Thank you for the opportunity to continue serving you in the State Assembly. I have already been busy preparing for next session, and look forward to sharing information with you in the weeks ahead. With voting in Wisconsin having concluded on Tuesday, I now can now resume sending you my legislative e-update!
This week's update includes information on grants Wisconsin both received and awarded this week, the latest news from the Department of Workforce Development, and information about a virtual tour of Forest Hill Cemetery offered by the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.
Additionally, with November being National Native American Heritage Month, this week's Wisconsin Fun Fact is about one of Wisconsin's most prominent Native American figures, Ada Deer.
As always, if you have any questions or need assistance with any matter, please feel free to contact my office.
Sincerely,
Lisa Subeck State Representative 78th Assembly District
This week, Gov. Tony Evers announced a $10-million investment aimed at providing economic stabilization for nonprofit organizations providing critical services to Wisconsinites during COVID-19, which continues to surge across Wisconsin.
The COVID-19 Pandemic Response Nonprofit Grant Program will provide grant funding to eligible organizations that are providing critical services to individuals in the areas of health care, housing, and shelter, adult education, or other services being provided in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. These efforts are funded through the Federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF).
Administered by the Department of Administration (DOA), grant applications are now being accepted. Additional details regarding the grant and the application are available here. The deadline for grant applications is November 9, 2020, at 2 p.m.
US DOJ Awards Grant to Wisconsin
Gov. Tony Evers and Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services Secretary-designee Dawn Crim, announced the Wisconsin Enhanced Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (ePDMP) will receive $1,945,652 from a competitive U.S. Department of Justice grant program. The ePDMP is an award-winning tool that promotes responsible opioid prescribing and generates state-wide prescribing data and was developed the ePDMP with the Wisconsin Controlled Substances Board. The funding will be used for overall infrastructure enhancements that will increase security, user satisfaction, and adoption. Hospitalizations for opioid overdoses are up this year, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, and experts believe COVID-related isolation and stress are at least partly to blame.
Launched in 2013, the ePDMP has contributed to a significant reduction in opioid prescribing (annual prescriptions dispensed in 2019 were just over 3,300,000 compared to more than 5,000,000 in 2015), has virtually eliminated “doctor shopping” practices where patients seek multiple pain prescriptions from multiple providers and transformed Wisconsin prescribing culture.
The Department of Workforce Development (DWD) was recently notified by the United States Department of Labor (USDOL) that Wisconsin has met the criteria for turning off the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Extended Benefits (EB) program. The last payable week of EB is November 7, 2020.
According to the USDOL, "Wisconsin’s 13-week insured unemployment rate (IUR) for the week ending October 10, 2020, was 4.87 percent, falling below the 5.00 percent threshold necessary to remain “on” EB. Therefore, the EB period for Wisconsin ended on November 7, 2020, and the State will remain in an “off” period for a minimum of 13 weeks."
DWD expects to complete system programming for the EB program in December. Once complete, eligible claimants will be paid for the weeks in which they qualify for the benefit retroactively. For more information, visit https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/uiben/eb/.
Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council Public Hearings
The Wisconsin Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council will be hosting two public hearings on Monday, November 9th and Tuesday, November 10th. Registration is required to participate in the events.
Having Trouble Receiving Unemployment Benefits? If you are experiencing a difficulty with your Unemployment or Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims, please email Rep.Subeck@legis.wi.gov with the following information:
Full name (with Middle initial if applicable)
Phone number
Date of Birth or last 4 digits of SSN
Address
Issue that needs to be resolved
Status of your application
Did you apply online?
What date did you submit it?
My staff will send this information to DWD and request that they promptly look into your case. I understand that this is a difficult financial time for many, and I am committed to helping you receive your benefits in a timely manner.
With the holiday season just around the corner, many consumers are gearing up for the gift-giving season. As you shop for holiday gifts this year, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) encourages you to keep an eye out for the Something Special from Wisconsin™ (SSfW) logo.
It’s easy to spot: the oval-shaped logo has a bright red background and white and yellow lettering, allowing you to easily identify an SSfW product. The sticker also carries a meaningful message: when you see it, you can be assured at least 50 percent of the item’s ingredients, production, or processing has come from right here in Wisconsin.
With nearly 450 companies participating in the SSfW program, the logo can be found on everything from meats and cheeses, sweet syrups and candies, to soaps, candles, lotions, wreaths, and more. This year, consumers can also select from eight different curated “Boxes of Fun” filled with high-quality Wisconsin products that can be purchased online. Orders need to be placed by November 12 for delivery in time for Thanksgiving Day, and by December 10 to ensure delivery by Christmas. Boxes can be shipped to Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota; two of the boxes can be shipped anywhere in the continental U.S.
Since 1983, the Something Special from Wisconsin program has been trademarked through DATCP. Products that are part of the program are available year-round, so people can buy uniquely Wisconsin goods in all four seasons. The SSfW logo provides instant recognition for consumers choosing to purchase products made or grown in Wisconsin. For more information about the program, visit the Something Special From Wisconsin website.
For the 22nd year, the Wisconsin Veterans Museum is pleased to be in the serene and somber landscape of Madison's Forest Hill Cemetery to share with you the rich history of Wisconsin and its veterans during the virtual Talking Spirits Cemetery Tours.
On this 360-degree virtual tour, the museum staff is excited to take you to places in the cemetery and show you interesting photos and objects from the museum’s collection – enhancing this year’s virtual tour in a way not possible in past years. The tour is best accessed from a tablet or laptop computer.
One of Wisconsin’s most prominent Native American leaders is Ada Deer who is a member of the Menominee Tribe. She was born in Keshena, and quickly followed the lead of her mother becoming an advocate for Native American rights. Most notably, she was integral in restoring federal recognition of her tribe with the passage of the Menominee Restoration Act of 1972. This achievement lead her to become chair of the Menominee Tribe with the distinction of being the first woman to do so.
Her firsts do not end there. She earned her undergraduate degree from UW-Madison, being the first of her tribe to do so, and she was the first Native American to receive an M.S.W. from the Columbia University School of Social Work. Additionally, she was the first Native American woman appointed assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, as head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs where she helped craft federal policy for more than 550 federally recognized tribes. Additionally, she ran for Wisconsin secretary of state twice and is the first Native American woman to run for Congress from Wisconsin.
Deer has taught in the School of Social Work at UW-Madison, has been the director of the American Indian Studies Department, and created the first program at the UW to provide social work training on Native American reservations.