By C1 Staff
MADISON, Wis. — A bill circulating in Madison would address the question of protective status for county jail correctional officers.
WBAY reports that jail officers had protective status, which meant similar retirement options and duty-incurred disability benefits as active police officers, until the passing of Act 10 terminated it.
Officers are now leaving unprotected jobs, which puts public safety at risk.
The new bill would give each county the option of paying for protective status. Last year, the Brown County Board unanimously approved a resolution supporting it, which they hope will add pressure to lawmakers to pass the bill.
Lawmakers are concerned the bill would cost taxpayers millions.
“I think right now we need to do our due diligence to take a look at the bill and see what the price tag is,” said Brown County Director of Administration Chad Weiniger.
It’s unclear how much the bill would cost, but supervisors did say that the county didn’t save millions when the protective status was removed.
Supervisors and the sheriff’s office say the bill isn’t meant to undermine Act 10, but said it would level the playing field since state correctional officers in the prison system still have protective status.