Wisconsin Question 1, Elimination of State Treasurer Amendment (April 2018)

Wisconsin Question 1
Election date April 3, 2018
Topic State executive official measures
Status d Defeated
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature
List of Wisconsin measuresWisconsin Question 1 - AprilSubmit

Wisconsin Question 1, the Elimination of State Treasurer Amendment, was on the ballot in Wisconsin as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on April 3, 2018. The measure was defeated.

A "yes" vote supported this amendment to eliminate the elected position of state treasurer.

A "no" vote opposed this amendment to eliminate the elected position of state treasurer.

Election results

Wisconsin Question 1
Result		Votes	Percentage
d No		584,323	61.75%
Yes		361,963	38.25%

Election results from Wisconsin Elections Commission

Overview

What changes would Question 1 have made?

On April 3, 2018, voters decided against making Wisconsin the ninth state without a voter-elected or legislature-elected state treasurer, comptroller, or equivalent financial officer. Question 1 would have eliminated the position of state treasurer on January 7, 2019. As of 2018, Wisconsin had an elected state treasurer since 1848, the year Wisconsin received statehood. Between 2003 and 2018, most of the state treasurer’s duties had been transferred to the departments of administration and revenue, which had governor-appointed secretaries.

Along with eliminating the elected office of state treasurer, Question 1 would have transferred the treasurer’s one remaining constitutional duty—to sit on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands—to the lieutenant governor. As of 2018, the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands was responsible for generating investment income for public school libraries, making loans to municipalities and school districts, managing state trust lands for timber management, and archiving land records. As of 2018, state law also tasked the state treasurer with providing services to promote the unclaimed property program; making certified copies of deeds, bonds, and documents filed in the treasurer's office; and holding books on the state's financial transactions.

How did Question 1 get on the ballot?

In Wisconsin, a constitutional amendment gets on the ballot through votes of the Wisconsin State Legislature during two successive legislative sessions. Question 1 received the backing of most Republicans—91 percent during the 2015-2016 session and 95 percent during the 2017-2018 session. Most Democrats were opposed to referring Question 1—16 percent voted in favor of it during the 2015-2016 session and 13 percent during the 2017-2018 session. As of 2018, Republicans had trifecta control of the state government since 2011, controlling both chambers of the state legislature along with the governor's office.

The existence of the state treasurer's office was a campaign issue for candidates running to win the office in 2014. Democrat David Sartori opposed the elected office's elimination, saying the office provided an internal check and balance on executive power. Republican Matt Adamczyk supported eliminating the office, stating that the office was irrelevant and had almost all of its duties removed and that elimination would save tax revenue. Adamczyk defeated Sartori 48.8 percent to 44.7 percent.

What did supporters and opponents of Question 1 disagree on?

State Rep. Rob Brooks (R-60), one of the legislative sponsors of Question 1, summarized the supporters’ argument as “[Question 1] eliminates an unnecessary office and saves the taxpayers money over the long term.” Wisconsin Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-33), who voted against referring Question 1, said, “I'm concerned about pulling a constitutionally authorized office away because I like having separation of powers. I like having independence. This is a role that, if you look at a lot of other states, they use it so that you can have good independent transparency into the government, into the finances of a government.” Without an elected position of state treasurer, argued progressive journalist John Nichols, the power over state finances would be concentrated in the hands of governor-appointed administrative officials. State Treasurer Matt Adamczyk (R), who advocated for eliminating the office during his campaign for the treasurer's office in 2014, responded, “The power grab rhetoric used by opponents of the amendment is a good use of words but it’s not the reality. The duties transferred are largely administrative. This isn’t about power. When the function of government fits better in another agency, I think it makes sense to move it.”

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title was as follows:

“

Question 1: Elimination of state treasurer. Shall sections 1 and 3 of article VI and sections 7 and 8 of article X of the constitution be amended, and section 17 of article XIV of the constitution be created, to eliminate the office of state treasurer from the constitution and to replace the state treasurer with the lieutenant governor as a member of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands?

