Committee nixes solicitor general’s office (UPDATE)

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The state’s Joint Finance Committee voted unanimously to eliminate Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to hire a solicitor general and three deputy solicitor generals to help the Department of Justice handle appeals and similar matters.

The vote came on a motion made by state Sen. Robert Wirch, D-Pleasant Prairie, who said the proposal would have added too much to the state’s budget. Paying the salaries of the four solicitor generals, as well as that of an additional legal secretary, would have cost about $1 million over the next two years, according to a report by the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

“We are adding high-priced attorneys out there that I don’t think are needed,” Wirch said. “We can handle this in house.”

In an earlier discussion, Kevin St. John, deputy attorney general, said many states have taken to creating positions for solicitor generals in recent years. He said a solicitor general can help the state coordinate the cases it makes in front of various courts, ensuring that the arguments put forward in one venue don’t contradict or undermine those put forward in another.

“How you win can be as important as winning,” he said. “And how you lose a case can also be important.”

The Joint Finance Committee is now considering the governor’s proposed 2013-15 budget piece by piece. For the document to take effect, it still must be approved by the full Legislature and signed by the governor.