86th Wisconsin Legislature
The Eighty-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature convened from to in regular session, and also convened in six special sessions.
This was the only legislative session under the legislative redistricting plan imposed by a panel of federal judges in 1982 in the case Wisconsin State AFL-CIO v. Elections Board. The district plan was intended to be punitive, scrambling the district numbers and putting incumbents in head-to-head contests. During this session, the legislature and governor agreed on a new redistricting plan to supersede the court plan, the only time this has been done in Wisconsin history.
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 2, 1982. 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 4, 1980.
The governor of Wisconsin during this entire term was Democrat Tony Earl, of Marathon County, serving the first two years of a four-year term, having won election in the 1982 Wisconsin gubernatorial election.
Major events
- January 3, 1983: Inauguration of Tony Earl as the 41st Governor of Wisconsin.
- April 5, 1983: Wisconsin state senator William A. Bablitch was elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court to succeed Bruce F. Beilfuss.
- April 18, 1983: A car bomb detonated in front of the U.S. embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people.
- August 1, 1983: Nathan Heffernan became the 23rd chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court by rule of seniority, at the expiration of the term of chief justice Bruce F. Beilfuss.
- October 23, 1983: Simultaneous 1983 [Beirut barracks bombings|truck bombings] in Beirut destroyed a United States Marine Corps barracks and a French Army barracks, killing 241 U.S. servicemen, 58 French paratroopers, and 6 Lebanese civilians.
- November 6, 1984: 1984 United States general election:
- * Ronald Reagan re-elected President of the United States
Major legislation
- July 19, 1983: An Act... relating to redistricting the senate and assembly based on the 1980 federal census of population and making miscellaneous changes in the statutes pertaining to decennial legislative redistricting, .
- April 9, 1984: An Act... relating to establishing a system of marital property shared by husband and wife and providing penalties, . Wisconsin's update to marital property laws to default to a shared property standard. Wisconsin was the first state to implement this change.
Sessions
Regular session: January 3, 1983January 7, 1985January 1983 special session: January 4, 1983January 6, 1983April 1983 special session: April 12, 1983April 14, 1983July 1983 special session: July 11, 1983July 14, 1983October 1983 special session: October 18, 1983October 28, 1983February 1984 special session: February 2, 1984February 4, 1984May 1984 special session: May 22, 1984May 24, 1984Leaders
Senate leadership
- President of the Senate: Fred Risser
- President pro tempore: William A. Bablitch
Senate majority leadership
- Majority Leader: Timothy Cullen
- Assistant Majority Leader: Paul Offner
- * John Norquist
Senate minority leadership
- Minority Leader: James Harsdorf
- Assistant Minority Leader: Susan Engeleiter
Assembly leadership
- Speaker of the Assembly: Thomas A. Loftus
- Speaker pro tempore: David Clarenbach
Assembly majority leadership
- Majority Leader: Gary K. Johnson
- Assistant Majority Leader: Richard Shoemaker
Assembly minority leadership
- Minority Leader: Tommy Thompson
- Assistant Minority Leader: Robert S. Travis Jr.
Members
Members of the Senate
Members of the Senate for the Eighty-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature:Members of the Assembly
Members of the Assembly for the Eighty-Sixth Wisconsin Legislature:Employees
Senate employees
- Chief Clerk: Donald J. Schneider
- Sergeant-at-Arms: Daniel B. Fields
Assembly employees
- Chief Clerk: Joanne M. Duren
- Sergeant-at-Arms: Lewis T. Mittness
Changes from the 85th Legislature
New districts for the 86th Legislature were defined in the case of Wisconsin State AFL-CIO v. Elections Board, decided by a three-judge panel of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. This was the first time redistricting in Wisconsin was performed by a federal court.Senate redistricting
Summary of Senate changes
- No districts were left unchanged
- Milwaukee County went from having 7 whole districts and part of two additional districts down to 6 whole districts and part of two additional districts.
