Environmental Advocates Hail Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision in Evers v Marklein
Madison, WI—In a landmark decision today, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that legislative committee vetoes of administrative rules violate the state constitution. Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA), Save Our Water (S.O.H2O), and Wisconsin Conservation Voters (WCV) praised the ruling as a major victory for environmental protection and democratic accountability.
The case, brought by Governor Tony Evers and other executive officials in late 2023, challenged the authority of legislative committees to obstruct executive branch actions. In July 2024, the court held that the Wisconsin State Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee could not veto Department of Natural Resources (DNR) grant decisions under the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. The court affirmed that while the legislature may allocate funds and set grant criteria through legislation, it cannot retain veto power over the executive’s implementation of those laws.
MEA represented S.O.H2O and WCV in the case as amici curiae (friends of the court), arguing that committee vetoes have obstructed the implementation of vital environmental safeguards, causing real-world harm to Wisconsin communities. An amicus brief filed by the MEA described how a legislative committee met on the Friday before Christmas in 2020 to act on an industry request to weaken PFAS monitoring requirements. The committee’s veto of a rule regulating the use of firefighting foam has enabled Tyco/Johnson Controls to continue discharging PFAS into the Marinette City Wastewater Treatment Plant. As a result, highly toxic PFAS chemicals continue to accumulate in local surface water.
“In the past, small groups of legislators have been able to block the implementation of popular environmental protections passed by the full legislature and signed by the governor,” said Tony Wilkin Gibart, executive director of MEA. “This process violated basic constitutional principles and was often exploited by polluters and industry groups to effectively repeal environmental laws—outcomes they could never achieve through the normal legislative process.”
“The committee veto process was used to weaken environmental protections for my community,” said Jeff Lamont, President of S.O.H2O, a group of residents impacted by PFAS pollution in the Marinette and Peshtigo areas. “We are pleased the court struck down this abuse, and that it will no longer be a barrier as we work to protect our water.”
“The health of our environment and the health of our democracy are deeply connected,” said Jennifer Giegerich, Government Affairs Director of Wisconsin Conservation Voters. “Committee vetoes were anti-democratic because they allowed a handful of legislators to make decisions that affect the entire state. We’re pleased this ruling restores constitutional balance and strengthens accountability for environmental decisions that impact all Wisconsinites.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
More about the PFAS Problem
- Environmental Advocates Hail Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision in Evers v Marklein - Midwest Environmental Advocates - Jul 8th, 2025
- Wisconsin Supreme Court Backs State Regulators of PFAS Pollution - Danielle Kaeding and Rich Kremer - Jun 24th, 2025
- Gov. Evers Releases Statement on Wisconsin Supreme Court Decision in WMC Inc v. DNR - Gov. Tony Evers - Jun 24th, 2025
- Rep. Shelia Stubbs Elected Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus Vice Chair of the Task Force on Emerging Contaminants - State Rep. Shelia Stubbs - Jun 16th, 2025
- Legislature’s Budget Committee Unanimously Boosts Clean Water Funding By $732 Million - Danielle Kaeding - Jun 6th, 2025
- Trump Administration moves to weaken standards for toxic ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water - Clean Wisconsin - May 14th, 2025
- Wisconsin Officials Unhappy With EPA Plan To Weaken PFAS Standards - Danielle Kaeding - May 14th, 2025
- Wisconsin Could Lose $55 Million Under Proposed EPA Budget Cuts - Danielle Kaeding - May 7th, 2025
- French Island Makes Progress on PFAS Pollution - Richelle Wilson and Trevor Hook - Mar 24th, 2025
- Who Will Pay for PFAS Pollution? - Bennet Goldstein - Feb 27th, 2025
Read more about PFAS Problem here