Robin Vos

Robin Vos
Wisconsin State Assembly District 63
Incumbent
In office
2005 - Present
Term ends
January 5, 2015
Years in position	8
Party	Republican
Leadership
Speaker, Wisconsin State Assembly
2013-present
Compensation
Base salary	$49,943/year
Per diem	$88/day
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
First elected	2004
Next election	November 4, 2014
Term limits	N/A
Personal
Birthday	07/05/1968
Place of birth	Burlington, WI
Websites
Office website

Robin Vos is a Republican member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the 63rd District since 2005. He has served as Speaker of the Assembly since 2013.

Vos previously served on the Racine County Board from 1994-2004 and on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents from 1989-1991.

He has worked as a congressional district director, legislative assistant, and small business owner.

Vos is a member of Ducks Unlimited, Knights of Columbus, Leadership Council - National Federation of Independent Business, Racine Area Manufacturers and Commerce, Racine County Republican Party, Racine Zoological Society, and the Racine/Kenosha Farm Bureau.

Committee assignments

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Vos served on the following committees:

2011-2012

During the 2011-2012 legislative session, Vos served on these committees:

2009-2010

During the 2009-2010 legislative session, Vos served on these committees:

Wisconsin Committee Assignments, 2009
• Finance
• Insurance
• Finance
• Joint Legislative Council

Issues

Budget, 2011

The 2011 budget battle in Wisconsin was particularly unusual and contentious. Gov. Scott Walker's bill faced opposition from Democrats and citizen protestors in Madison, Wisconsin. At 3 a.m. on June 15, 2011, the Assembly passed the bill.

At one point in the process, Democrats introduced a wide-reaching amendment that would restore funding to public schools while, in part, nixing provisions for expanding the school vouchers program. When they introduced this, speakers argued that Republicans were rewarding school-voucher proponents who made campaign contributions.

“I did not take the time to look at how much (the state teachers union Wisconsin Education Association Council) gave to all of you to guarantee that you would offer amendments like this,” said Rep. Robin Vos in response.

Vos then said school districts beyond Milwaukee have problems — notably Racine, where Republicans hope to allow vouchers.

While Democrats called the budget an attack on middle-class families that includes $800 million in cuts to schools, Republicans say it is the first responsible budget in years.

“We said it’s time for government to go on a diet, and that’s exactly what we do in this budget,” Vos said.

Recall reform, 2011

On August 10, Vos (R) announced his intent to draft legislation that would amend the Wisconsin Constitution to clarify the reasons for recall. In a quote given to the Wisconsin Reporter, Vos said, "Losing an election does not mean you count down days until you can recall somebody," and that "despising someone should not rise to the level of a recallable offense."

In his press release, Vos said, "No longer should taxpayer dollars be wasted on unnecessary recall elections that were triggered by a vote that some special interest group didn’t like. It undermines our democracy and wastes precious taxpayer dollars that are needed elsewhere."

Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), a business association with about 4,000 members, has recently thrown its support behind Vos' efforts. A statement on the organization's website outlined the group's position. "As we all know, uncertainty and political instability are not good for job creation. That’s why WMC will be supporting recall reform in Wisconsin."

Among those opposing the idea is Assembly Democratic Leader Peter Barca. Barca issued the following statement in an August press release:

"Floating this constitutional amendment the day after successful recall elections that held legislators accountable appears to indicate that Republicans are frightened that future actions to hold them accountable will also be successful. We must encourage and build on the amazing outpouring of public involvement in democracy that we have seen this year."

According to Article 13, section 12, the state constitution gives only these stipulations for recall:

• Legislators must have served at least one year to be eligible for recall
• To initiate a recall against a legislator, a recall petition needs to be signed by electors equaling at least twenty-five percent of the vote cast for the office of governor at the last preceding election, in the state, county or district which the incumbent represents

Presently, there is no requirement for state level recall petitions to declare a reason why the targeted legislator should be recalled. A reason is currently required at the local level. Vos' amendment would seek to unify the state and local requirements, thereby incorporating into state recall law a mandate requiring petitions to include a valid reason for recall.

Vos is scheduled to introduce the constitutional amendment during the fall legislative session. It is intended to be the first piece of bi-partisan legislation introduced this September. In order to become law, a Constitutional amendment must pass two sessions of the Legislature and be approved in a statewide referendum.

Elections

2012

See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2012

Vos won re-election in the 2012 election for Wisconsin State Assembly District 63. Vos ran unopposed in the Republican primary on August 14 and defeated Kelley Albrecht (D) in the general election on November 6, 2012.

Wisconsin State Assembly, District 63, General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Robin Vos Incumbent	58.3%	17,704
	Democratic	Kelley Albrecht	41.6%	12,637
	-	Scattering	0.1%	21
Total Votes				30,362

2010

See also: Wisconsin State Assembly elections, 2010

Vos was re-elected to Wisconsin State Assembly District 63. He was unopposed in the September 14, 2010 primary election and in the general election on November 2, 2010.

Wisconsin State Assembly, District 63 Republican Primary (2010)
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Robin J. Vos (R)		8,155	99.84%

Sponsored legislation

Legislation sponsored in 2009 includes:

• AB-120 State agency expenditures, contracts, and grants: DOA required to make available on a Web site
• AB-192 Highway construction or maintenance worker: intentionally causing bodily harm to made a felony
• AB-225 Mandatory minimum sentences for certain child sex crimes applied only if convicted person was under age 18

For a full listing of sponsored legislation and details see the House site.

Campaign donors

2012

Campaign donor information is not yet available for this year.

2010

In 2010, Vos received $119,689 in campaign donations. The top contributors are listed below.

Wisconsin State Assembly 2010 election - Campaign Contributions
Top contributors to Robin Vos's campaign in 2010
Racine County Republican Party	$1,350
American Family Insurance	$750
Young, Sandra	$750
Swoboda, Robert J	$650
Schumann, Eric R	$600
Total Raised in 2010	$119,689

2008

The top 5 donors to Vos' 2008 campaign:

• 1. Racine County Republican Party $1,000
• 2. McKillip, Kevin $750
• 3. Fait, Robert $625
• 4. Runzheimer, Rex $500
• 5. Mitchell, George $500

Recent news

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This section displays the most recent stories in a Google News search for the term "Robin + Vos + Wisconsin + Assembly"

All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.

Robin Vos News Feed

• Wisconsin: Troubles mount for Walker's jobs agency - Pioneer Press
• State reports 62000 net job gain in 2 years - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Job situation: Back on track or derailed?; Wood-cutting accident caused ... - River Towns
• Dalai Lama tells Legislature to be compassionate - WISC Madison
• Bipartisan group of lawmakers introduces bill to change struggling jobs agency - Chippewa Herald
• Wisconsin Assembly passes measure that changes what doctors must tell ... - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Bill to get around injunctions blocking state laws gets preliminary Assembly OK - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Dems Delay GOP Bill To Weaken Circuit Judges - Wisconsin Public Radio News
• Venture capital bill stalls; dispute surfaces on whether biotech firms should ... - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Law to curb circuit judge's powers wins approval; poll says slight majority ... - River Towns

External links

Suggest a link

• Representative Vos's website
• Wisconsin Assembly - Representative Robin Vos
• Project Vote Smart biographical profile
• Project Vote Smart legislative profile
• Campaign Contributions:2008, 2006, 2004
• Wisconsin Democracy Campaign profile
• Representative Vos's Freedom Speaks profile
• Representative Vos's facebook
• Representative Vos's twitter

References

Political offices
Preceded by -	Wisconsin State Assembly District 63 2005–present	Succeeded by NA