”

Explanatory statement

The explanatory statement was as follows:

“

Article VI of the Wisconsin Constitution provides for the election of a state treasurer every four years. Wis. Const. Art. VI, § 1. The Constitution spells out only one duty for the Treasurer: to serve as one of three members on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, which is charged with the sale of school and university lands and with the investment of funds arising from such sales. Wis. Const. Art. X, § 7. The other two members of that Board are the Attorney General and Secretary of State. The referendum question proposes to eliminate the constitutional office of Treasurer. To fill the Treasurer’s position on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, the Lieutenant Governor would serve as the third member of that Board. A “yes” vote on this question would eliminate the constitutional office of the Treasurer. It would replace the Treasurer with the Lieutenant Governor as a member of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands. A “no” vote would retain the constitutional office of the Treasurer under Article VI. The Treasurer would also continue to serve as a member of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands.

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article VI, Article X and Article XIV of the Wisconsin Constitution

Question 1 would have amended Sections 1 and 3 of Article VI and Sections 7 and 8 of Article X and create Section 17 of Article XIV of the Wisconsin Constitution. The following underlined text would have been added and struck-through text would have been deleted:

Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.

Article VI. Section 1. The qualified electors of this state, at the times and places of choosing the members of the legislature, shall in 1970 and every 4 years thereafter elect a secretary of state, treasurer and an attorney general who shall hold their offices for 4 years 4-year terms.

Article VI. Section 3. The powers, duties, and compensation of the treasurer and attorney general shall be prescribed by law.

Article X. Section 7. The lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer and attorney general, shall constitute a board of commissioners for the sale of the school and university lands and for the investment of the funds arising therefrom. Any two of said commissioners shall be a quorum for the transaction of all business pertaining to the duties of their office.

Article X. Section 8. Provision shall be made by law for the sale of all school and university lands after they shall have been appraised; and when any portion of such lands shall be sold and the purchase money shall not be paid at the time of the sale, the commissioners shall take security by mortgage upon the lands sold for the sum remaining unpaid, with seven per cent 7 percent interest thereon, payable annually at the office of the treasurer as provided by law. The commissioners shall be authorized to execute a good and sufficient conveyance to all purchasers of such lands, and to discharge any mortgages taken as security, when the sum due thereon shall have been paid. The commissioners shall have power to withhold from sale any portion of such lands when they shall deem it expedient, and shall invest all moneys arising from the sale of such lands, as well as all other university and school funds, in such manner as the legislature shall provide, and shall give such security for the faithful performance of their duties as may be required by law.

Article XIV. Section 17. The state treasurer holding office on the date of ratification of the 2015-17 amendment providing for the deletion of that office from the constitution shall continue to hold that office until the first Monday of January in 2019. Any vacancy in the office occurring before that date shall be filled in the manner provided by law.

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The Wisconsin State Legislature and Wisconsin attorney general wrote the ballot language for this measure. The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 18, and the FRE is 23. The word count for the ballot title is 63, and the estimated reading time is 16 seconds. The FKGL for the ballot summary is grade level 8, and the FRE is 57. The word count for the ballot summary is 188, and the estimated reading time is 50. In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here. Based on political scientists Reilly and Richey's (2011) research, the mean FKGL for a statewide measure on the ballot in Wisconsin between 1997 and 2007 was 20.

