The Steven C. Brist Papers document the legislative activities of Mr. Brist and the daily tasks he performed as a state legislator. The bulk of the collection comes from Mr. Brist's second and third terms in office, 1982-1986. All of the materials contained in the collection are directly related to his political career, with the exception of a few of the newspaper clippings (for example, his engagement announcement). The collection contains legislative files arranged by bill number, correspondence from constituents arranged alphabetically and cross-referenced by topic on index cards, and newspaper clippings of both news about Brist and of the columns he wrote.
The collection provides substantial coverage both of topics that were of special interest to Brist and topics that his constituents found important. Securities legislation comprises a significant part of the collection's subject matter. Brist's extensive knowledge of securities and other financial matters led one constituent to refer to him as the securities expert in the Assembly. Documentation of securities registration and consumer loan practices is thorough.
As a two-term member of the Assembly Committee on Agriculture, Brist also concerned himself with environmental and agricultural legislation. There is extensive coverage of groundwater contamination and solid waste legislation, tax exemptions for agricultural equipment and goods containing agricultural commodities (such as motor fuels), the licensing and grading of animal products, and use of products containing phosphates.
Brist championed a “Whistleblower Bill” that protected government employees from retaliation upon disclosure of waste or improper activities in governmental units; this is covered in detail in the collection. Other areas of employment law that are well-covered include legislation relating to University of Wisconsin System teaching, project, and program assistant labor relations; and supervision and licensing of various professionals including dental hygienists, physical therapists, nursing home employees, and barbers.
Real estate groups considered Brist an ally due to his former employment as a realtor, and he had extensive knowledge of real estate legislation. There is a substantial amount of documentation in Assembly and Senate Bill series for realty topics such as the uniform limited property act, real estate fees, marital property reform, and recreational use of property.
Brist also campaigned for public safety, and answered many questions from constituents who were both for and against legislation relating to seat belt use, the legal drinking age, helmet use, smoking in public buildings, and firearm regulation. Other topics that particularly concerned the public which are well-documented in the collection include abortion and wrongful birth, living wills, obscenity and sexual activity between consenting adults, investing in apartheid South Africa, taxes and the state budget, and legislation that Brist authored to promote milk as the official Wisconsin state beverage.
The Brist Papers are organized in four series: BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS; CONSTITUENT CORRESPONDENCE; CLIPPINGS, COLUMNS, AND PRESS RELEASES; and COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES.
The BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS series constitutes the bulk of the collection and documents Brist's personal work in authoring legislation. The series includes Assembly Bills, Senate Bills, Assembly Joint Resolutions, and Senate Joint Resolutions for both the 1983-1984 and the 1985-1986 sessions. The series does not represent a complete run of Assembly and Senate Bills, but it does include all of those for which Mr. Brist received information. For each session, this series has groupings for Assembly Files, Senate Files, and Legislative Reference Bureau Bill Drafts.
The CONSTITUENT CORRESPONDENCE series comprises files for both the 1983-1984 and 1985-1986 sessions, each of which contains correspondence arranged alphabetically by last name, and index cards. Each letter is cross-referenced and alphabetized by last name and also by topic on a typed index card which contains the writer's name and address, what topic and/or bill number the letter refers to, and the letter writer's opinion on the matter.
The CLIPPINGS, COLUMNS, AND PRESS RELEASES series consists of regular columns published by Brist, news stories related to Brist, election advertisements and coverage, and campaign memorabilia.
The files in the COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES series, 1981-1986, document Brist's involvement and membership on various Assembly committees and more generally the work of the committees. The files also include information on Brist's appointment to the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
