Reading Readiness Revival

Earlier this week, Sen. Kathy Bernier and I revived our Roadmap to Reading Success Act by introducing an amendment to the Assembly version of the legislation.

When Gov. Evers vetoed the Senate companion bill in November, he said he did so because we needed to provide more money to increase proven, evidence-based literacy screenings and to train our teachers.

Contrary to that claim, the state already reimburses schools for 100 percent of the costs of literacy screeners. The governor also has sole control of more than $1 billion in federal COVID relief funding.

To that end, our amendment asks the governor to allocate at least $5 million of that $1 billion to pay for teacher training and the additional reading assessments.

It's important to point out that we have always considered the early identification of struggling readers to be only the first step in improving literacy skills in Wisconsin. It will be necessary in future budgets to fund teaching coaches to train our teachers to better address reading issues. 

In his veto message, Gov. Evers also said he was opposed to “fundamentally overhauling Wisconsin literacy instruction and intervention without evidence that more statewide, mandatory testing is the best approach for our students." We are also hearing that the governor and the Department of Public Instruction will be creating a task force to examine how we can improve reading proficiency among our students.

Unfortunately, our literacy rates have been declining for 40 years and we simply cannot wait any longer to fix the problem, especially when a task force isn't likely to uncover any new information. 

Several states – both red and blue – have already implemented the science-based approach to reading that is contained in our legislation. For example, such disparate states as Massachusetts and Mississippi have seen dramatic improvements in their reading scores since doing so. The proof is there. We just need to follow the science.

Here in Wisconsin, close to 65 percent of fourth graders are not proficient readers and 34 percent fail to meet even the basic standards. We know the tragic impact that illiteracy will have on the future of these children. Maintaining the status quo is not acceptable. We owe it to our kids to actually do something about it and not just keep kicking the can down the road.

Environment Committee

The Assembly Environment Committee that I chair held a public hearing this week on several legislative proposals.

The bills included on our agenda were:

• Assembly Bill 579: relating to the responsibility of a property owner for discharge of a hazardous substance by another 
• Assembly Bill 658: relating to the Department of Natural Resources report on partnering with the private aquaculture industry
• Assembly Bill 660: relating to the Department of Natural Resources habitat work plan
• Assembly Bill 673: relating to stocking brook trout in Lake Michigan
  
  We also heard testimony from the DNR on two clearinghouse rules:
  
  
• CR 20-088: relating to implementing reasonably available control technology for volatile organic compound emissions from miscellaneous metal and plastic parts coatings and miscellaneous industrial adhesives and affecting small business
• CR 21-041: relating to implementing electronics recycling program requirements and affecting small business

I plan on holding an executive session next week so committee members can consider recommending passage of these legislative items.

Law Enforcement Appreciation

As I mentioned in last week's e-update, I hosted a public awareness campaign to show support for our law enforcement officials and to highlight the struggles that departments are currently facing, particularly when it comes to hiring and retaining personnel.

Due to the timing of the event and my electronic newsletter distribution schedule, I was unable to provide you with any coverage of my discussions with Kewaunee County Sheriff Matt Joski, Sturgeon Bay Police Chief Clint Henry and Capt. Carl Waterstreet of the Door County Sheriff's Office.

  If you would like to watch a video of the entire public awareness campaign, please click on this link.

You can also read an article on the event by clicking here.