Former Democratic Assembly Speaker Norman C. Anderson was born in Hammond, Indiana, on March 11, 1928. As a Wisconsin legislator Anderson earned a wide reputation for his legislative efforts in behalf of the environment, and the press often cited his Hammond boyhood as explanation for that focus. After graduation from Hammond High School and service in the U.S. Army (1947-1948), Anderson attended the University of Wisconsin, where he received an undergraduate degree and a law degree (1951, 1954). He financed that education by working as a construction laborer, a school bus driver, a real estate salesman, and a janitor. From 1952 through 1954, he was acting Dane County coroner. Since 1954 Anderson has been a practicing attorney, first with the Madison firm Wilkie, Anderson & Bylsma and since 1968 with Wheeler, Van Sickle, Anderson, Norman & Harvey, S.C.
In 1956 Anderson was elected to the Assembly as a representative of the eastern Madison district; however, he was defeated in his attempt at reelection in 1958. During 1959 and 1960 he was chief clerk of the Assembly and in this position was instrumental in a complete revision of rules.
In 1960 Anderson was successful in an attempt at reelection, and he continued to hold the seat through 1976, although he was unsuccessful in a 1968 election for circuit court judge. During his long career, Anderson served as member and/or chairman of the most important legislative committees including the Legislative Council, the Board on Government Operations, the Joint Committee on Legislative Organization, and the Joint Committee on Employment Relations. A full listing of these assignments is contained in the Wisconsin Blue Books.
During the 1965 session, Anderson was elected assistant majority leader; in 1971 he became majority leader. In December 1971, he succeeded Robert Huber as speaker. He was reelected by his colleagues to this post for the 1973-1974 and 1975-1976 sessions. As speaker, Anderson continued to exhibit his earlier mastery of parliamentary procedure. Although not one of the more flamboyant individuals to hold the post of Assembly speaker in Wisconsin, Anderson's tenure was marked by skill, hard work, and great competence. Despite his quiet demeanor, Anderson was able to effect a number of improvements in procedure.
It was in the area of environmental protection, however, that Anderson was to make his greatest mark in the Wisconsin Legislature. In 1966 as chairman of the Conservation Committee and a member of the Governor's Committee on Water Resources, he was instrumental in the passage of landmark water pollution control legislation, and in subsequent years his name was prominently identified with virtually every important environmental legislative initiative. In addition to the legislation of the 1966 session, he was a leading advocate of the expansion of the ORAP program. Later he was prominently identified with efforts to protect Wisconsin wetlands and with beverage container deposit legislation. Anderson also served on numerous environmental committees and boards, and in 1974 he was a delegate to the Third International Parliamentary Conference on the Environment. He was honored for this work by citations from the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters, and he consistently received high ratings from Wisconsin environmental groups.
Anderson's record on other legislation placed him among the leading Democratic liberals. However, in 1975 he won the enmity of the Capital Times over his views on the open meeting issue. This position was largely responsible for his defeat in the 1976 primary.