Support

Supporters

Officials

The following legislators sponsored the amendment in the Wisconsin State Legislature:

• Rep. André Jacque (R-2)
• Rep. Ron Tusler (R-3)
• Rep. David Steffen (R-4)
• Rep. Gary Tauchen (R-6)
• Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R-14)
• Rep. Joe Sanfelippo (R-15)
• Rep. Daniel Knodl (R-24)
• Rep. Paul Tittl (R-25)
• Rep. Adam Jarchow (R-28)
• Rep. Tyler August (R-32)
• Rep. Cody Horlacher (R-33)
• Rep. Mary Czaja (R-35)
• Rep. Joel Kleefisch (R-38)
• Rep. Mark Born (R-39)
• Rep. Kevin Petersen (R-40)

• Rep. Michael Schraa (R-53)
• Rep. Mike Rohrkaste (R-55)
• Rep. David Murphy (R-56)
• Rep. Bob Gannon (R-58)
• Rep. Jesse Kremer (R-59)
• Rep. Robert Brooks (R-60)
• Rep. Tom Weatherston (R-62)
• Rep. Rob Summerfield (R-67)
• Rep. Bob Kulp (R-69)
• Rep. Scott Krug (R-72)
• Rep. Romaine Quinn (R-75)
• Rep. Mike Kuglitsch (R-84)
• Rep. John Spiros (R-86)
• Rep. James Edming (R-87)

• Rep. John Nygren (R-89)
• Rep. Eric Genrich (D-90)
• Rep. Scott Allen (R-97)
• Rep. Adam Neylon (R-98)
• Rep. Cindi Duchow (R-99)
• Sen. Dave Craig (R-28)
• Sen. Leah Vukmir (R-5)
• Sen. Devin LeMahieu (R-9)
• Sen. Stephen Nass (R-11)
• Sen. Howard Marklein (R-17)
• Sen. Dan Feyen (R-18)
• Sen. Roger Roth (R-19)
• Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-20)
• Sen. Van Wanggaard (R-21)

Other officials supporting the amendment included:

• Gov. Scott Walker (R)
• State Treasurer Matt Adamczyk (R)

Former officials

The following former legislators sponsored the amendment in the Wisconsin State Legislature:

• Rep. Dean Knudson (R-30)
• Sen. Rick Gudex (R-18)

Arguments

• Sen. Dan Feyen (R-18) said, "The Office of the State Treasurer has no purpose and no reason to exist … In the past the office had responsibilities that were vital to the operation of the state, but as times have changed all of those responsibilities have been transferred to different offices and agencies where they can be better executed."
• Rep. Michael Schraa (R-53) said, "This amendment is in line with our efforts to make Wisconsin government more streamlined and efficient. Since the main duties of the treasurer are now fulfilled by state agencies, it only makes sense to eliminate the unnecessary expense of this office."
• Rep. Rob Brooks (R-60) described the amendment as a win-win for taxpayers, saying, "It eliminates an unnecessary office and saves the taxpayers money over the long term."
• Rep. Joel Kitchens (R-1) stated, "It sounds like a very important job - but it's not. If we’re going to keep it then we need to put those responsibilities back in the job but they've been stripped away because we have so many other departments that handle tasks."
• James Wigderson, writing an opinion article for the MacIver Institute, said, "As another prominent Democrat would phrase it, the long arc of history has been towards making the office irrelevant. Opponents of the amendment will have to answer the question that if this vestigial office has no authority, and is unlikely to ever be granted it in the future, then why should the voters want to keep it?"
• State Treasurer Matt Adamczyk (R), who advocated for eliminating the office during his campaign for the treasurer's office, stated, "The power grab rhetoric used by opponents of the amendment is a good use of words but it’s not the reality. The duties transferred are largely administrative. This isn’t about power. When the function of government fits better in another agency, I think it makes sense to move it."

Opposition

The Save Our Fiscal Watchdog Committee led the campaign in opposition to Question 1.

