Dane County Circuit Judge Juan Colas today declared large parts of the controversal Act 10 unconstitutional. The controversial act removed most collective bargaining rights from public workers in Wisconsin, and was one of the causes of the protests and unrest in Madison last year. The judgment is a ruling in the law suit filed by Madison Teachers Incorporated.
A press conference will be held tomorrow at Cullen Weston Pines & Bach at 10:00 AM CST, at which representatives for Madison Teachers, Inc. (MTI) and Public Employees Local 61 in Milwaukee will discuss the decision and its ramifications for collective bargaining in Wisconsin.
Governor Walker's predictable response:
"The people of Wisconsin clearly spoke on June 5th," "Now, they are ready to move on. Sadly a liberal activist judge in Dane County wants to go backwards and take away the lawmaking responsibilities of the legislature and the governor. We are confident that the state will ultimately prevail in the appeals process."
At the moment it is not clear to me whether this ruling applies to state workers, or only to municipal workers.
The press release and judgment are attached below: