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Rep.Edming@legis.wi.gov
Website: www.repedming.com

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A Note from Rep. Edming

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Click the image to view my Veterans Day video.

Welcome to my weekly e-update. I appreciate you taking the time to read a little bit about what I've been up to representing the folks of the 87th Assembly District.

Monday is Veterans Day and I'd like to take a moment to recognize all the veterans we have in the 87th District. Veterans have played an important role in our country whether it was gathering intelligence, fighting overseas, or contributing to relief efforts after natural disasters. Our veterans have made sacrifices so that we may continue to have our rights to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. Thank you for your service and all you have done for us. Click here to see statistics on veterans in Wisconsin. To learn more about Veterans Day, click here.

As always, if you would like to share your thoughts or concerns on any state issues, please do not hesitate to contact my office. I look forward to hearing from you.

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Attempting to Correct the Governor's Mistake

Yesterday afternoon, the State Assembly was in session and we took up a number measures important to Wisconsinites.  Among the items my colleagues and I considered was the override of Governor Evers' partial vetoes of three mental health provisions that were included in the WISCONSIN Budget that was approved by the Legislature earlier this year.

As you may be aware, when Governor Evers signed the WISCONSIN Budget into law back in July, he exercised his broad partial veto authority to make various changes to the budget that was approved by the legislature.  Of the 78 partial vetoes Governor Evers issued, some of the most disappointing were the three vetoes that the State Assembly attempted to override today. I believe that Governor Evers’ veto of these three mental health provisions was a mistake, and I was proud to join with my fellow Republicans to attempt to correct this mistake.

The first veto that we addressed was the governor's veto of $15 million in funding to establish a northern regional crisis center in the Eau Claire/Chippewa Falls area. Currently, the only facilities for counties in our area of the state to transport patients experiencing a mental health crisis to are Mendota (Madison) and Winnebago (Oshkosh). From our neck of the woods, law enforcement has to transport patients nearly three to four hours one-way, or six to eight hours round-trip. Other counties in northwest Wisconsin have even further to travel. This is a heavy burden on our law enforcement's time and resources. Even Attorney General Kaul agrees that this is a problem. This crisis center would serve individuals closer to their homes in northwest Wisconsin, instead of transporting them across the state, which is hard on them and their loved ones. Unfortunately with his veto, Governor Evers directed this funding to a facility in Madison continuing to leave northwestern Wisconsin without the mental health crisis services we need.

The next veto we addressed was a provision in the WISCONSIN Budget that would have provided $10 million over the course of the biennium to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for mental health, behavioral health, and psychiatric services. This was a part of more than $70 million invested in mental health services in our budget, as we recognized that the state is facing a shortage of behavioral health providers. The $10 million was intended to be used to increase reimbursement rates for physicians and behavioral health care providers. Unfortunately, the governor vetoed this funding in its entirety.

Finally, we attempted to override the governor's veto of $1 million that we dedicated to the Qualified Treatment Training (QTT) grant program to bolster training opportunities for mental health providers. With the significant shortage of adult and pediatric mental health providers, this program would have delivered resources needed to train mid-level mental health providers to help alleviate this shortage. In 2017, only 52% of the children ages 3-17 with a mental or behavioral health condition received treatment in Wisconsin. The QTT grants included in the WISCONSIN Budget would have allowed hospitals, health centers, and health care systems to expand the number of clinical social workers, professional counselors, marriage and family therapists and psychologists to help meet this growing need. Again, Governor Evers line-item vetoed this provision and redirected the $1 million to a slush fund at his Department of Health Services (DHS). QTT grants are designed to increase the number of providers in our communities, but now the money is sitting at DHS and is to be awarded to "treatment programs" instead of helping expand and recruit medical professionals. 

We needed just a few Democrats in order to override these vetoes and right some of the wrongs our governor made. While we did everything we could to override the governor's vetoes, our Democratic colleagues did not join us. I was disappointed that, for the time being, there will not be a northern Wisconsin regional crisis center, no increased Medicaid reimbursement rates for mental health, behavioral health, and psychiatric services, and no Qualified Treatment Training grants.

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Suicide Prevention Bill Package

Another important part of the floor session yesterday was the consideration of a set of bills related to suicide prevention. At the start of this legislative session, Speaker Vos created the Speaker's Task Force on Suicide Prevention. This task force held public hearings around the state listening to survivors, experts, advocates, and families who have been impacted by suicide. As a result of these public hearings, the task force released a package of bills to help combat suicide and fund mental health resources. These are Assembly Bills (AB) 525 - 531. According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), the rate of suicide in the state among Wisconsin residents increased by 40% from 2000-2017. As the 10th leading cause of death in Wisconsin, suicide is a serious issue that we need to address. 

Some of the things these bills accomplish include requiring the DHS to create a suicide prevention program, providing funds for grants that support peer-to-peer suicide prevention programs in high schools, requiring student identification cards include contact information for suicide prevention hotlines, and more. I was glad to see these bills pass with bipartisan support. They now head to the State Senate for consideration.

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Unveiling of New Veterans Exhibit

Just before the floor session on Thursday, I had some time to check out the unveiling of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum's new traveling exhibit, I Am Not Invisible, featuring female veterans from around the state. The museum hopes the exhibit will help to increase awareness about women veterans and their contributions to both the military and their communities. Rep. Kurtz and I were pleased to meet some of our state's women veterans featured in this new exhibit, Tiffany Koehler and Kimberly Galske. 

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Rep. Kurtz, Tiffany Koehler, Rep. Edming, and Kimberly Galske 

Mobile Career Lab

Last session, 2017 Wisconsin Act 318 was enacted, which increased funding by $6.8 million in a continuing appropriation for talent attraction and retention initiatives. The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) has created a new Mobile Career Lab with these funds. This brings all the services available through a brick-and-mortar job center directly to the communities that need them. 

This could be used to:

  • Provide access in rural and/or underserved areas
  • Provide access in areas with high unemployment
  • Assist a local company with a large recruitment drive
  • Appear at high school career fairs
  • Respond to large job layoffs
  • Help veterans with their job search
  • And more

The vehicle is outfitted for presentations both outside and inside, is a mobile hotspot, has 10 computers inside, and is handicap accessible. If you would like to request the Mobile Career Lab visit your area, there is an option available on DWD's website to do this. Click here to read more about the Mobile Career Lab or to request a visit.

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Stay Up to Date

One of the best ways to stay up to date with what is going on in Madison is to sign up for the legislature's notification tracking service. This service allows you to follow legislative activity in Madison. Once you create a free account you can sign up to receive notifications about specific bills or committees as well as legislative activity pertaining to a subject area (i.e. agriculture, veterans). You can sign up for this service at notify.legis.wisconsin.gov.