Opponents

Officials

• U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-2)
• Secretary of State Doug La Follette (D)
• Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-31)
• Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-33)
• Rep. Katrina Shankland (D-71)

Former officials

• Gov. Tony Earl (D)
• State Treasurer Jack Voight (R)
• Mayor Dave Cieslewicz (D), Madison

Municipalities

• Madison Common Council

Individuals

• Sarah Godlewski, venture capitalist and philanthropist
• John Nichols, author and journalist

Organizations

The following organizations filed documents with the legislature stating their opposition to the amendment:

• Wisconsin County Treasurers' Association
• Wisconsin County Clerks Association
• Wisconsin County Constitutional Officers Association

Arguments

Save Our Fiscal Watchdog's "Vote No on Eliminating Our State Treasurer"

• Melanie Stake (R), clerk of Waushara County, stated, "The wise authors of Wisconsin’s constitution created a divided government – and six state constitutional officers – for a reason. Transferring duties to personnel appointed by, and/or overseen by, the governor’s office creates a disconcerting consolidation of power that has the potential to compromise fair and transparent government."
• Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-33), who voted against referring the amendment, said, "I'm concerned about pulling a constitutionally authorized office away because I like having separation of powers. I like having independence. This is a role that, if you look at a lot of other states, they use it so that you can have good independent transparency into the government, into the finances of a government."
• John Nichols, a journalist for The Nation, associate editor for The Cap Times, and author of Uprising: How Wisconsin Renewed the Politics of Protest, said, "The proposal to eliminate the elected state treasurer is on the ballot — as a constitutional amendment — and voters should reject this attempt to permanently consolidate power in the hands of gubernatorial appointees rather than elected officials."
• Sarah Godlewski, co-founder of an impact investment firm called MaSa Partners, said, "As a former management consultant and now impact investor, I would never advise a client or invest in a business that did not have a separate financial office. Getting rid of the state treasurer is equivalent to a company firing its auditor and chief financial officer and handing those duties to its CEO. A well-run business would never do this, so why would this be good for Wisconsin?"
• Secretary of State Doug La Follette (D), referring to the treasuer's seat on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands and how the amendment would transfer the seat to the lieutenant governor, stated, "The Land Board has very productively managed its trust fund to benefit the school children of Wisconsin. I think eliminating the treasurer is part of a plan to get control of that money. The lieutenant governor is usually more closely aligned with the governor since they run together on a ticket. This will bring them one step closer to being able to convince the Commission to go along with some major changes that would give the governor’s office more control over these funds.”
• Rep. Katrina Shankland (D-71) said, "I think it's important to know that there are multiple trust funds managed by the state treasurers and if our state treasurer goes away it would create an undual concentration of power."

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance requirements for Wisconsin ballot measures

There were no committees registered in support of Question 1.

There was one ballot measure committee registered to oppose Question 1—Save Our Fiscal Watchdog. The committee raised $87,723 and spent $87,533. The top contributor to the committee was the Greater Wisconsin Committee Political Action Committee, which contributed $60,000.

	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Support	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Oppose	$86,409.11	$1,313.86	$87,722.97	$86,218.89	$87,532.75
Total	$86,409.11	$1,313.86	$87,722.97	$86,218.89	$87,532.75

Opposition

The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committees in opposition to the initiative.

Committees in opposition to Question 1
Committee	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Save Our Fiscal Watchdog - Vote No	$86,409.11	$1,313.86	$87,722.97	$86,218.89	$87,532.75
Total	$86,409.11	$1,313.86	$87,722.97	$86,218.89	$87,532.75

Donors

The following were the top donors to the committee.

Donor	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions
Greater Wisconsin Committee PAC	$60,000.00	$0.00	$60,000.00
Lynde Bradley Uihlein	$25,000.00	$0.00	$25,000.00
Sarah Godlewski	$0.00	$1,313.86	$1,313.86
Gary Goyke	$300.00	$0.00	$300.00
Green Bay PAC	$300.00	$0.00	$300.00

Reporting dates

Wisconsin ballot measure committees filed a total of four campaign finance reports in 2018. The filing dates for reports were as follows:

2018 campaign finance reporting dates
Date	Report	Period
​1/16/2018	Continuing Report for 2017	07/01/2017 - 12/31/2017
2/12/2018	Report #1	1/01/2018 - 2/05/2018
3/26/2018	Report #2	2/06/2018 - 3/19/2018
​7/16/2018	Report #3	3/20/2018 - 6/30/2018
1/15/2019	Continuing Report for 2018	7/01/2018 - 12/31/2018

