New Law Requires Feral Pigs to be Named “Harmful Wild Animals”

Assembly Bill 334, which I authored, was signed into law by Governor Doyle on March 20. This bill requires the Department of Natural Resources to designate by rule feral swine and wild swine as “harmful wild animals”. I enjoyed working with citizens in the Gays Mills and Bell Center areas, as well as agricultural and environmental groups and local elected officials, to pass this bill.

Once the rules are approved by the legislature, it will be illegal to possess and propagate feral swine or wild swine, unless permitted to do so by the Department of Natural Resources. This bill’s main purpose is to prevent people from bringing feral pigs into the state to raise them and to prevent new releases of them into the wild. Feral pigs have caused serious destruction to agriculture and our environment. Our state’s pork producers were lucky that last year’s pseudorabies threat that was linked to a feral pig did not significantly affect their livelihood.

This winter, the United States Department of Agriculture has been successful in trapping feral pigs in the Gays Mills area in Crawford County. It is time to rid these crop-damaging, disease-spreading creatures from the landscape and the USDA is playing a vital role in this effort, along with area citizens, our Wisconsin Department of Agriculture and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Assembly Bill 334 is the 119th bill to become law of the 2,387 bills introduced in the 2007-2008 legislative session.

CAPTION: Governor Doyle congratulates Rep. Nerison after signing his Assembly Bill 334 into law. L to R: Mike Wehler with the Wisconsin Pork Association, Governor James Doyle, Jerry Derr with the Wisconsin Towns Association, Laura Nerison, and Rep. Lee Nerison.

Reminder - Office Hours on March 28th

As your state representative, one of my most important responsibilities is to hear your ideas and concerns so that I can best represent you in the State Assembly. You can always feel free to email me at , or call my office in Madison toll-free at (888) 534-0096. Every month, I hold office hours in the district and I welcome you to discuss your views on upcoming legislation or any other issues or concerns you may have.

This month, I will be holding office hours in Stoddard, Chaseburg, and Coon Valley on March 28th at the following times and places. Please stop by – I look forward to seeing you!

10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
River Bank
Stoddard

11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Tippy Toe Inn
Chaseburg

1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Stockyard Bar and Grille
Coon Valley

What Happened Today in History?

Anyone who is interested in the history of Wisconsin will want to check out the Wisconsin Historical Society’s “Today in History” website link. This website lists noteworthy events that happened on a particular day in Wisconsin’s history. There is even a link for people to nominate an event to be included on the website that the Historical Society might not know about.

The website can be accessed at http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/ and is enjoyed by history buffs, both young and old alike.