Mining Bill is a Disaster that No Amendment Can Fix
The bill would repeal the Prove It First mining law.
Wisconsin State Sen. Tom Tiffany.
MADISON – Sen. Tom Tiffany’s disastrous Senate Bill 395 – or more accurately the Industrial Acid Mining Bill – will be up for a vote in committee tomorrow, and there are indications he will make minor amendments in an attempt to get the toxic bill passed.
The bill would repeal the Prove It First mining law, a gold standard, bipartisan law enacted 20 years ago that has protected Wisconsin from the devastating effects of sulfide mining – like poisoned rivers, ecological dead zones, and toxic drinking water – for a generation.
The bill is up for a vote Wednesday in the committee Tiffany chairs, the Sporting Heritage, Mining, and Forestry Committee. Tiffany is expected to make token amendments to the bill in an attempt to hoodwink the public, which overwhelmingly opposes the bill.
“The Prove It First mining law works, period,” said Kerry Schumann, executive director. “Senate Bill 395 cannot be fixed with amendments. No one is foolish enough to believe this bill can be made better while still repealing Prove It First, but Sen. Tiffany obviously thinks so.”
Opposition to the bill, which now has an Assembly counterpart – AB 499, is strong and intensifying daily. The public has generated more than 6,600 emails, letters, and phone calls to legislators in opposition to the bill. That includes more than 200 local elected officials who signed a letter opposing the bill presented to legislators.
“We call on the committee and all legislators to oppose SB 395,” Schumann said. “This legislation will open up Wisconsin to America’s most toxic industry, leave local communities suffering its toxic consequences, and hand taxpayers the bill.”
Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to electing conservation leaders, holding decision makers accountable, and encouraging lawmakers to champion conservation policies that effectively protect Wisconsin’s public health and natural resources.
You can follow legislation impacting natural resources on our Conservation Vote Tracker, a real-time accountability tool that provides you with a complete picture of what conservation issues are in play and how legislators are performing: http://conservationvoters.org/vote-tracker/
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.
More about the Senate Bill 395
- Governor Gives Corporate Mining Polluters an Early Gift - Wisconsin Conservation Voters - Dec 11th, 2017
- Governor Walker Signs “Mining for America” Bill into Law in Rhinelander - Gov. Scott Walker - Dec 11th, 2017
- Campaign Cash: New GOP Pro-Mining Group Ran Attack Ads - Wisconsin Democracy Campaign - Nov 10th, 2017
- Senate Strikes Job-Creating Gold with Final Passage of Mining for America Act - AFP Wisconsin - Nov 7th, 2017
- Rep. Brostoff Condemns the Sulfide Mining Bill - Rep. Jonathan Brostoff - Nov 7th, 2017
- Their Trick is No Treat for Wisconsin’s Natural Resources - Wisconsin Conservation Voters - Oct 31st, 2017
- Sportsmen and Elected Leaders Speak Out Against Sulfide Mining Bill - Wisconsin Conservation Voters - Oct 13th, 2017
- Op Ed: What Happened to Wisconsin? - State Sen. Mark Miller - Oct 12th, 2017
- Mining Bill is a Disaster that No Amendment Can Fix - Wisconsin Conservation Voters - Oct 3rd, 2017
- Op Ed: Flambeau Mine Was Bad For State - Raj Shukla - Sep 23rd, 2017
Read more about Senate Bill 395 here
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