76th Wisconsin Legislature

The Seventy-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature convened from to in regular session, and convened in a special session in December 1963.
During this legislative session, the legislature and governor again failed at several attempts to pass a redistricting plan. The Wisconsin Supreme Court enacted its own redistricting plan in May 1964, making it the first time in Wisconsin history that the legislative maps were drawn by a court.
Senators representing odd-numbered districts were newly elected for this session and were serving the first two years of a four-year term. Assembly members were elected to a two-year term. Assembly members and odd-numbered senators were elected in the general election of November 6, 1962. Senators representing even-numbered districts were serving the third and fourth year of a four-year term, having been elected in the general election of November 8, 1960.
The governor of Wisconsin during this entire term was Democrat John W. Reynolds Jr., of Brown County, serving a two-year term, having won election in the 1962 Wisconsin gubernatorial election.

Major events

January 7, 1963: Inauguration of John W. Reynolds Jr. as the 36th Governor of Wisconsin.
April 2, 1963: 1963 Wisconsin Spring election:
* Bruce F. Beilfuss was elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court to succeed Brown (judge)|Timothy Brown].
* Wisconsin voters approved an amendment to the state constitution to allow the legislature to set methodology for equalization of property values for the purpose of calculating municipal and county debt limits.
* Wisconsin voters also rejected two amendments to the state constitution:
** to allow the legislature to change the salaries of state judges during their terms.
** to change the timing of the decennial redistricting from the first session after the census to the second.
August 28, 1963: Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
November 22, 1963: U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Lyndon B. Johnson immediately succeeded him as the 36th President of the United States.
January 1, 1964: R. Currie">Republican Party (United States)">R. Currie became the 19th chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court by rule of seniority, at the expiration of the term of chief justice Timothy Brown.
January 23, 1964: The Twenty-fourth Amendment to [the United States Constitution] came into force when a sufficient number of states ratified.
April 7, 1964: 1964 Wisconsin Spring election:
* Wisconsin voters rejected three amendments to the state constitution:
** to increase the maximum state appropriation for forestry improvements.
** to adjust property valuation for municipal and county debt limit calculation for situations where a large amount of material property is suddenly removed.
** to allow constitutional amendments to contain multiple related issues, rather than having each change as a separate amendment.
May 14, 1964: The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in the case of Reynolds v. Zimmerman, creating new legislative districts for use in the remaining 1960s elections.
July 2, 1964: U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law.
July 23, 1964: Wisconsin Supreme Court justice William H. Dieterich died in office.
August 10, 1964: U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, authorizing the use of American military force in Vietnam.
August 11, 1964: Wisconsin Governor John W. Reynolds Jr. appointed Nathan Heffernan to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, to succeed the deceased justice William H. Dieterich.
November 3, 1964: 1964 United States general election:
* Lyndon B. Johnson elected President of the United States.
* Warren P. Knowles elected Governor of Wisconsin.
* William Proxmire elected United States senator from Wisconsin.

Major legislation

May 23, 1963: An Act... relating to the apportionment of congressional districts for Wisconsin, .
1963 Joint Resolution 7: Joint Resolution to amend article IV, section 26 of the constitution, relating to allowing increase or decreases for certain public officers during their term. Second legislative passage of a proposed amendment to the state constitution to allow the legislature to change the salaries of state judges during their terms. This amendment was rejected by voters at the April 1963 election.
1963 Joint Resolution 8: Joint Resolution to amend Article XI, section 3 of the constitution, relating to debt limits for units of local government. Second legislative passage of a proposed amendment to the state constitution to allow the legislature to set a process to equalize property values for use in calculating municipal and county debt limits. This amendment was approved by voters at the April 1963 election.
1963 Joint Resolution 9: Joint Resolution to amend Article IV, Section 3 of the constitution, relating to the time for apportionment of seats in the state legislature. Second legislative passage of a proposed amendment to the state constitution to change redistricting timing from the first session after the publishing of the census to the second. This amendment was rejected by voters at the April 1963 election.

