Wisconsin lawmakers want to make 2020 campaigns pay upfront for rally costs

MADISON - Democratic lawmakers are introducing legislation a day before President Donald Trump visits the state to prevent more Wisconsin taxpayers from getting stuck footing the bill for campaign rallies.

Sen. Jeff Smith of Eau Claire and Rep. Amanda Stuck of Appleton introduced a bill Monday that requires presidential campaigns to pay local governments in advance for costs related to rallies and events.

The legislation comes a day before Trump is set to hold a rally for thousands of his supporters in Milwaukee and as Democratic presidential candidates gear up their campaigns in Wisconsin.

"Campaigns have really jilted the communities that they’ve used their services to hold rallies," Smith said in an interview.

Smith represents Eau Claire, which Trump and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton still owe for unpaid police and public safety-related costs both campaigns racked up during 2016 campaign events.

The Trump campaign owes $56,778 to the cities of Eau Claire and Green Bay for local police bills during campaign stops in the spring and summer of 2016. Clinton’s campaign owes the same cities $18,705.

In some cases, officials with both campaigns have ignored repeated requests over the last three years for reimbursement, according to local government officials.

The unpaid bills highlight an unforeseen hit to local governments' budgets that could matter in 2020 as the president and two dozen Democratic candidates campaign in Wisconsin — one of the top battleground states.

"(Trump's) running again and the fact is even the Clinton campaign left us hanging with a bill that is unpaid," Smith said. "We think it’s not good for our communities."

The bill allows local government officials to require the payment of its estimated costs related to police and sanitation services in advance of issuing permits for candidates' events. The proposal also bars local government officials from issuing a permit for a campaign event until the campaign pays off its debts to other municipalities.

There's no penalty in state law for not doing so, however, according to Smith's office. Smith also said it would be up to the municipality hosting a rally to check whether the campaign seeking to hold an event hasn't paid bills elsewhere.

He said local officials will have to trust the campaigns to give them correct information.

Trump’s April 2, 2016, visit to Eau Claire cost the city’s police department $47,398 in personnel, food and equipment rental fees.

A September 2016 invoice sent to Trump’s New York headquarters shows that in addition to the $21,054 spent for Eau Claire officers to work the event, another $20,107 was added to pay for help from other police departments.

Clinton campaigned in the city the same day. Her visit cost $6,812, with $5,718 going toward police staffing, according to an invoice sent to the campaign after the event.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz campaigned in the area the same weekend — both went on to win Wisconsin's presidential primary election.

Sanders spoke at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, which has it own police force. Cruz's campaign event was outside the city and the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office had jurisdiction.

Cruz reimbursed the county for the event, Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office officials said.

It's unclear whether the legislation will have support in the Legislature. Aides to the Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos did not immediately say whether the leaders would support the legislation. Aides to Gov. Tony Evers also were not immediately available Monday morning.

Contact Molly Beck at molly.beck@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MollyBeck.