---

Dear Editor;
For voters in this area who care about the proposed American Transmission Company ("ATC") transmission line, there will be a clear choice on the ballot this fall.
From Scott Walker down to the state legislators in this area, Howard Marklein in the Senate and Todd Novak in the Assembly, the Wisconsin GOP is in the pockets of ATC.
Numerous units of local government in Southwest Wisconsin, including the Iowa County Board, have embraced the views of their constituents by passing strongly worded formal Resolutions against the proposed ATC Line. Tellingly, Marklein and Novak have refused to oppose the line. Instead, they have issued nearly identically worded letters (presumably prepared and approved by State GOP leadership) asking the Public Service Commission ("PSC") to review the ATC application before it under the regulatory criteria the PSC is required by law to follow. In other words, they have done no more than to ask the PSC to its job. A cute way to seek political cover.
In contrast, their election opponents this Fall, farmer Kriss Marion for Senate, and educator, Jeff Wright for Assembly, have been clear. They oppose the proposed line. And, if elected, Chris and Jeff will work to block it. They point out that the massively tall and expensive Line is unneeded, will be an unsightly blight on our landscape and property values, and will add huge monetary burdens on ratepayers who, in Wisconsin, already pay the highest rates in the Midwest.
When invited to attend a recent non-partisan public forum about the proposed Line, Chris Marion and Jeff Wright came and expressed their rationale for opposing the Line. So did other Democratic candidates from the region. Despite multiple efforts to encourage their attendance, Marklein, Novak and their GOP peers shunned the event.
When I looked into why the GOP candidates would ignore the wishes of so many constituents, the answer became clear. ATC and its utility shareholders have been pouring money into supporting Wisconsin GOP candidates. The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign website shows that by June 2017, ATC and the utility industry had contributed $2.10 million to the re-election efforts of Wisconsin GOP candidates, including almost half a million dollars to Walker, $254, 200 to the GOP Assembly Campaign Committee and $225,000 to the Committee to Elect a Republican State senate. With the opposition against its propsed Line growing, ATC and the utilities presumably have continued to pour funds into buying support among GOP legislators.
The ATC/Utilty-industry campaign to buy support has yielded results. Most recently, in February 2018, Marklein and Novak helped narrowly pass a Bill on party lines (AB 532) backed by ATC and the utility industry. That new law makes it significantly harder for utility customers to challenge rate increases.
Don't let this happen again; we can defeat the Line. Vote for Kriss Marion for state Senate and Jeff Wright for Assembly.
Resha Wyman
Dodgeville