2017 Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 35. Publication and distribution of laws and public documents.
35.095 Acts.
35.095 Acts.
(1) Definitions. In this section:
(a) “Date of enactment" means the day on which a bill becomes an act through approval by the governor, passage over the governor's veto or failure of the governor to act on it or the day on which a portion of a bill which has been vetoed in part is enacted over the governor's partial veto.
(b) “Date of publication" means the day after the date of enactment.
(c) “Working day" means each day except Saturdays, Sundays, and federal and statewide legal holidays designated in s. 995.20.
(2) Numbering.
(a) Each act of a session shall be numbered consecutively commencing with one. An act enacted by the governor's approval shall be numbered by the governor at the time of approval. An act enacted either by passage over the governor's veto or by the governor's failure to act upon it within the time limit shall be numbered immediately by the chief clerk of the house of origin.
(b) The person numbering an act under par. (a) shall note on it the date of enactment, shall immediately provide electronic notice to the legislative reference bureau of the act number and date of enactment, and shall deposit it in the secretary of state's office no later than the next working day following its enactment.
(3) Publication.
(a) The legislative reference bureau shall publish every act and every portion of an act that is enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto on its date of publication on the Internet in one or more electronic file formats. The legislative reference bureau may electronically publish every act and every portion of an act that is enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto on other electronic media in one or more electronic file formats, as the legislative reference bureau determines.
(c) Copies of each act or portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto shall be available electronically on or before the date of publication of the act to subscribers under s. 35.87. At appropriate intervals, the officer designated under s. 35.87 shall certify to the secretary of state that each act or portion of an act was available electronically to subscribers on or before its date of publication.
Cross Reference: See s. 889.01 for the acts as prima facie evidence.
Cross Reference: See s. 991.11 for effective dates of acts.
Article IV, Section 17 of the Wisconsin Constitution vests the legislature with the constitutional power to “provide by law" for publication. The legislature has set the requirements for publication. If a court can intervene and prohibit the publication of an act, the court determines what shall be law and not the legislature. If the court does that, it does not in terms legislate but it invades the constitutional power of the legislature to declare what shall become law. This a court may not do. Ozanne v. Fitzgerald, 2011 WI 43, 334 Wis. 2d 70, 798 N.W.2d 436, 11-0613.
