The state Assembly failed to override Gov. Jim Doyle's veto of a bill that would have removed the governor's power to appoint the Department of National Resources secretary Tuesday.
The Assembly voted 58-38, failing to meet the two-thirds threshold necessary to override Doyle's veto.
State Rep. Donald Friske, R-Merrill, voted against overriding the veto and said allowing the state Senate to confirm the DNR secretary would create a worse political situation than continuing to give the governor the power to appoint the secretary without Senate approval.
The bill would have allowed the Senate to confirm the secretary after appointment by the Natural Resources Board, which Friske said would tie the DNR to numerous political figures rather than one.
The bill received some support from Republican Assembly members, and Democratic members voted overwhelmingly in favor of overriding the veto.
State Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, voted for the bill and said he was disappointed the Assembly did not override the veto.
""I am disappointed in the outcome of today's vote, and I will continue to work to ensure that we carefully manage our state's precious natural resources,"" he said.
According to a report from the Government Accountability Board, organizations spent nearly 3,000 hours lobbying for or against the DNR bill between January and December 2009.
