Republican Mark Green and the State Elections Board settled a pending lawsuit Friday over $468,000 of disputed campaign contributions that Green had hoped to use in his gubernatorial campaign against Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle last fall.

Under the settlement, both parties agreed Green complied with instructions provided by the Board's staff, as well as campaign finance laws written and interpreted at the time. The parties also agreed the Election Board's position on the funds was based on current interpretations of relevant statutes.

"The two parties have agreed to disagree about the law," said Kevin Kennedy, executive director of the State Elections Board, in a statement. "We have a resolution and can move on now."

The agreement allows Green to keep the $468,000 to cover campaign expenses, pay legal fees and make contributions to other candidates. However, it also prohibits Green from using the funds "for the purpose of advocating the candidacy of Mark Green in any future election" between now and 2010.

Effectively, Green spokesperson Mark Graul said the Elections Board does not want Green to use the funding toward another run for governor. Any funds not spent by Dec. 31, 2009, must be donated to schools, a public campaign spending fund or a nonprofit organization.

Graul said the settlement was an admission of guilt by the Elections Board that "muddied waters in the governor's race." Gov. Doyle defeated Green 53 percent to 45 percent in the November general election.

"While they won that battle, they lost the war," Graul said. "A lot of people are encouraging [Green] to run again."

The disputed funds became a constant issue during the election, as each candidate tried to persuade voters they had better ethical standards. Voters and lawmakers began to question the Elections Board, as it voted against Green's funding along party lines in August.

The board ordered Green to divest the disputed $468,000 in campaign donations since the money came from out-of-state political action committees not registered in Wisconsin.

"The decision by the Elections Board last fall has now been exposed as nothing more than a crass manipulation of a governmental agency by Jim Doyle in his desperate effort to hold on to power," Green said in a statement Friday.

The case was commonly cited earlier this year and bolstered support for sweeping ethics reform legislation. Now under the law signed by Gov. Doyle, the Elections Board will be replaced by a Government Accountability Board comprised of former judges.

"It is unfortunate that taxpayer dollars had to be wasted to defend Jim Doyle's actions, but I am gratified that the Elections Board itself has been eliminated," Green said in the statement. "No other candidate will ever again receive the kind of unfair treatment I received from what was supposed to be an impartial body."

Green is now a private-practice attorney in Green Bay.

The lawsuit had been pending before the state Supreme Court, and Kyle Richmond, a spokesperson for the Elections Board, said one reason the board chose to settle was because it was uncertain how the court would vote.

"No one was assured of winning," Richmond said. "[The board] may not be able to anticipate what the Supreme Court might use as its scope for future cases."

Doyle signs in 31 new analysts

The Department of Justice received its official approval to hire 31 new State Crime Laboratory analysts as Gov. Jim Doyle signed the budget repair bill Friday.

The bill adjusts funding between different state agencies to round off the fiscal year before the next budget cycle. It also gives legislators the opportunity to provide additional funding to address timely problems, like the mounting case evidence backlog at the crime lab.

DOJ officials estimate more than 1,800 cases are sitting unresolved because the department does not have enough analysts to examine evidence. The largest contributing factor has been the increased use of DNA evidence in criminal investigations.

"As the former Attorney General who started the DNA program, I recognize the critical needs of the crime lab," Gov. Doyle said in a statement Friday. "This budget bill will help the Attorney General to begin to eliminate the backlog immediately."

The bill provides the DOJ with $96,600 to immediately recruit and hire staff to address the backlog.