Media editorials

See also: 2018 ballot measure media endorsements

Support

• Racine Journal Times said, "The ship has sailed, as the responsibilities of the office have been stripped away. All that’s left to do is let taxpayers pocket the remaining couple of hundred thousand dollars, and turn the Capitol office into storage space or give it to other staff."
• Republican Eagle said, "Established under the Wisconsin Constitution in 1848, the Treasurer's Office originally did hold a variety of key duties administratively, but legislation has transferred most of them to other agencies as a result of technology, specialization and, so lawmakers claim, streamlined government. Modern-day auditors, revenue officers and more have made the state treasurer obsolete, so paying the annual $69,936 salary is a waste of taxpayers' money."
• Wisconsin State Journal said, "So rest assured, Wisconsin voters: Eliminating the do-nothing and wasteful state treasurer’s office in Tuesday’s spring election won’t compromise good government or harm your right to know what state government is up to. Instead, it will save a little money and further the noble efforts launched a half-century ago to professionalize the main functions of state government."

Opposition

• The Cap Times said, "This would make Walker and future governors ever more powerful. The cronies they appoint would manage state business as extensions of the governor’s office, rather than as extensions of the electorate. Accountability would be further eroded."
• Channel 3000 said, "This is an accountability and checks and balances issue at its heart. ... We don’t take amending the constitution lightly. This doesn’t rise to that level."
• The Shepherd Express said, "Eliminating the state treasurer would make it easier for politicians to play fast and loose with our state tax dollars. ... This amendment is an invitation to corruption and will cost the state taxpayers millions and millions of dollars if we shoot the watchdog."

Background

Wisconsin state treasurer

See also: Wisconsin Treasurer

History of the office

In 1848, citizens of Wisconsin ratified the Wisconsin Constitution, the same version in effect in 2018. Section 1 of Article VI of the document provided for an elected state treasurer with a two-year term. In 1967, voters approved Question 3, which increased the treasurer's term length from two years to four years starting in 1970 (The amendment establishing a four-year term was modified following the passage of Question 4 in 1979. Question 4 was designed to consolidate multiple amendments regarding the term lengths of executive offices into a single section and made no other changes.).

The state government created an Office of the State Treasurer in 1969 to provide staff and resources for the state treasurer. Most of the office's duties were reassigned to the Wisconsin Department of Administration in 2003. Other duties and programs were transferred to the department of administration or department of revenue in 2011 and 2013. As of 2018, the heads of the departments of administration and revenue were appointed by the governor.

The Republican-controlled Wisconsin State Legislature passed and Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle signed Senate Bill 44, which was enrolled as Act 33, in July 2003. Act 33 eliminated the treasurer's duty to receive and pay out money received by the state and the treasurer's role in overseeing credit card use charges. Duties transferred to the department of administration included: (a) paying claims; (b) paying warrants; (c) keeping records of the state's cash receipts and disbursements; (d) reporting to the governor information on state funds and interests; (e) issuing a biennial report on the cash balance in each state fund and aggregate value of securities held in each state fund; (f) reporting and transmitting payments to counties and municipalities; (g) stamping and canceling checks; (h) offering services to non-government entities which have securities in trust; (i) safekeeping receipts for federal securities; and (j) allocating interest earned on state money to appropriate state funds.

In 2011, the state government—the first Republican trifecta since 1998—eliminated the public finance system for state campaigns, which the state treasurer was responsible for managing. The state also transferred the Wisconsin College Savings Program and the Wisconsin Local Government Investment Pool from the treasurer's office to the Wisconsin Department of Administration.

The biennial budget bill that was passed and signed in 2013, enacted as Act 20, transferred the treasurer's task of overseeing the unclaimed property program to the department of revenue. Act 20 required the treasurer to help promote the unclaimed property program. In 2015, the state treasurer lost the power to appoint an assistant state treasurer to sign checks and share drafts on depositories.

