89th Wisconsin Legislature

The Eighty-Ninth Wisconsin Legislature convened from January 3, 1989, to January 7, 1991, in regular session, and also convened in two special sessions.

Senators representing even-numbered districts were newly elected for this session and were serving the first two years of a four-year term. Assembly members were elected to a two-year term. Assembly members and even-numbered senators were elected in the general election of November 8, 1988. Senators representing odd-numbered districts were serving the third and fourth year of a four-year term, having been elected in the general election of November 4, 1986.

Major events

 * January 20, 1989: Inauguration of George H. W. Bush as the 41st President of the United States.
 * April 4, 1989: 1989 Wisconsin Spring election:
 * Wisconsin voters rejected an amendment to the state constitution which would have allowed the state legislature to enact progressive tax relief for state property and sales taxes.
 * June 3, 1989: Forces of China's People's Liberation Army began a crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests, ultimately resulting in many deaths.
 * November 9, 1989: After an unexpected announcement of liberalization of travel policy in East Germany, crowds of civilians began demolishing the Berlin Wall, which had divided the city since the 1960s.
 * February 7, 1990: The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union agreed to allow parties other than the Communist Party of the Soviet Union to compete in elections in the constituent republics of the Soviet Union.
 * April 3, 1990: 1990 Wisconsin Spring election:
 * Wisconsin voters ratified an amendment to the state constitution which revised the gubernatorial line-item veto power to prevent the governor from creating entire new words from vetoing parts of other words.
 * August 7, 1990: U.S. President George H. W. Bush ordered American military forces to Saudi Arabia following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.
 * November 6, 1990: 1990 United States general election:
 * Tommy Thompson (R) re-elected Governor of Wisconsin.
 * November 29, 1990: The United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 678, ordering Iraq to withdraw forces from Kuwait by January 15, 1991, and empowering states to use all necessary means to force Iraq to comply with the resolution.

Major legislation

 * August 8, 1989: An Act relating to state finances and appropriations, constituting the general executive budget bill of the 1989 legislature, and making appropriations, 1989 Act 31. Vetoed in part, this act also established the Wisconsin Department of Corrections.

Sessions

 * Regular session: January 3, 1989 –January 7, 1991
 * October 1989 special session: October 10, 1989 –March 22, 1990
 * May 1990 special session: May 15, 1990

Senate leadership

 * President of the Senate: Fred Risser (D–Madison)

Senate majority leadership

 * Majority Leader: Joseph A. Strohl (D–Racine)
 * Assistant Majority Leader: David Helbach (D–Stevens Point)

Senate minority leadership

 * Minority Leader: Michael G. Ellis (R–Neenah)
 * Assistant Minority Leader: Brian Rude (R–Coon Valley)

Assembly leadership

 * Speaker of the Assembly: Thomas A. Loftus (D–Sun Prairie)
 * Speaker pro tempore: David Clarenbach (D–Madison)

Assembly majority leadership

 * Majority Leader: Thomas A. Hauke (D–West Allis)
 * Assistant Majority Leader: Marlin Schneider (D–Wisconsin Rapids)

Assembly minority leadership

 * Minority Leader: David Prosser Jr. (R–Appleton)
 * Assistant Minority Leader: Randall J. Radtke (R–Lake Mills)

Members of the Senate
Members of the Senate for the Eighty-Ninth Wisconsin Legislature:

Members of the Assembly
Members of the Assembly for the Eighty-Ninth Wisconsin Legislature:

Senate employees

 * Chief Clerk: Donald J. Schneider
 * Sergeant-at-Arms: Daniel B. Fields

Assembly employees

 * Chief Clerk: Thomas T. Melvin
 * Sergeant-at-Arms: Robert G. Johnston