handgun in your purse for protection, you don't have to show a photo ID to vote and you can conduct all kinds of stem cell research in Wisconsin.
High-profile fights between the Republican-controlled Legislature and Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle over voter identification requirements, stem cell research, medical malpractice damages and concealed weapons highlighted the legislative session that neared its end last week.
Doyle and the Legislature also increased the state's minimum wage, expanded the Milwaukee school voucher program and repealed the automatic increase in the state gas tax.
While lawmakers have wrapped up their regular business, they are expected to reconvene at least one more time before the official end of the session July 12. The 97th Wisconsin Legislature convened in January 2005.
Overall, the session was notable for a lack of compromise and a lot of bickering between Doyle and Republicans, said Mordecai Lee, an associate professor of governmental affairs at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The GOP controlled the Senate 19-14 and the Assembly 60-39.
``The Republican Legislature lobbed hand grenades at the governor and the governor lobbed hand grenades back at them,'' he said. ``It was terrible. It was the politics of conflict. They never got out of campaign mode.''
The upside, Lee said, is that voters will have a clear choice between the two parties in November and know where Doyle and Republican lawmakers stand on the issues.
``It's such a pure choice that it's wonderful for democracy,'' he said.
Here's a look at how the action in Madison will affect the state's 5.5 million residents.
TAXES
Lawmakers did not vote to raise your taxes. But critics say they also missed a chance to reduce the state's high tax burden.
A plan to write limits on spending by state and local governments into the state Constitution was voted down by 2-1 margins in both chambers.
Democrats said the limits would have crippled government services and the University of Wisconsin System. Republicans who opposed the measure said lawmakers should make budget decisions — not leave them up to a complex formula.
Supporters said politicians do not have the spine to cut spending by themselves and the amendment would stop the government from taking more money out of your pockets in the future.
The Assembly narrowly passed a watered-down amendment that would have applied only to state government but that also failed in the Senate.
STATE BUDGET
If you are a retiree, a homeowner or a teacher, you are probably pleased with parts of the state budget.
The Legislature approved a two-year spending plan for the period ending June 30, 2007. Doyle then used his veto pen to put his mark on the $52.8 billion document.
Doyle used his veto power to tweak a Republican plan to hold down property taxes that local governments can levy on the state's 1.4 million homeowners.
The plan allowed property taxes on a median valued home to rise about $23 in 2005, a smaller increase than in previous years, according to Doyle's office.
Doyle also used his veto pen to give public schools $400 million more than lawmakers approved, a move he said would avoid teacher layoffs and program cuts.
The state will eliminate the tax on Social Security benefits in 2008 under the budget signed by Doyle. The tax breaks will save money for about 215,000 Wisconsin residents, according to the Department of Revenue.
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
If you're a doctor, you may be more likely to stay in Wisconsin.
Doyle signed into law a GOP plan to limit to $750,000 damages that juries can award to victims of medical malpractice for their pain and suffering.
Doyle vetoed an earlier plan that would have set limits at $450,000 for adult victims and $550,000 for children.
The Legislature passed the bills in response to a state Supreme Court decision that found earlier limits unconstitutional. Groups representing hospitals and doctors warned that Wisconsin doctors would leave the state as their insurance skyrocketed without a limit in place.
Victims' advocates were disappointed Doyle signed the cap, which they called unfair to the most severely injured patients.
STEM CELL RESEARCH
If you oppose human cloning on moral grounds, you were probably furious Doyle vetoed a bill to ban the practice.
The bill would have criminalized all forms of human cloning, including cloning to make a baby and cloning for research purposes.
Doyle said he was against human cloning but balked at the restriction on so-called therapeutic cloning, a technique used by stem cell researchers.
He said the bill would have turned some researchers into felons, crippling the research at UW-Madison, a leader in the field.
Republican supporters said the technique should be outlawed because it involves the artificial creation of life and the destruction of human embryos.
SCHOOL VOUCHERS
If your children attend private school in Milwaukee using taxpayer-funded vouchers, you can breathe easier knowing they will be less likely to be turned away from the program or forced to transfer schools.
Supporters of the program lobbied the Legislature to expand the program as it reached its statutory cap of about 15,000 students last year. State regulators warned thousands of students could be turned away or forced to transfer next school year.