The table below illustrates partisan control of the three centers of state political power—the office of the governor, the state House, and the state Senate—and the state treasurer's office from 1992 through 2018.

	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18
Governor	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
Senate	D	R	R	R	D	D	R	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
House	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R
Treasurer	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R

Budget and salary

In 2018, the budget for the state treasurer's office was $113,500. Between 2001 and 2018, the department's budget peaked at $6,861,400 in 2005 (about $8,703,760 in 2018 dollars). The unclaimed property program accounted for 80 percent of the department's budget in 2008. Between 2012 and 2013, the steepest decrease in the office's budget during the 15-year period occurred. The 89 percent decrease was caused by Act 20, which transferred the unclaimed property program from the treasurer's office to the department of revenue.

The state treasurer's salary increased 28 percent, from $54,610 (about $76,259 in 2018 dollars) to $69,936, between 2001 and 2018. The state treasurer, along with the secretary of state, was the lowest-paid constitutional executive state officer in 2018. The governor was the highest-paid, earning $147,328. The attorney general was the highest-paid non-gubernatorial official, receiving a $142,966 salary.

The following chart details the office of the state treasurer's budget from fiscal year 2001-2002 through fiscal year 2018-2019 in current dollars and January 2018 dollars:

Current duties

As of April 2018, the state treasurer had five duties, including one constitutional duty. Sections 7 of Article X of the Wisconsin Constitution required the treasurer to serve as a member of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, which oversaw investment income for public school libraries, making loans to municipalities and school districts, managing state trust lands for timber management, and archiving land records. Chapter 14.58 of Wisconsin state statutes provided four additional duties, including (a) signing checks and sharing drafts on depositories; (b) providing services to promote the unclaimed property program; (c) permitting the inspection and examination of state financial transactions by government officials; and (d) making certified copies of deeds, bonds, or documents in the treasurer's office.

As of April 2018, the duties of the office, as outlined in Chapter 14.58 of the Wisconsin state statutes, were as follows:

Chapter 14.58 - Duties of state treasurer.

The state treasurer shall: (1). Sign checks, share drafts, and other drafts. Sign checks, share drafts, and other drafts on depositories in which moneys may be deposited in one of the following methods: (a) By the state treasurer personally. (c) In the name of the state treasurer, by any clerk in the treasurer's office designated by the treasurer. (d) By placing on a check, share draft or other draft the facsimile signature of the state treasurer adopted by him or her as a facsimile signature. Any depository shall be fully warranted and protected in making payment on any check, share draft or other draft bearing such facsimile notwithstanding that the facsimile may have been placed on the check, share draft or other draft without the state treasurer's authority. (4). Unclaimed property program. Provide services related to the promotion of the unclaimed property program under ch. 177 in consultation with the secretary of revenue. (7). Permit examination of books. Permit at all times inspection and examination of the books, papers and transactions of the treasurer's office by the governor, secretary of state, attorney general, department of administration or state auditor, or by the legislature, any committee thereof or either house thereof. (11). Make certified copies. Make a certified copy of any deed, bond, document or paper filed in the treasurer's office, and transcripts from the books and records kept therein, when required by any person so to do; and collect therefore 25 cents per folio, and $1 for such certificate. (14). Other duties. Perform all other duties imposed upon the state treasurer by law.

Treasurers in other states

See also: State treasurer

As of 2018, all 50 states had a state treasurer or a government office with similar duties. In 38 states, voters elected the state treasurer or equivalent position. In Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, and Tennessee, the state legislature elected an individual to serve as the state treasurer or an equivalent role. Governors appointed the state treasurer or equivalent position in eight states, including in two of Wisconsin's neighboring states—Michigan and Minnesota. Voters in Minnesota approved a constitutional amendment to abolish the office of the state treasurer in 1998. In 2010, the Nebraska State Senate referred an amendment to the ballot designed to eliminate the elected office of the state treasurer. Over 67 percent of voters rejected the ballot measure. Under Question 1, Wisconsin would have had a governor-appointed postions that performed the roles equivalent to a state treasurer's roles.

