MADISON – Today, the Wisconsin State Assembly met in regular session and took up Republican-authored legislation to restrict public benefits, including FoodShare, Medicaid, and unemployment insurance. Rep. Conley (D-Janesville) released the following statement in response:
“Wisconsin needs real solutions to workforce challenges. The GOP continues to attack the working class, rather than target the actual underlying causes to the issues. Once again, this is a case of misplaced priorities. The people of our state are hardworking. Under Governor Evers, Wisconsin has the lowest unemployment rate in state history. The legislation brought forth today would punish those who may be experiencing temporary unemployment and need access to public assistance programs.
“Governor Evers proposed in his biennial budget to create new jobs programs and expand existing ones, but Republicans chose to strip those from the final budget. Today, Assembly Democrats proposed an amendment to reintroduce the funding for these programs to strengthen Wisconsin’s workforce, creating quality job opportunities. Workers need access to high-quality, affordable childcare, and transportation. We need to invest in policies that attract new workers and encourage people to stay in Wisconsin, like job training programs.”
