MADISON – Today, the Wisconsin State Assembly debated the 2023-2025 biennial budget. Representative Jodi Emerson (D-Eau Claire) issued the following statement:
“While there are good things in this budget, it does not serve the most pressing needs of the moment or adequately address the challenges that Wisconsinites are facing.
“I and my Democratic Assembly colleagues introduced numerous amendments to ameliorate the failings of this bill by attempting to fund education, child care, Medicaid expansion, and fight for the working families of Wisconsin, but Republicans rejected all of our proposals.
“Today was the final opportunity for members of the Assembly to consider what kind of Wisconsin we want to create before sending the biennial budget to the Governor’s desk. Do we want our children to have access to high quality child care and do we want their parents to be free to continue their careers without financial hardship? Do we want our children to grow up without experiencing the detrimental health effects of lead contamination, PFAS exposure, and air that is unsafe to breathe? Do we want them to have access to high quality K-12 and higher education that helps them properly prepare for the global economy that awaits them? Do we want them to live without fear of school shootings? Do we want them to have the freedom to live and express themselves authentically?
“By cutting child care funding, rejecting environmental protection initiatives, expanding vouchers while failing to funding K-12 and higher education properly, opposing gun safety efforts and funding for the Office of School Safety, and eliminating DEI efforts, Republican members of the Assembly provided a clear answer to those questions.
“I was proud to be part of the delegation that delivered the long needed funding for the UW-Eau Claire Science Hall, but we need to make sure that our colleges and universities are adequately funded or campuses around the state will be closing.
“This budget represents a missed opportunity for us to make Wisconsin a great place to work, live, and raise a family. This budget does not meet the needs of today and it does not supply what working families need to succeed or even survive and for that reason I voted no. As we move forward during this legislative session, I will never stop fighting to make life better for every resident of the 91st Assembly District.”
