The session Tuesday in the Senate and the Assembly will be the only day the Wisconsin Legislature will be on the floor in September, and that's drawing criticism from some lawmakers about the lack of business.

State lawmakers are scheduled to be in session from Sept. 13-22, but Tuesday will be the only day either house will be on the floor.

The Assembly convened Tuesday with a few bills on the docket, including a bill changing the makeup of the state's small business regulatory board. The Assembly on Tuesday passed a bill that changes the date of Wisconsin's presidential primary.

Republicans said other bills, including one to give a tax credit for investments in local financial institutions, would have a positive effect on business in the state.

But Democrats are ripping the lack of work in the session as not doing enough to create jobs and improve the economy.

City leaders and Mansion Hill residents are reacting to Madison Mayor Paul Soglin's proposed capital budget, which slashes tax incremental financing for the Edgewater Hotel redevelopment project.

TIF funding for the Edgewater project remains a controversial issue, even after the Madison Common Council approved the deal.

Supporters of the project said they fear the mayor's proposal to slash TIF funding could put the development in jeopardy.

Soglin said Madison must tackle its debt service head on.

"We're going back to the old way of doing things," Soglin said. "It is imperative upon us to reduce borrowing. It's not enough to keep it at the same level as last year."

A controversial component of Soglin's $196 million capital budget is a proposal to scale back the Edgewater project's TIF funding from $16 million to $3.3 million, a number that falls within the city's TIF policies.

Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice Patience Drake Roggensack will kickoff the League of Women Voters Issues Forum series with a talk entitled "The Many Factors of Judicial Independence." 

Roggensack was elected to the Supreme Court in 2003. She has written extensively on the issue of judicial independence, including judicial independence in Wisconsin's court system.

The program is free and open to the public on Wednesday, Sept. 7 at the Capitol Lakes Grand Hall at 333 West Main St.

Free parking is available in the ramp across the street. The League will host an open house with refreshments from 6 to 7 p.m. The forum will start at 7 p.m.

The event is sponsored by the Joyce Foundation and the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin Education Fund.