Campaign Phone #
(608)698-6643
Education
Bachelors in Public Administration
Personal Pronouns
he/him
Promoting the health of our state is a priority for my next term. For the past decade, the majority has missed opportunities to improve health outcomes. We need to accept our federal BadgerCare dollars, as not doing so has prevented families from accessing affordable health insurance. In addition, we must establish paid family & medical leave so people can care for their loved ones, whether it be the birth of a child or an aging parent. I worked to make these initiatives a reality during my term in office, but we’ll need to continue to build bridges to get them done. I’ve proven I can do that. Even in a deep minority, I authored a bill to create a Nutrition Incentive Program that will help families in need purchase fruits and vegetables grown by local farmers. Less than 1% of Democratic led bills were signed into law last session, and this bill was one of them. I broke through the partisanship by building common ground and compromise, which I will continue.
Dane County is the fastest growing community in Wisconsin, and with good reason. Together, we’ve created vibrant neighborhoods, a buzzing economy, and a welcoming place to live. However, too many people are being priced out of the housing market. It’s clear the supply of housing needs to grow. While the state provided some support in that direction last session, we need to continue to provide the investment to make it feasible to construct workforce housing in a sustainable way. The state also has a responsibility to promote transit options that make it accessible for residents to commute with ease. That means buses, rail, and bikes should be part of the conversation. Finally, shared revenue payments have a role to play in making communities affordable and accessible to live in. Many municipalities got short-changed in the last shared revenue deal. Municipalities need adequate revenue to be able to keep up with services without passing along costs to residents.
For the first time in more than a decade, Wisconsin voters have an opportunity to elect a more balanced legislature. Now, we need a fair redistricting process that removes the politicians from the center of decision-making and returns that authority to the voters that elect them. I’m encouraged by the potential of our map-drawing to be done by our non-partisan professional agencies, but I oppose the final approval being in the hands of the legislature. Legislators should be prevented from making any edits to the maps. I’m favorable to an independent commission that ensures its members are diverse in background, geography, and ideology. This commission should be committed to consensus on the map. The desired map should be focused on creating competition, keeping communities of interest together, compact boundaries, and reflecting the balanced nature of our state to increase the voter participation in Wisconsin.
We need to address climate change on a local level. Wisconsin has a rich history of conservation and a natural beauty we must defend. Throughout my time in public office, I helped our communities conserve land to mitigate future flooding emergencies, went after polluters that threatened our waterways, and promoted environmental stewardship for our youth. I also plan to lead the effort again to pass a Green Amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution that would ensure legal environmental protection across our state, because I want my kids to grow up with more natural resources, clean air, and pure water. I’m committed to the forward thinking we need to reduce our plastic usage, build a clean energy economy, and end our dependence on fossil fuels, all while respecting the Indigenous lands that bring culture and abundance to this state. We can do all these things if we set fear aside and act boldly.
We must work to fix our school funding formula and invest in our kids from cradle to career. In my first term, I worked hard to restore Child Care Counts funding that keeps our child care centers open, tuition stable, and teachers paid. Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues ignored the benefit of this investment. The truth is high-quality, birth-to-five early ed leads to a 13% ROI. K-12 public education also needs a significant boost. Republicans have forced communities to raise their own property taxes instead of committing the necessary state funds to our schools. We have a nearly $3 billion surplus, but that money rests in Madison while our teachers and students are paying the price. Especially for students with disabilities, we must increase our special education reimbursement to our school districts. Public schools only receive a 33% reimbursement from the state for services.This is one of the lowest reimbursement rates in the country and is a dramatic inequity that must change.
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