State Rep. Brett Hulsey, D-Madison, a member of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee, dubbed the measure the "Poison Our Drinking Water Act."

"Of course it makes no sense, when Wisconsin had the largest drinking water outbreak in modern history," he says.

In 1993, more than 400,000 people were sickened and at least 104 died in Milwaukee when the protozoa cryptosporidium infected the water supply. That outbreak, however, happened despite the fact that the city was disinfecting its water. It has since increased the level of disinfectants used on the water supply, as well as stepping up water testing, according to DNR officials.

Six Republicans and one Democrat, Jim Holperin of Conover, signed onto the bill in the Senate, and 13 Republicans and one Independent, Bob Ziegelbauer of Manitowoc, endorsed it in the Assembly.

In a letter seeking co-sponsorship from colleagues, Harsdorf and Severson complain that the DNR rule goes beyond federal mandates.

"This mandate imposes a significant cost on municipalities," they wrote. "One community cited a price tag of $2.9 million for complying with this mandate, which is several times larger than the community's annual budget."