Evers’s NRB appointees face rough road

Last week the state Senate’s Financial Institutions and Sporting Heritage Committee voted against confirming four of Gov. Tony Evers’s appointees to the state Natural Resources Board, setting up possible dismissal by the full Senate and underscoring ongoing conflicts between Democrats and conservatives over such issues as wolf management and PFAS regulation.

The committee approved the appointment of former dairy farmer Paul Buhr but voted to nix the appointments of Dylan Jennings, Jim VandenBrook, Sandra Naas, and Sharon Adams. All have been serving on the Natural Resources Board (NRB) provisionally while awaiting Senate confirmation.

The vote does not necessarily mean a pink slip is coming: The full Senate could disagree or not take up the matter.

 If the full Senate does refuse their confirmation, however, their service on the board would be terminated. Evers would then make new appointments, who would also serve provisionally until confirmed or denied by the Senate.

Speaking to several media outlets, Evers’ spokesperson Britt Cudaback expressed anger at the committee’s actions.

“It’s outrageous that four dedicated and qualified public citizens who are volunteering their time, energy, and expertise to serve our state continue to be subjected to the political ire of Wisconsin Republicans whose own resumes wouldn’t pass muster for filling these very roles,” Cudaback said.

Republicans are upset over a number of issues, among them the agency’s proposed update of the state’s wolf management plan, which would eliminate wolf population goals, and the agency’s PFAS regulation. 

On the latter question, Naas told the committee in a hearing that she would support regulations that were more restrictive than that of the federal Environmental Protection Agency and VandenBrook said he might under certain conditions.

Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Irma) told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after the vote she voted for Buhr because he aligned with Northwoods values.

 "I think this vote was a necessary step in the right direction,” she said. “I did my due diligence, gladly met with the appointees who reached out to introduce themselves and have a conversation, researched the nominees, and ended up voting in favor of an Evers’ appointee who, I believe, will help bridge the gap at the NRB between Northwoods values and those of the governor.” 

Democrats on the committee, Sens. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit) and Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton), said the board members were more than fit for the job.

“We are deeply disappointed in our Republican colleagues’ decision today to reject the appointments of four extraordinarily qualified Wisconsinites,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement. “Over the past month, we have had the opportunity to hear directly from Sharon Adams, Dylan Jennings, Jim VandenBrook, and Sandra Dee Naas — who highlighted their many years of experience with issues ranging from hunting and fishing, to agriculture, to conservation, to water quality and the environment.”

Hesselbein and Spreitzer said each of them shared their longtime personal connections to the hunting, fishing, and trapping traditions in the state. 

“Gov. Evers appointed board members who embody what Republicans have claimed they are looking for: Wisconsinites from every corner of our state whose relationship with our state’s agricultural traditions and sporting heritage is a foundational part of their lives,” they said. “It is obvious that Republicans set all that aside to push a partisan agenda.”

The NRB sets policy for and oversees the Department of Natural Resources. The governor nominates its seven members for six-year staggered terms.

According to the DNR, under the law, three members are appointed from the territory north of a line running east and west through the south limits of Stevens Point; three members, from the territory south of the line; and one member from the state at large.

Beginning in 2017, at least one board member must have an agricultural background and at least three board members must have held a hunting, fishing, or trapping license in at least seven of the 10 years before the year of nomination, the DNR states.

The state Senate confirms or denies the governor’s nomination, but gubernatorial appointees serve provisionally in vacant seats until the Senate acts.