19th Senate District Update: May 5, 2023

This Wednesday I participated in the Senate Mental Health Committee public hearing and chaired a meeting of the Committee on Health.

In the Mental Health committee we took up five executive appointees. It was reassuring to hear some of their testimonies and the vision of our state’s boards that touch on abuse, mental health, and other public health concerns. We also heard testimonies on two bills: Senate Bill 205 which would create a grant program for safe gun storage to prevent suicide, and Senate Bill 128 which looks to expand the Court-Appointed Special Advocate program.

In the Health Committee’s public hearing we took up more executive appointments and heard testimony on Senate Bill 157, a bill that looks at payments from the ambulance service provider trust fund to eligible ambulance service providers.

In addition, my staff and I had productive meetings with:

• WI Optometric Association
• Legislative Fiscal Bureau Director Bob Lang
• Habitat for Humanity
• WI Children’s Museum
• American Heart Association

Budget Update

Wisconsin is at its strongest fiscal position in decades. Republicans will continue to do what we’ve done, and that is legislate fiscal responsibility.

This week the Joint Finance Committee conducted two executive sessions. On Tuesday, May 2nd, the Joint Finance Committee voted to remove 545 policy and non-fiscal related items from the budget discussion. These were not cuts to the state budget, instead putting us back to the base budget, a bipartisan budget that Governor Evers signed just two years ago. To reiterate, funding something at a level lower than what the Governor “proposed” is not a “cut.”

If my kid asks me for a $15/week allowance, and I agree to a $10/week allowance: that’s not a $5 cut, but a $10 weekly appropriation.

On Thursday, JFC voted to provide $1M in funding for both Family Resource Centers (to prevent child abuse and neglect) and to expand the Positive Parenting Program (PPP) through the Child Abuse & Neglect Prevention Board (CANPB).

As always, I encourage you to reach out to me and my office with any budget related questions or concerns!

Traveling to the Capitol

My office is available five days a week for anyone looking to travel down to the Capitol and would like to check out our office!

If you are interested in a guided tour provided by my staff, or me, please email Sen.Cabral-Guevara@legis.wisconsin.gov. Emailing my office as early as possible will help ensure that I can allot time in my calendar to get to know you, your family and friends, and show you around the building!

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