Referred amendments on the ballot

From 1996 through 2017, the Wisconsin State Legislature referred 10 constitutional amendments to the ballot. Voters approved all 10 of the referred amendments. Most of the amendments (six of 10) were referred to the ballot during even-numbered election years. The average number of amendments appearing on the ballot during an even-numbered election year was between zero and one. No amendments appeared on the ballot in 2016 or 2017. However, one amendment appeared on the ballot in 2015 and one in 2014. The approval rate at the ballot box was 100 percent during the 20-year period from 1996 through 2016. The last time voters rejected a referred amendment was in 1995.

Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments, 1996-2017
Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Even-year average	Even-year median	Annual minimum	Annual maximum
10	10	100.00%	0	0.00%	0.48	0.00	0	2

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the Wisconsin Constitution

In Wisconsin, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a majority vote in each chamber of the Wisconsin State Legislature during two successive legislative sessions.

2015-2016 legislative session

On January 29, 2015, the amendment was introduced into the legislature. On October 27, 2015, the Wisconsin State Assembly approved Assembly Joint Resolution 5 (AJR 5), with 63 yea votes and 33 nay votes. Three assembly members did not vote. The Wisconsin State Senate approved AJR 5 on January 20, 2016. There were 20 yea votes and 13 nay votes. The first approval of the amendment was enrolled on March 15, 2016.

Vote in the Wisconsin State Assembly October 27, 2015
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 50  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	63	33	3
Total percent	63.64%	33.33%	3.03%
Democrat	6	30	0
Republican	57	3	3

Vote in the Wisconsin State Senate January 20, 2016
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 17  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	20	13	0
Total percent	60.61%	39.39%	0.00%
Democrat	2	12	0
Republican	18	1	0

2017-2018 legislative session

The amendment was introduced during the 2017 legislative session as Senate Joint Resolution 3 (SJR 3). On March 7, 2017, the Senate approved SJR 3, with 18 senators voting in favor and 15 voting against. On March 9, 2017, the State Assembly passed the amendment, with 68 members in favor and 31 against. The second approval of the amendment was enrolled on March 24, 2017

Vote in the Wisconsin State Senate March 7, 2017
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 17  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	18	15	0
Total percent	54.55%	45.45%	0.00%
Democrat	0	13	0
Republican	18	2	0

Vote in the Wisconsin State Assembly March 9, 2017
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber in two sessions
Number of yes votes required: 50  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	68	31	0
Total percent	68.69%	31.31%	0.00%
Democrat	6	29	0
Republican	62	2	0

State profile

Demographic data for Wisconsin
	Wisconsin	U.S.
Total population:	5,767,891	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	54,158	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	86.5%	73.6%
Black/African American:	6.3%	12.6%
Asian:	2.5%	5.1%
Native American:	0.9%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.1%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	6.3%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	91%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	27.8%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$53,357	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	15%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Wisconsin. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Wisconsin

Wisconsin voted for the Democratic candidate in five out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, 23 are located in Wisconsin, accounting for 11.17 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Wisconsin had 21 Retained Pivot Counties and two Boomerang Pivot Counties, accounting for 11.60 and 8.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Wisconsin coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Wisconsin
• United States congressional delegations from Wisconsin
• Public policy in Wisconsin
• Endorsers in Wisconsin
• Wisconsin fact checks
• More...

See also

2018 measures

• 2018 ballot measures
• State executive official measures on the ballot

Wisconsin

• Wisconsin ballot measures
• Wisconsin ballot measure laws
• Wisconsin State Treasurer

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Assembly Joint Resolution 5
• Senate Joint Resolution 3

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Wisconsin 2018 Eliminate Treasurer Amendment. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Wisconsin Question 1, Elimination of State Treasurer Amendment (April 2018) - Google News