Raising Awareness for Foster Youth

This week, I was honored to join First Lady Tonette Walker, Secretary Eloise Anderson and others to speak at an event at the Capitol in honor of Foster Care Awareness month in May.

The event was sponsored by the Wisconsin Youth Advisory Council, a non-profit organization with volunteers from all over the state, dedicated to improving the environment around foster care in Wisconsin.

Recent statistics indicate there has been a rise in the number of children entering foster care while available foster care has declined with fewer homes available to help children in need.

But the Assembly is taking steps to address this need.

Some of our efforts include subsidized guardianship; legislation that provides assistance to a relative or close family-friend providing care for a child. The law increases the likelihood a child will be able stay with a family member in the event they are removed from their primary home.

Additionally, the opioid and heroin epidemic is contributing to the increased need for foster care. The HOPE Agenda is the legislative response to this crisis and has received national recognition for its efforts in battling the opioid and heroin epidemic. Its various proposals – 17 have been signed into law – aim to provide treatment and prevent addiction. In turn we hope the laws will reduce the number of children needing to be removed from unsafe living conditions.

More work is still needed, but with the right ideas we can encourage more families to open their doors to children in need and give them the care and compassion that every child deserves.

Have a great weekend!

Wrapping-up the Spring Survey

Many of you received my spring survey in the mail. But if you haven’t, I encourage you to visit my website to provide feedback on some of the important legislative initiatives we will be debating in the coming days and months.

You can find the survey here or at my website, reprodriguez.com.

Oak Creek Citizen of the Year

Congratulations to Liz Heidtke for winning Oak Creek Citizen of the Year. It was a pleasure to present her with a citation for her contribution to our community!

Thanks for Visiting!

This week, students from Oak Creek High School visited the Capitol. During the visit I met with the students to discuss important legislative issues taking place in Wisconsin. The students asked great questions and we had a productive conversation!