19th Senate District Update: May 19, 2023

It was another busy week in-district and in the legislature! I was happy to participate in several meetings and events in-district. I also had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with many constituents while I was in Madison and in Appleton!

We’ve scheduled a hearing in the Senate Committee on Health for this upcoming Wednesday. I am excited as we look to take up the APRN Modernization Act and a number of executive appointments.

As a reminder, my new legislative website went live this past week and encourage you to check it out: SenRachael.com. While visiting my website and if you have not done so yet, please fill out my spring survey! This will help me gain more insight on what your priorities are as we continue with the budget process and legislative session.

This week my staff and I had productive meetings with:

• Kids Protection Agency
• Wisconsin Grocer’s Association
• Wisconsin Builders Association
• The Humane Society
• Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce
• Ahlstrom Munskjo – Thilmany’s Paper Mill
• Institute for Reforming Government
• Blue Cross
• Dept. of Children and Families
• Dept. of Public Instruction
• Dept. of Transportation
• Women in Government

Thank you to Clayton Elementary (top) and New Hope Christian School (below) for visiting the Capitol!

Budget Update

• Provide $2M for the Producer-led Watershed Protection Grants
• Increase starting pay for Assistant District Attorneys and Public Defenders by more than $8/hour, which amounts to more than $18,000/year helping Wisconsin remain competitive with the private sector
  • Wisconsin has struggled with retaining high-quality public defenders due to the uncompetitive wages. In some cases we saw elected District Attorney’s quit to become Deputy DA because the pay progression is better to be the 2nd in charge rather than 1st in charge
• Fund the Wisconsin’s Supreme Court Cybersecurity Program
•  Establish a $125M PFAS fund
  • $10M more than what the Governor proposed
• Invest in our State Parks by:
  • reinvesting state park revenue back into state parks
  • increasing the non-resident camping fee from $35 to $45
  • Lifting the statewide cap on campsite electrification
• Adjust the funding for supplies and services to reflect reality, and to close out long-time vacant positions and reinvest in technology infrastructure and maintenance

Listening Session