Legislators Grant Pay Raises For State Workers, Except Milwaukee DA

By Isiah Holmes, Wisconsin Examiner

December 22, 2021

Just in time for Christmas, the Wisconsin Legislature’s committee on employment relations voted Tuesday to approve a 2 percent pay raise for all state employees, except for the Milwaukee County District Attorney. Co-chair of the committee Republican Senate President Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield), directly referenced the ongoing controversy over the release of Darrell Brooks on $1,000 bail.

Brooks drove his SUV through a Christmas parade in Waukesha, killing six and injuring more than 60. Since then, Republican lawmakers have called for tougher-on-crime policies including raising bail, and have called for District Attorney John Chisholm to step down.

Kapenga accused Chisholm of “failing at his job and has made decisions that (have) led to the deaths of more than a handful of people in my district,” and said of the pay increase, “there’s no way we’re going to approve something like that.” Chisholm’s office has been reviewing what he called “inappropriately low” bail that preceded Brooks’ release shortly before he drove his vehicle into the parade. The pay raise changes won’t take effect until 2025. In the meantime, the GOP has continued it’s attacks on Chisholm and criminal justice reform policies.

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