Last week, the Assembly Committee on Campaigns and Elections, which I chair, held a joint hearing with the Senate Committee on Elections, Ethics, and Rural Issues. The committee heard almost eight hours of testimony from poll observers, elections experts, and concerned citizens.
From the testimony, it is clear that the Wisconsin State Legislature needs to reexamine our election laws. We must ensure that all local election officials follow state guidelines in every part of the state. Wisconsin's election laws need to be equally administered and followed in every zip code.
Going forward, the legislature and Wisconsin Elections Commission must work to conduct our elections with uniformity, transparency, accuracy, and integrity and regain the trust and confidence of all Wisconsin voters.
Governor Evers’ Mismanagement Caused Unemployed to Wait Unnecessarily For An Average of 11 Weeks
DWD put 77.6 percent of individuals into adjudication on their initial UI claim to the state.
As of October 10, 2020, there were 96,623 individuals with claims in adjudication.
DWD was responsible for 11 of the 13 weeks (84.6 percent) that it took, on average, to resolve the initial claims of the random sample of 250 individuals.
The most-common issues that accounted for time elapsing involved instances when DWD had not resolved issues even though it had the information to do so and because it had not requested information it needed from individuals and employers.
Governor Evers and his administration have failed the tens of thousands of Wisconsinites who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. The latest audit reveals the disastrous mismanagement in processing Unemployment Insurance claims. Many people have yet to receive their money and are waiting for the administration and DWD officials to get their act together.
DWD should have immediately extended call center hours, transferred state employees to assist as allowed by April’s COVID relief legislation or even required employees to work overtime. The lack of urgency to help the unemployed is inexcusable and unconscionable.
The Joint Legislative Committee on Audit held a hearing to review the recent audits of DWD. You can watch the committee proceedings on Wisconsin Eye.
Wisconsinites deserve better. Assembly Republicans are demanding change. We have proposed legislation to require the elimination of the backlog within 30 days, an increase in call center hours to 12 hours per day, 7 days per week, and a reduction of the salaries of DWD bureaucrats if these issues don’t get resolved.
Merry Christmas!
Although Christmas celebrations may be different this year, we can all reflect on the blessings in our lives and the time we get to spend together with family. On behalf of my family, my staff, and the entire 3rd Assembly District, I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas!
