Wisconsin 2023-2024 Regular Session

Wisconsin Senate Bill SJR59 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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3	3	2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
4	4	2023 SENATE JOINT RESOLUTIO N 59
5	5	July 13, 2023 - Introduced by Senators PFAFF, AGARD, CARPENTER, BALLWEG,
6	6	HESSELBEIN, LARSON, ROYS and SPREITZER, cosponsored by Representatives
7	7	SNODGRASS, CONSIDINE, C. ANDERSON, J. ANDERSON, ANDRACA, CABRERA,
8	8	BALDEH, BEHNKE, CONLEY, EMERSON, HAYWOOD, HONG, JACOBSON, JOERS,
9	9	MOORE OMOKUNDE, OHNSTAD, ORTIZ-VELEZ, PALMERI, RATCLIFF, SCHUTT,
10	10	SHANKLAND, SHELTON, SINICKI, STUBBS, SUBECK and VINING. Referred to
11	11	Committee on Senate Organization.
12	12	Relating to: designating June 2023 as Pollinator Awareness Month in Wisconsin.
13	13	Whereas, bees, butterflies, and other pollinator species have a critically
14	14	important role in agriculture in the United States and help to produce a healthy and
15	15	affordable food supply and sustain ecosystem health; and
16	16	Whereas, pollinators are responsible for the reproduction of 90 percent of the
17	17	world's wild plant species by providing them with a healthy habitat rich in a variety
18	18	of native plants that are free or nearly free of pesticides; and
19	19	Whereas, thanks to the more than 400 species of native pollinators in
20	20	Wisconsin, along with honeybees, we have very diverse dietary choices rich in fruits,
21	21	nuts, and vegetables; and
22	22	Whereas, pollinators help to produce an estimated one out of every three bites
23	23	of food consumed in the United States and help reproduce at least 80 percent of
24	24	flowering plants; and
25	25	Whereas, commodities produced in partnership with animal pollinators
26	26	generate $6.5 million in annual production, with domestic honeybees alone
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45	45	pollinating an estimated $14.6 billion worth of crops in the United States each year
46	46	produced on more than two million acres; and
47	47	Whereas, there are approximately 20,000 bee species in the world, 3,600 in the
48	48	United States, and 400 in Wisconsin; and
49	49	Whereas, in Wisconsin, pollinator-dependent crops are harvested on over
50	50	100,800 acres, with apple, cranberry, cherry, green bean, and pickling cucumber
51	51	crops accounting for over $230 million in annual production; and
52	52	Whereas, bees and other pollinators have experienced population declines due
53	53	to a combination of habitat loss, use of pesticides, and the spread of pests and
54	54	diseases; and
55	55	Whereas, residents of Wisconsin have the opportunity to support bees and other
56	56	pollinators on both public and private land; and
57	57	Whereas, the State of Wisconsin seeks to ensure a healthy environment and
58	58	create policies that sustain our environment; and
59	59	Whereas, supporting native honeybees and other pollinators promotes
60	60	environmental awareness, sustainability, and increases interactions among
61	61	community stewards such as commercial and backyard beekeepers, farmers,
62	62	children, educators, Master Gardeners, plant nurseries, municipalities,
63	63	neighborhoods, and garden clubs and suppliers; and
64	64	Whereas, the ideal pollinator-friendly habitat provides diverse and abundant
65	65	nectar and pollen from plants blooming in succession throughout the growing
66	66	season; provides undisturbed spaces such as leaf and brush piles, un-mowed fields
67	67	or field margins, and fallen trees and other dead wood for nesting and overwintering
68	68	for wild pollinators; provides water for drinking, nest-building, cooling, diluting
69	69	stored honey, and butterfly puddling; is pesticide-free or has pesticide use carried
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98	98	out with the least ill effects possible on pollinators; is comprised of mostly, if not all,
99	99	native species of annual and perennial flowering plants, grasses, vines, shrubs, and
100	100	trees in landscapes because many wild pollinators prefer or depend on the native
101	101	plants with which they coadapted; includes, where possible, designated pollinator
102	102	zones in public spaces with signage to educate the public and build awareness; and
103	103	provides for safe and humane removal of honeybees when required; and
104	104	Whereas, No Mow May, a municipal effort encouraging homeowners to reduce
105	105	their mowing intensity to provide forage for native pollinators, began in Appleton in
106	106	2020 and has expanded throughout Fox Cities municipalities to include the
107	107	communities of Appleton, Fox Crossing, Oshkosh, De Pere, Fort Atkinson, and
108	108	Hortonville; and
109	109	Whereas, a peer-reviewed scientific study of the effects of No Mow May and the
110	110	community-wide delay in early May lawn care, specifically mowing early growth
111	111	flowering plants, revealed that these efforts precipitated a five-fold increase in bee
112	112	species prevalence and a three-fold increase in bee species diversity; and
113	113	Whereas, possible declines in the health and population of pollinators pose
114	114	what could be a significant threat to global food webs, the integrity of biodiversity,
115	115	and human health; and
116	116	Whereas, it is in the strong economic interest of agricultural producers and
117	117	consumers in Wisconsin to help ensure a healthy and sustainable pollinator
118	118	population; now, therefore, be it
119	119	Resolved by the senate, the assembly concurring, That the Wisconsin
120	120	Legislature designates June 2023 as Pollinator Awareness Month in Wisconsin.
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