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Advisory Committee  |
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Advisory Committee |
| In June 1976, Attorney
General Bronson LaFollette appointed the first Citizens Advisory Committee
to the Public Intervenors, to enforce the accountability and credibility
of the office. In a press release, he stated that the Committee “was
established to provide public input and assistance on environmental matters
to the Attorney General and to the Public Intervenors.” The Committee
was charged with selecting major cases for Public Intervenor involvement,
setting priorities for natural resource issues, and making major case strategy
decisions.
The Committee also removed the potential for conflict of interest by direct involvement of the Wisconsin Attorney General in specific issues handled by the Public Intervenors. By law, the Attorney General and the Dept. of Justice are required to defend government agencies like the Dept. of Natural Resources. On occasion, this meant that the Intervenors had to oppose the Attorney General in court. Though the Intervenors Office was housed within the Dept. of Justice, it was deliberately created as a separate entity. In 1984, the Committee’s structure, membership and role was given formal statutory standing by the Legislature. By law, the Committee was to have 7 to 9 members appointed by the Attorney General, and each member was to have a demonstrated record of experience relating to environmental protection in natural resource conservation. One member was required to be a farmer and another had to have a background in business. A policy was developed setting 3-year terms for each member. The Committee met about 6 times per year. Meetings were publicly noticed and open to the public. Citizens were welcome to attend, and to submit written comments. When a particularly difficult issue was being discussed, the Committee often invited several opposing factions to make presentations to the committee, in order to hear all sides.
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