CONTACT: Rep. Jim Steineke
(608) 266-2418

Madison – Governor Walker today signed Assembly Bill (AB) 234 into law, establishing an Interagency Council on Homelessness in Wisconsin. It is now 2017 Act 74. This landmark legislation will transform the way the state of Wisconsin combats homelessness.

In April of this year, Assembly Republicans – including lead authors Majority Leader Jim Steineke (Kaukauna), Rep. Patrick Snyder (Schofield), Rep. Treig Pronschinske (Mondovi), and Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (Oak Creek), with the help and support of Senator Alberta Darling (River Hills) and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch – unveiled a package of legislation that would take the first steps in over two decades of inattention to revitalize and reinvigorate the state’s approach to preventing and ending homelessness. With the Governor’s signature today, all of those policy initiatives have now become law. Following the signing, Rep. Steineke released this statement:

“Today is a turning point for the way Wisconsin addresses the scourge of homelessness that affects too many of our neighbors. All along, we have touted these bills as a first step, and today our state took that first step in a meaningful way. For the first time in our state’s history, we will have an institution, inscribed in law, whose sole purpose is to coordinate our approach to ending this devastating form of poverty.

“I cannot even imagine the innovations and collaborations that will be possible by bringing agency secretaries together on a regular basis to develop a comprehensive, strategic plan to end homelessness. I have no doubt that we will also find significant cost savings. As we discover new, effective ways to leverage our state’s resources, I look forward to continuing the conversation on ending homelessness statewide.”

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