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MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!
With warmer weather these past few weeks, it almost doesn't feel like the holiday season, but I wanted to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from my family to yours!
WISCONSIN'S UNEMPLOYMENT REACHES A 14 YEAR LOW
As released by a Department of Workforce Development (DWD) study this week, Wisconsin's unemployment has fallen to 4.2%, its lowest level since March 2001.
Our state's rate still remains under the national average of 5%, and has dropped a full percentage point since this time last year. The DWD study has indicated that private sector businesses have added 33,400 jobs this year.
H.O.P.E. AGENDA ADVANCES
Heroin and opiate addiction and abuse is has been a growing problem across our state and has impacted both urban and rural areas. Over that past three years, our caucus has led strong legislative efforts to combat this issue head on. This past week, the state of Wisconsin gained another tool in its toolbox to fight against this problem.
Governor Walker signed Assembly Bill 427 into law on Tuesday. This is the 8th new law from the H.O.P.E. Agenda, which stands for heroin, opiate prevention and education. Wisconsin Act 115, as it is now called, allows certain pharmacies to offer the opioid antagonist known as Narcan to counteract an opiate or heroin overdose without a prescription.
This past session, the State Assembly unanimously approved legislation to allow first responders who are trained to administer Narcan to individuals who have overdosed. That law has proven to be effective and has saved dozens of lives across the state.
To learn more, visit the H.O.P.E. Agenda Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/HOPEAgenda.
LOCAL SALES AND USE TAX FOR LOCAL TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS PASSES COMMITTEE
The Assembly Committee on Transportation, the committee I chair, unanimously recommended for passage an amended version of Assembly Bill 210, a bipartisan measure to increase funding for local road maintenance, on Tuesday.
AB 210 as amended allows counties to hold a referendum at a spring or fall general election that, if approved by voters, lets the county levy an additional 0.5% sales tax, the funds from which may only be used for road maintenance and repair. The tax can only be levied for four years, and any extension must be approved by voters. The bill makes no changes to local road aids or general transportation aids. Money collected will be distributed between the county and its municipalities and towns via an agreed-upon formula.
While this bill is by no means a silver bullet for the overall Transportation funding issues we will face for the next decade, it is a tool our local communities can use to help maintain their roads. It is important that local governments prove to their local citizens there is a need for a tax, but ultimately it is their decision.
The measure has the support of a bipartisan group of legislators, local government groups, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, and a number of other organizations. AB 210 is expected to see action in the Assembly during the 2016 spring session.
WISCONSIN 511
Please remember to be careful while traveling during these busy holiday weeks! I wanted to provide you with a helpful tool from the Department of Transportation, the Wisconsin 511 Traveler Information Program. .
The Wisconsin 511 alerts travelers to free, real-time Wisconsin traveler information. This system is accessible on the web by visiting www.511wi.gov AND on your phone by calling 511 when in Wisconsin. As you can see when visiting the website, a real-time map is available indicating which roadways have good winter driving, slippery stretches, snow cover, ice cover, or incidents.
511 users have access to traffic and road conditions, road construction and lane closures, travel times, traffic incidents and other delays, as well as information on roadside services such as rest area locations. I recommend this program for anyone that plans to travel on Wisconsin roads this winter.
For your reference, this icon is also always located on the left of my e-updates.
CONTACT ME
As in the past, I would continue to encourage you to contact my office with ideas for this next legislative session and on individual pieces of legislation. Now more than ever your ideas and opinions need to be heard, so we can begin to get Wisconsin back to work. Please contact my office at 608-266-3404 or email me at Rep.Ripp@legis.wisconsin.gov, or stop by my Capitol office at 223 North. I look forward to hearing from you. As always, I will continue to work across the aisle to find common ground and move legislation forward.
Please share this update with your friends and neighbors within the 42nd Assembly District and if there is anyone you know who would like to be included, please respond to this email with their email address.