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| Wisconsin Secretary of State Doug LaFollette |
So I find it interesting how politics is playing a role in our adoption process. If you recall the battle over Act 10 in the early part of 2011 when thousands of protesters filled the Capitol, Democratic senators left the state to delay the vote, and eventually the Republicans passed the bill without the missing senators. After the bill passed, the Secretary of State publishes the law. Ten days are allowed for the publication so the Secretary LaFollette took all 10 of those days in an attempt to delay the laws implementation. Later, when enough petitions were signed to force a recall election of Governor Scott Walker, Doug LaFollette ran as a candidate to replace Governor Walker. He didn't make it past the primary, but in 2014 he rolled to victory for his 10th term as Secretary of State.
Well, trying to get in the way of Republicans these days is bad for one's career. In the most recent state budget, the office of the Secretary of State was moved from a 4,000 square foot office overlooking the Capitol to a 400 square foot office in the basement of the State Capitol. Oh, and his staff was cut from 3 people to 1 and a part time person.
So, I don't know if the secretary needed three staff people to perform the duties of the office or not, but instead of certifications taking a few days, the wait time is now closer to 10 days. At this point, that is not a major concern for us because we're waiting for some other paperwork, but if we need something done quickly, it could be a concern. The interesting world of politics.
And, if you're interested, here is an audio clip where Secretary LaFollette talks about about certifications and apostilles:
http://cdn.wrn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Dougweb2.mp3
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