For Immediate Release – February 17, 2021
Contact: Robert Kraig (414) 322-5324/[email protected]

Commends Governor’s Budget on Healthcare Costs, Climate, and Economic Equity.

Statewide: On behalf of its grassroots members across the state, Citizen Action of Wisconsin commends Governor Evers for the important advances in his state budget to address the crippling cost of health care, and the pressing need for an immediate climate transition that expands economic opportunity for everyone in Wisconsin, especially all of the people left out of prosperity and in desperate need of family supporting jobs.

The crushing cost of health care has been the top issue in Wisconsin for two consecutive elections. Governor Evers included major health care initiatives that Citizen Action members have been fighting for, including full BadgerCare Expansion under the Affordable Care Act, a new BadgerCare Public Option to give Wisconsinites a more affordable choice than corporate for-profit insurance, and a Prescription Drug Price Review Board to restrict price gouging by the Pharmaceutical industry. The Governor also includes in his budget the creation of a Wisconsin health insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act, a critical cost, access, and accountability reform for which Citizen Action has long fought for.

Citizen Action members across Wisconsin have also been organizing for a large-scale climate transition that uses the opportunity to radically expand economic opportunity and equity for working Wisconsinites left out of access to good family supporting jobs, especially those from marginalized communities and economically challenged rural areas.

Following up on the recommendations of the Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change, Chaired by Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, the budget includes several initiatives Citizen Action members have been fighting for. These include on-bill utility bill financing (zero cost financing for home energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades for homeowners and renters), and a requirement that Wisconsin municipalities develop comprehensive climate action and resilience plans.

Citizen Action commends additional major budget items included by Governor Evers. The Governor’s investment in rural broadband, especially the enabling of public broadband in the most undeserved areas, is a major issue Citizen Action’s rural members have been pushing for to level the playing field for Wisconsin’s rural communities. In the area of voting rights, the budget mandates automatic voter registration, a common sense reform to remove needless obstacles to voting for which Citizen Action has advocated for over a decade.

Citizen action also commends the Governor’s proposals to end the failed prohibition of marijuana, the expansion of workers rights to form unions and bargain collectively in the public and private sectors, a dramatically enhanced Earned Income Tax Credit for moderate income working families, juvenile justice reform, rural flooding initiatives, overhaul of the state’s antiquated unemployment insurance system, and gun reform.

“Without question, Governor Ever’s budget is the most visionary and progressive we have seen in Wisconsin in over a decade,” said Robert Kraig, Executive Director of Citizen Action. “The Governor’s budget is a breath of fresh air packed with meaningful advances that will improve the health and economic well being of working Wisconsinites.”

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