Senate districts
| Dist. | 85th Legislature | 86th Legislature |
| 1 | Door, Kewaunee, Manitowoc counties and parts of eastern Brown County | Door, Kewaunee counties and northern Manitowoc County and parts of eastern Brown County and eastern Calumet County |
| 2 | Calumet County and parts of central Brown County, southwest Outagamie County, eastern County, northwest Sheboygan County, and northern Washington County | Most of Calumet County, eastern Outagamie County, eastern Shawano County, and parts of southern Brown County and southern Oconto County |
| 3 | Milwaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 4 | Northeast Milwaukee County and most of Washington County and part of southern Ozaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 5 | Milwaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 6 | Milwaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 7 | Milwaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 8 | Milwaukee County | Milwaukee County |
| 9 | Milwaukee County | Most of Sheboygan County and southern Manitowoc County and parts of southeast Calumet County and eastern County |
| 10 | Buffalo, Burnett, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, counties and western Barron County and part of southwest Trempealeau County | Burnett, Pierce, Polk, counties and western Dunn County |
| 11 | Milwaukee County | Western Waukesha County and parts of southeast Washington County, southeast Jefferson County, and northwest Walworth County |
| 12 | Florence, Forest, Lincoln, Oneida, Rusk, Taylor, Vilas counties and parts of northeast Clark County, southern Price County, western Oconto County, northern Marinette County, and most of Langlade County | Florence, Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Menominee, Oneida, Vilas and northern Marinette County, western Shawano County, and parts of northwest Oconto County, and northern Marathon County |
| 13 | Central and southern Jefferson County and eastern Dane County | Most of Jefferson County and most of Dodge County and part of northeast Rock County |
| 14 | Waupaca County and most of Outagamie County and parts of southern Shawano County | Adams, Green Lake, Juneau, Marquette, Waushara counties and eastern Waupaca County and western Outagamie County and parts of northwest Winnebago County and western County |
| 15 | South and eastern Rock County and most of Walworth County and part of western Racine County | Central and southeast Rock County and most of Walworth County |
| 16 | Northern, western, and southern Dane County and northern Rock County | Most of Dane County and parts of northern Green County and northwest Rock County |
| 17 | Green, Iowa, Lafayette, Richland counties and most of Grant County and parts of northwest Dane County and western Rock County | Iowa, Lafayette counties and most of Grant County, most of Green County, and parts of southwest Richland County and western and northern Rock County |
| 18 | Most of Dodge County and parts of central County and western Washington County | Most of County, southern Winnebago County, and parts of western Washington County and eastern Dodge County |
| 19 | Most of Winnebago County and part of northern County | Northeast Winnebago County and part of southern Outagamie County |
| 20 | Most of Sheboygan County and most of Ozaukee County | Most of Ozaukee County, eastern Washington County, and parts of southeast Sheboygan County |
| 21 | Racine County | Racine County |
| 22 | Kenosha County and parts of central Racine County and southeast Walworth County | Kenosha County and parts of southwest Racine County and southeast Walworth County |
| 23 | Chippewa and Dunn counties and parts of western County and eastern Pepin County | Chippewa and Clark counties and parts of eastern Dunn County, northern Eau Claire County, western Marathon County, southern Taylor County, and southeast Barron County |
| 24 | Green Lake and Portage counties and most of Waushara County and parts of northern Wood County, southern Marathon County, eastern Clark County, western County, northwest Dodge County, and southwest Winnebago County | Portage and Wood counties and western Waupaca County |
| 25 | Ashland, Bayfield, Douglas, Iron, Sawyer, Washburn counties and eastern Barron County and northern Price County | Ashland, Bayfield, Douglas, Iron, Sawyer, Washburn counties and most of Barron County |
| 26 | Dane County | Dane County |
| 27 | Columbia, Marquette, Sauk counties and parts of southern Adams County, southern Juneau County, and western Dodge County | Columbia County, most of Sauk County, most of Richland County, and part of western Dodge County |
| 28 | and most of Waukesha County and parts of eastern Jefferson County | and parts of southeast Waukesha County, western Racine County, and northeast Walworth County |
| 29 | Menominee County and most of Marathon County and most of Shawano County and part of southern Langlade County | Price, Rusk counties and most of Marathon County and most of Taylor County |
| 30 | Brown and eastern Oconto County and southern Marinette County | Northwest Brown County and eastern Oconto County and southern Marinette County |
| 31 | Most of Eau Claire County, most of Jackson County, most of Monroe County, and most of Clark County, and northern Trempealeau County | Buffalo, Jackson, Pepin, Trempealeau counties and most of Eau Claire County and most of Monroe County |
| 32 | Crawford, La Crosse, Vernon counties and parts of northwest Grant County, southwest Monroe County, southern Trempealeau County, and southeast Jackson County | Crawford, La Crosse, Vernon counties and parts of northern Grant County and western Monroe County |
| 33 | Waukesha County | Northeast Waukesha County, parts of southern Washington County and western Milwaukee County |