The bill, dubbed Malinda’s Law, was passed 10 years after a van accident killed seven members of a traveling sales crew, including Malinda Turvey, for whom the bill was named.
The bill will require employers to obtain permits for all of their traveling sales crews and requires those salespeople to undergo background checks before they can begin selling door to door throughout the state.
Although the bill received praise from Democrats including Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, who had unsuccessfully introduced a similar bill in the past, some Republicans were not as supportive.
Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, argued the bill will prevent college students who take door-to-door sale jobs as summer employment from earning money.
“Some of these kids work 80 hours a week and make $10,000. It’s a free country, and if you want to work that much you should be able to,” Grothman said. “About 20 to 30 University of Wisconsin college kids this year are going to lose out on this opportunity. It’s embarrassing that Wisconsin is going to be the first state to regulate this.”
Grothman added students who take sales jobs during the summer voiced concern about the bill.
“I hope no one gets sick in a Madison restaurant anytime soon, because then Sen. Erpenbach might want to close all the Madison restaurants too,” Grothman said.
One of the biggest employers of the seasonal sales people, Tennessee-based Southwestern Company, was also against the proposal. Southwestern provides educational books and software to individuals at cost who then sell the items for profit.
Many of the individuals who sell the products are students, according to Dan Moore, Southwestern Company president. Southwestern advocated an amendment sponsored by the Direct Selling Association that would define traveling sales crews as three or more people.
The amendment was not included in the bill, which defined a sales crew as two or more people.
“We do hope for a recognition of the college students selling products by going door to door and the traveling sales crew,” Moore said. “It’s really important on behalf of college students so they get the appropriate recognition.”
According to Moore, his company has helped hundreds of college students in the state run their own business by selling educational materials for the last 145 years.
The bill was passed by a vote of 27-6 in the Senate and 68-30 in the Assembly.
In addition to Malinda’s Law, the Legislature also passed bills to restrict the use of fertilizer containing phosphorous and allow drivers with fines keep their license as long as they stick to a payment plan approved by a judge.
The bills will now be sent to Gov. Jim Doyle.