Sessions

Regular session: January 9, 1963January 13, 1965December 1963 special session: December 10, 1963December 13, 1963

Leaders

Senate leadership

President of the Senate: Jack B. Olson
President pro tempore: Frank E. Panzer
Majority leader: Robert P. Knowles
Minority leader: Richard J. Zaborski

Assembly leadership

Speaker of the Assembly: Robert Haase
Speaker pro tempore: Harold W. Clemens
Majority leader: Paul Alfonsi
Minority leader: Robert T. Huber

Members

Members of the Senate

Members of the Senate for the Seventy-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature:

Dist.	Counties	Senator	Residence	Party
01	Door, Kewaunee,		Sturgeon Bay	Rep.
02	Brown		Green Bay	Rep.
03	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
04	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Rep.
05	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
06	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
07	Milwaukee		Milwaukee	Dem.
12	Iron, Lincoln, Oneida, Price, Taylor,		Merrill	Rep.
13	Dodge		Oakfield	Rep.
14	Outagamie		Bear Creek	Rep.
15	Rock		Janesville	Rep.
16	Dane		Stoughton	Dem.
17	Grant, Green, Iowa,		Darlington	Rep.
18	,		Rosendale	Rep.
19	Calumet		Neenah	Rep.
20	Ozaukee		Sheboygan Falls	Rep.
21	Racine		Racine	Dem.
22	Kenosha		Kenosha	Rep.
23	Barron, Burnett, Polk, Rusk, Sawyer,		Spooner	Rep.
24	Clark, Portage,		Port Edwards	Rep.
25	Ashland, Bayfield,		Superior	Dem.
26	Dane		Madison	Dem.
27	Columbia, Crawford, Richland,		Richland Center	Rep.
28	Chippewa		Eau Claire	Dem.
29	Marathon, Menominee,		Wausau	Rep.
30	Florence, Forest, Langlade, Marinette,		Oconto	Rep.
31	Adams, Juneau, Monroe, Marquette,		Sparta	Rep.
32	Jackson, La Crosse,		La Crosse	Rep.
33	Jefferson		Hartland	Rep.

Members of the Assembly

Members of the Assembly for the Seventy-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature:

Committees

Senate committees

Senate Standing Committee on AgricultureJ. E. Leverich, chair
Senate Standing Committee on ConservationC. Krueger, chair
Senate Standing Committee on EducationP. P. Carr, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Governmental and Veterans Affairs, chair
Senate Standing Committee on HighwaysJ. Miller, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Interstate CooperationF. E. Panzer, chair
Senate Standing Committee on the JudiciaryA. Busby, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Labor, Taxation, Insurance, and BankingG. Lorge, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Public WelfareC. Dempsey, chair
Senate Standing Committee on Senate OrganizationF. E. Panzer, chair
Senate Special Committee on CommitteesR. Bice, chair
Senate Special Committee on Contingent Expenditures, chair
Senate Special Committee on Legislative ProcedureF. E. Panzer, chair

Assembly committees

Assembly Standing Committee on AgricultureW. Merriam, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Assembly OrganizationR. Haase, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce and ManufacturesJ. Quinn, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on ConservationP. Alfonsi, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Contingent ExpendituresJ. C. McKay, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on EducationW. B. Calvert, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on ElectionsW. A. Steiger, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Engrossed BillsF. W. Schlueter, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Enrolled BillsW. E. Owen, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Excise and FeesF. E. Shurbert, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on HighwaysE. C. Nitschke, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Insurance and BankingK. Kenyon, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on the JudiciaryR. E. Peterson, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on LaborW. J. Hutnik, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on MunicipalitiesE. F. McEssy, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on PrintingM. C. Kintz, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Public WelfareW. Terry, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on RevisionL. R. Baumgart, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on RulesP. Alfonsi, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on State AffairsF. M. Jahnke, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on TaxationE. Bidwell, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Third ReadingC. M. Stauffer, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on TransportationB. Lewison, chair
Assembly Standing Committee on Veterans and Military AffairsH. W. Clemens, chair

Joint committees

Joint Standing Committee on FinanceW. G. Hollander & G. Pommerening, co-chairs
Joint Standing Committee on Legislative OrganizationR. Haase, chair
Joint Standing Committee on Revisions, Repeals, and Uniform LawsE. Keppler & R. Uehling, co-chairs
Joint Legislative CouncilR. Knowles, chair