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Frank G. Lasee
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly for Wisconsin's 2nd District
In office 1994 – 2008
Preceded by	Rep. Dale Bolle, (D) Whitelaw, WI
Succeeded by	Ted Zigmunt (D)
Born	December 11, 1961 (1961-12-11) (age 48) Oceanside, California
Political party	Republican
Alma mater	University of Wisconsin, Green Bay

Frank Lasee was a Republican member of the Wisconsin Assembly for the state's 2nd Assembly District from 1994 through 2008. He was known for his email newsletter, Lasee's Notes, which he sent to constituents and other interested parties for nearly a decade.^[1]

History

Born December 11, 1961 and raised in Oceanside, California, Lasee graduated in 1986 from the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay with a major in humanistic studies. ^[2][3][4] He is the father of three daughters.^[5][4][6]

Prior to his election to the State Assembly in 1994, Lasee was the Ledgeview, Wisconsin Town Board Chair from 1993 to 1997,^[4] and was a supervisor for an insurance company.^[7]

Lasee was a member of the State Assembly who was a dissenter on many issues, including state budgets.^[8] He is called an advocate of taxpayers, limited spending and an opponent of the tax increases.^[9][10] Voters have approved enough of his performance to elect him seven times,^[11] but not enough to re-elect him in 2008.

Policy proposals

A list of bills proposed by Lasee is available at the Wisconsin Legislature web site.^[12] Some of his most notable proposals are as follows.

Guns in schools

Lasee achieved notoriety through his proposal to allow public school teachers to carry guns. Lasee asserts that such policies have been effective in other countries such as Israel and Thailand.^[13] Lasee notes that the proposal would have to "work around a federal law that bans guns on school grounds".^[14]

Law school funding

Lasee proposed to cut state funding to the University of Wisconsin Law School, claiming that lawyers are a "plague of locusts" and that we already have too many. His plan includes an initial cut of $1 million and a complete removal of funding by 2010. This would affect about 10 percent of the school's total funding. Opponents say that Wisconsin has a shortage of at least 127 state-funded assistant district attorneys.^[15]

Reducing counties

Lasee feels that Wisconsin has too many counties at 72, and should consolidate the counties in rural areas.^[16] He believes that this would produce a cost savings in government, though he has never articulated his reasoning.

Taxpayers Bill of Rights

A Taxpayers Bill of Rights, also known as TABOR, was introduced by Frank Lasee and Jeff Wood in 2004 in Wisconsin. They stated "taxpayers in this state need protection".^[17][18] TABOR includes five basic provisions:^[19]

1. Limit state and school spending growth to population growth plus inflation.
2. Limit county and municipalities the same way.
3. Any increase in income, sales, franchise, or property tax rates, would require the approval of voters.
4. Any proposal by the state or local governments to borrow money would require the approval of voters.
5. Establish an emergency fund and budget stabilization fund.

Taxpayer Protection Act

A 2006 proposal was the "Taxpayer Protection Act". The TPA proposed to tie governments revenue to inflation, population, personal income growth etc.^[20]

Paternity Suit

In 2005, Kari Manteufel filed a paternity suit against Lasee for a daughter born in November 2004. Lasee subsequently acknowledged he was the father of the child and agreed to pay child support, giving custody to Manteufel.^[6]

Campaign reimbursements

In November 2007, Lasee was mentioned for reimbursing himself from his campiagn for old bills in an article about several state lawmakers found to be "double-dipping" by taking a per-diem from the state at the same time as reimbursing themselves from their campaign. accounts.^[21]

2008 Election Defeat

Lasee denounced the Wisconsin -teachers union (WEAC) for running ads against him^[22] which he suggested contributed to his defeat. The ads featuted a photo of Lasee on a flying saucer with the tag line "out of this world" after noting Lasees political positions.

References

External links

• Follow the Money - Frank Lasee
  • 2008 2006 2004 2002 2000 1998 campaign contributions