Ron's Weekly Recaps

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds were so mismanaged during the pandemic, that a Milwaukee street gang stole millions of taxpayer dollars and used it to fund their gang operations and even a murder for hire.

Assembly Republicans have called out the University of Wisconsin Systems (UW) for asking for increased funding while spending $16.8 million dollars on 226 positions related to "diversity, equity, and inclusion" (DEI). Currently, UW-Madison employs 74 of these positions, while UW-Eau Claire and UW-Whitewater each employ 34 of these DEI positions.

Assembly Republicans and local officials have unveiled an ambitious plan to increase state aid to local governments across Wisconsin. Following extensive consultation with constituents and local authorities, the proposed legislation is designed to address the financial challenges faced by rural communities, suburbs, and cities in the coming decade. The focus is on innovation and public safety, ensuring that essential services continue to be maintained and improved.

Carjacking incidents have been on the rise in Wisconsin, particularly in Milwaukee and Madison, causing lawmakers to take notice. Milwaukee has seen the largest jump in stolen car theft rate in the entire country, jumping from a rate of 345.19 in 2020 to 597.83 in 2021 - a 72% increase, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB). As Chairman of Judiciary, Ron wants Wisconsin to react to this alarming trend and increase this penalty by passing Assembly Bill 52.

Wisconsin voters have spoken. They want to change how the state's bail system operates. Both of the state's bail reform constitutional amendments passed with overwhelming margins during the recent elections.

On Wednesday, I sat down with Rep. Subeck (D-Madison) and Spectrum 1 News for a roundtable discussion on the two ballot questions that will appear on your April 4th ballot.

This week, the Republican-led Assembly voted and passed a myriad of bills aimed at crime prevention & victim protection. Some of these bills were passed through the Assembly Judiciary Committee, which I chair. I proudly brought these bills to a vote in my committee and many received bipartisan support.

This week, I spoke on Assembly Bill 69. This bill, authored by Rep. Nik Rettinger & Cindi Duchow, addresses the alarming increase in school violence observed in Wisconsin and across the United States. AB 69 mandates schools to report certain incidents occurring on school grounds to local law enforcement. If 100 or more incidents take place in public school buildings or on public school grounds, and if 25 of those incidents result in an arrest, the school must hire a School Resource Officer (SRO) by the first day of the following school year.

This week, my Judiciary Committee reviewed four bills related to crime prevention and victim rights. All of them were recommended for passage, two with bipartisan support.