Citizen Action Weekly: Friday, Feb 12th

February 12, 2021

February 12th

Become a climate leader: Recruit your friends and family to take action to fight climate change and you can win!

Citizen Action of Wisconsin has created a climate action hub. This is your one page stop to learn about all the actions you can take to fight climate change and create brand new, green jobs across the state. You can even find information on how to upgrade your home and save money each month on energy efficient upgrades (at no upfront cost to you)!

To celebrate the launch of our climate action hub we are running a contest. Whoever recruits the most people to take action on our hub wins a $25 gift card to theDriftless Cafe in Viroqua.

It’s easy to take part in the contest. Just share this page: https://www.citizenactionwi.org/news/blog/act-now-pledge-to-be-a-climate-activist/ with your friends and family. Once they take action (and tell us that you sent them) you receive a point. Whoever gets the most points by the end of April wins!

Be sure to bookmark the hub too. We will be updating it frequently with new content and calls to action!

Mayor Katie Rosenberg of Wausau Advocates for Guaranteed Income Pilot Project

Mayor Katie Rosenberg, has been looking into Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, and has been advocating for the City of Wausau to participate in their Guaranteed Income Project Pilot. On Tuesday, January 6th Wausau’s Finance Committee voted in favor of participating. On Tuesday, Feb. 9th, the Committee of the Whole (City Council) voted unanimously to participate in the research project. You can read more about it at WSAU. You can see footage of the entire meeting here. Wausau and Madison are the only cities in Wisconsin to participate this time around.

To quote Mayor Rosenberg, “These pilot programs are being used to research the effects of a guaranteed income on poverty and economic security. What does this look like? Usually it means $500 a month for 12 to 16 months for a group of people who meet the program criteria. Often, those are what United Way calls ALICE households: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, and Employed. Cities have had pilots as small as 18 participants and as large as 200 depending on the resources available. Right now, Wausau has been invited to participate and also been offered a startup grant from MGI of $100,000 plus a $20,000 research fellow stipend. If the City Council approves of entering the pilot program, staff can begin crafting a plan that will include work with local non-profits and agencies. Depending on the plan, Wausau could receive more MGI grant funding to run the program. Other cities have also worked with foundations and even used CARES funding to increase the scope of their pilots.But it’s not just giving money away, it’s a research project through the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice‘s Center for Guaranteed Income Research. Each city has a research fellow helping administer the program, collect the data, and working with the leading researchers at UPenn.”

It is very exciting that Wausau is taking part in this project and it shows that this Mayor is dedicated to exploring options to address chronic homelessness, joblessness, or other barriers to a person or family succeeding.

North Central Organizing Co-op’s Steering Committee Votes to Send Letter to Wausau City Council

Due to an acknowledged zoning map error, 1300 Cleveland Avenue, was mistakenly rezoned back to industrial by the city. The consequence is that the protective non-industrial standards from the DNR are not associated with industrial zoning and land use, and therefore the city’s mistake will likely leave the community with a much looser and less protective assessment and cleanup using the industrial standards. If the city would correct the zoning error immediately, the site would likely and finally then face a stringent cleanup, which a large part of Wausau appears to want. Also, industrial expansion can not be done in residential zoning, without going through the standard, legitimate rezoning process, in which it may very well fail in this case because the site is in a residential neighborhood. This just so happens to be near a part of the City that has led to local residents and supportive citizens actively engaging with the City Council to identify pollutants in the area from years of industrial pollution. Several members of the North Central Organizing Co-op also belong to Citizens for a Clean Wausau, and asked the Steering Committee to consider writing a letter to the Committee of the Whole in support of the zoning change. The Steering Committee voted unanimously to write a letter. If you would like to communicate with the City Council in regard to this, you can email them here. They will be meeting on Feb. 23rd to discuss the results of soil sampling in the area and potential mitigation procedures. You can either attend that meeting in-person or virtually (which is what we would recommend at this time). If you wish to provide public comment – register to speak or submit written comment at this link: https://forms.co.marathon.wi.us/forms/City-Council-Agenda-Item-Form

Virtual Event: Citizen Action Student Loan Debt Kick-off!

Cancel Student Loan Debt Kick-off! (February 18th @6PM) Student Loan Debt Cancellation is the economic relief that over 45 Million Americans need during the midst of a global pandemic. Not only is this the strongest action that President Biden can take in the first hundred days to jumpstart a stalled economy; it is also among the most impactful. The 45 Million Student Loan Borrowers in the United States hold on average almost $33,000 of debt that prevents us from buying a home, starting a family, and stimulating the local economy. National Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Mondaire Jones have introduced legislation calling on President Biden to cancel $50,000 of student loan debt immediately! Join Citizen Action on Thursday, February 18th at 6 PM for our Cancel Student Loan Debt Kick-off! Meet with our co-op members who are helping lead the way and learn how you can play an important part. Join Citizen Action’s Cancel Student Loan Debt Kick-off on February 18th @6PM

Battleground Wisconsin Podcast “Ruthlessness: The 10th Anniversary of Act 10”

During the tenth anniversary of Act 10, we consider its legacy, what it says about the ruthlessness of modern conservatism, and the continuing ramifications of historic protests it sparked. We dig into a number of major state and federal issues, including the latest attacks on the mask mandate, a bill in Congress that would supercharge the ACA, and Governor Evers pre-budget announcements on BadgerCare Expansion, Marijuana Legalization, and Prescription Drug reform. Do these initiatives bode well for a more progressive state budget? We look at some huge federal issues in the heady early days of the Biden Administration, including COVID relief, impeachment, and protecting the housing rights of the LGBTQ community. Finally we raise concerns about the wave of anti-Asian violence in the U.S. sparked by right-wing rhetoric, and a rogue ICE which is flaunting President Biden’s executive orders and continues to follow Trump’s immoral deportation policies.

Listen Now – Episode #479

Download Mp3

Press Clips

Citizen Action’s Robert Kraig was a guest on a national Pacifica Radio Network news show to discuss the impeachment trial of Donald Trump. The network includes over 200 stations in major cities across the U.S. Listen here

Citizen Action’s Robert Kraig discussed strategy around the passage of COVID relief without Republican votes, and progress on Biden’s bold first 100 days agenda. Listen here.

Citizen Action co-released a report with national partners showing Wisconsin Billionaires have realized an $11 billion increase in wealth during the pandemic.. The report, which we have been releasing periodically with updated data, reveals the deepening crisis of e economic inequality. Read about it here.

Tuesday, February 16th is the Spring Primary!

Happy GOTV weekend! Have you completed your plan to vote? If not, please be sure to confirm your registration status , polling location and be a voter in next week’s election.

We endorse candidates who prioritize the safety of our children, educators and community. Support our endorsed candidates this weekend and sign up to make calls, knock doors and engage with Voters! More opportunities to engage with our candidate campaigns to come after the Primary!