Incoming State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, announced the six Republican senators that will serve on the Joint Finance Committee Monday.
The committee will be co-chaired by state Sen. Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, and vice-chaired by state Sen. Luther Olsen, R-Ripon. Fitzgerald also named state Sens. Sheila Harsdorf, R-River Falls, Joseph Leibham, R-Sheboygan, Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, and Randy Hopper, R-Fond du Lac, to the committee, which will include two yet-to-be-named senate Democrats.
""The Senate Republican team is ready to get to work balancing our budget and reining in government spending while preserving the core functions of government,"" Fitzgerald said in a statement.
The Joint Finance Committee makes changes to the governor's recommended budget before introducing it into the legislature, and all bills requiring funding must be referred to the committee. The committee is considered the most powerful in the Legislature because of their role in the budget process.
Hopper, who was elected in 2008, will be the first legislator to sit on the committee in his first term.
Although the assembly members of the Joint Finance Committee have yet to be appointed, assembly Republicans elected their two top leaders for the upcoming legislative session Monday.
State Rep. Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford, will be the Assembly Majority Leader, and Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon, Scott Fitzgerald's brother, will serve as Speaker of the Assembly.
""After a historic election that put Republicans in charge of all state government, I look forward to helping the good people of Wisconsin get back to work,"" Jeff Fitzgerald said in a statement. ""The voters spoke with a clear voice calling for smaller government and private sector job growth.""
Assembly Democrats and Republicans will announce their appointments in the coming weeks.