Doyle and Assembly Speaker John Gard, R-Peshtigo, reached an agreement to expand the program to 22,500 students, the largest expansion in the program's history.
The deal also included new accountability measures for the voucher schools and $25 million to hold down class sizes in public schools over the next two years.
MINIMUM WAGE
If you work for the minimum wage, you have a little more money in your paycheck. And you'll have even more in June.
After blocking an increase proposed by Doyle for months, Republican lawmakers allowed a rule to go into effect increasing the minimum wage to $5.70 an hour last June and to $6.50 on June 1. The minimum wage had been $5.15 since 1997.
As part of the deal, Doyle signed a GOP bill that prohibits municipalities around the state from establishing their own minimum wage. City councils in Madison, Milwaukee and La Crosse had boosted the wage after the Legislature refused to act.
GAS TAX
If you're concerned about the state's high gas tax, you're probably relieved it will no longer go up automatically every year.
The state's 32.7 cent-per-gallon gas tax, one of the highest in the country, had increased every year for 20 years on April 1 to keep pace with inflation. Lawmakers liked the steady stream of revenue for road projects and not having to vote on a tax hike.
But a movement led by bloggers, talk radio and ordinary citizens after gas prices spiked last fall forced the Legislature and Doyle to end the automatic hike. Legislative leaders and Doyle had initially opposed ending the practice.
The final automatic increase of 0.8 cents came April 1 but was offset by a penny cut in the tax passed in the state budget.
ETHANOL
If you are a farmer, you're probably disappointed the Senate killed a bill requiring regular unleaded gasoline to contain 10 percent ethanol.
Supporters said it would have been a major boost to the ethanol industry, created a new market for farmers to sell their corn and helped the country wean off foreign oil.
But a bipartisan group of senators voted 17-15 to kill the bill, saying motorists should not be forced to use a fuel that they consider inadequate compared to regular gas.
The issue was unique in that it was one of the few that did not go along party lines. Instead, it pitted lawmakers from rural areas against those from southeastern Wisconsin.
GAY MARRIAGE
If you oppose gay marriage, you'll have a chance to vote to ban the practice in the state Constitution.
Lawmakers approved for the second straight session a measure that would define marriage in a constitutional amendment as between one man and one woman. The approval sets up a statewide referendum in November.
Supporters say the amendment would defend marriage from legal challenges seeking to grant same-sex couples the right to marry.
Critics say the amendment threatens to outlaw benefits such as health care provided by many municipal governments and private companies to partners of gay employees.
On a related issue, the Legislature refused to extend domestic partner benefits to University of Wisconsin System employees. UW-Madison is the only Big 10 school that does not offer the benefits.
DEATH PENALTY
You'll probably also have a chance to vote on whether Wisconsin should bring back the death penalty.
The Assembly approved a statewide advisory referendum asking voters in the Nov. 7 general election whether death should be a potential punishment for killers convicted using DNA evidence.
The state Senate is expected later this month to adopt changes made in the Assembly version of the measure to officially put it on the ballot. The state has not had the death penalty since 1853.
VOTER ID
If you believe voters should have to flash photo identification before casting ballots, you will have to wait longer.
Doyle twice last year vetoed Republican plans to require voters to show photo identification to register and cast ballots, saying too many people who lack IDs would be disenfranchised.
So the Republicans, who insist the measure would restore integrity to the state's election process, came up with a way to bypass Doyle by amending the state Constitution to add the requirement.
Both chambers of the Legislature approved the plan, the first hurdle in the process to amend the constitution. Lawmakers would have to approve the proposal again when they reconvene in a new session next year and voters would need to give approval in a statewide referendum.
ID STANDARDS
If you're applying for a Wisconsin driver's license, you may have to go through a bigger hassle at the Department of Transportation. If you're an illegal immigrant, you won't get one at all.
Starting April 1, 2007, people will have to show proof they are a U.S. citizen or are in the country legally before getting a driver's license or identification card. People will have to show birth certificates, Social Security numbers or other documents to prove residency status.
The law brings Wisconsin into compliance with new federal standards that supporters say will improve national security. Without action, Wisconsin drivers' licenses would not have been accepted to board planes or enter federal buildings as of next year.
CONCEALED CARRY
If you oppose more guns on the streets, you were happy Doyle again vetoed a Republican plan to allow concealed weapons.
Republicans and backers of the right to bear arms again pushed for a bill to rescind the state's 1872 ban on carrying concealed weapons.
The bill would have allowed state residents who pass firearms training and get permits to carry concealed handguns and other weapons in most public places.
Doyle vetoed the bill, saying it endangered public safety by allowing people to carry loaded weapons in shopping malls, movie theaters and other places.
The Legislature fell just short of overriding Doyle's veto — a replay of the same scenario two years earlier. Wisconsin is now one of two states to completely ban concealed weapons.
BOATER SAFETY
If you were born in 1989 or later and like to boat, you'll have to take a state-sponsored safety course before hitting the water.
Lawmakers pushed for the bill at the urging of a family whose son was killed in a boating accident in the Wisconsin Dells.
The $10 course can be taken at locations across the state or over the Internet. Operators of motorized boats who do not have the certification could face $200 fines.
BOOSTER SEATS
If you have children younger than 8, you'll most likely have to put them in booster seats when they ride in your car.
A law signed by Doyle requires booster seats for all children younger than 8, except those who exceed 80 pounds or are taller than 4 feet 9 inches. Previous law allowed children between the ages of 4 and 8 to wear seat belts.
The new regulations conform with federal safety guidelines, making the state eligible for $2.5 million in federal grants over six years.
Supporters say the law will prevent injuries to children who are still too small to safely wear seat belts. Authorities could issue citations for violations ranging from $10 to $200.
Critics called the regulations an unnecessary intrusion that would be impossible to enforce.
PIERS
If you own a large pier, you still don't know if it will be allowed to stay on the water.
A spokesman says Doyle will veto a bill approved by the Legislature that would set new regulations on the size of piers on the state's 15,000 lakes.
Doyle's office, lawmakers, environmental and business groups hammered out a compromise earlier this year that allowed all but about 1,000 of the largest piers to avoid state regulation.
But Assembly Speaker John Gard, R-Peshtigo, pushed through changes to the deal that cut funding to enforce the rules and exempted more piers from potential regulation.
Doyle did not agree to those changes and will veto the bill, said spokesman Dan Leistikow. As a result, it's not clear what size pier would be allowed this summer. The Department of Natural Resources says the vast majority of piers will not face regulation in any event.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM
If you want more protections for people accused of crimes, you were happy with a bill meant to improve the state's criminal justice system.
Legislation signed by Doyle requires police to make electronic recordings when interrogating juveniles and some adults and to adopt written policies on the use of eyewitness testimony. Courts can now more easily order post-conviction DNA testing.
The legislation came in response to the case of Steven Avery, the Wisconsin man who spent 18 years in prison for a rape he did not commit. Rep. Mark Gundrum, R-New Berlin, said the legislation would cut the chances of wrongful convictions.
Avery, released from prison in 2003 after being exonerated by DNA evidence, was hailed by lawmakers and Doyle as an ordinary citizen who suffered as a result of flaws in the legal system.
But Doyle quietly signed the bill in December after Avery was back behind bars accused of the grisly murder of a 25-year-old photographer on Halloween.
WISCONSIN FILM INDUSTRY
If you're an actor from Wisconsin, there's a much greater chance you'll shoot a movie in your home state.
The Legislature passed a bill that Doyle plans to sign giving tax incentives to companies that film movies, television shows and commercials in the state.
The tax breaks on wages paid to employees and production expenses will not go into effect until Jan. 1, 2008.
Sen. Ted Kanavas, R-Brookfield, said the measure will boost the essentially nonexistent film industry in the state.
METHAMPHETAMINE
If you get a cold, you can no longer buy medicine such as Sudafed over-the-counter.
Lawmakers restricted access to cold medicines that contain pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient used to make methamphetamine, as the number of meth cases skyrocketed in Wisconsin.
The new law forces people seeking those medications to purchase them from a pharmacist, show a picture identification and sign a log so authorities can track sales.
It also outlaws those under 18 from purchasing products containing the ingredient and restricts the amount people can buy to 7.5 grams every 30 days, the equivalent of 60 tablets of 12-hour Sudafed.
Supporters say the law will make it harder to find ingredients to manufacture meth but critics say it is an inconvenience to consumers.
