Last week was busy both in the Capitol and out in the community. Two of our session days on the Assembly floor went past 10p.m., which is exhausting but extremely important work. I spoke against Governor Walker's tax plan which I believe should have gone towards restoring some of the historic cuts seen to education funding over the past three years. I also passionately fought against AB 750 which would preempt local control in counties and municipalities which have living wage ordinances.

Despite these harmful bills, I was able to honor the Boy Scouts with a Assembly Joint Resolution. My family is deeply involved in scouting and I understand their value to our neighbors and our community as a whole.

On a personal note, I would like to thank each of you who sent your condolences after the passing of my grandmother last week. Your words were a comfort during this difficult time.

Thank you for all your support. I promise you that I will continue to work each and everyday for the citizens of the 48th Assembly District and for all Wisconsinites.

Last week, Democratic Assembly Representatives and State Senators joined together to introduce a Constitutional Amendment that would repeal the prohibition on marriage equality in Wisconsin. I want to commend Rep. Jocasta Zamarripa and Sen. Tim Carpenter for their steadfast leadership on this issue.

We stand at the precipice of a historic moment as we push for marriage equality in the state we love. My colleagues and I are introducing this bill because as went out across Wisconsin, we heard your voices which overwhelmingly said that the continued discrimination against our LGBT friends, family, and neighbors does not portray our values.

Marriage equality strengthens families, brings stability and validity to the children of same sex couples, and ties our communities together. I encourage those on the other side of the aisle to get behind this pro-family legislation. Our kids deserve to grow up feeling valued, and LGBT families deserve to be protected under the law.

This proposed constitutional amendment is about guaranteeing that every Wisconsinite has the freedom and liberty to love who they love. This bill will ensure that no Wisconsinite has privileges and rights that are denied to others. I am resolved to be a vocal champion for equality in our state until it is the law of the land.

Currently, 17 states have legalized same sex marriage and an October 2013 Marquette poll showed that a majority of Wisconsinites now support same-sex marriage.

Senator Chris Larson has started a petition to support this amendment. Add your voice to the 20,000 who have already signed by clicking HERE.
 

Harmful Living Wage Bill Passes Assembly

Many of those affected by the living wage ordinance are care givers for our most vulnerable citizens. I know from my countless conversations at the doors with people in my district that they value the independence provided by a fair living wage.

People choose to live in Dane County and choose to elect their local representative in our county government based on the reflection of their values in progressive policies like the living wage ordinance.

If signed into law, this bill will take $3 per hour away from those who are serving our community and helping those who cannot help themselves.

As of January, employees covered under Madison's living wage ordinance earn at least $12.45 an hour. The city's living wage is adjusted annually and is equal to 110 percent of the federal poverty line.

Honoring the Boy Scouts 

On Monday, February 17th I was honored to speak at the annual Legislative Seminar for Wisconsin Student Government. WSG is an organization comprised of elected student officials attending one of our sixteen technical colleges across Wisconsin that advocate and protect the interests of the over 400,000 technical colleges that they represent statewide. I was invited to speak at this seminar by Caroline Russell, the current President of Wisconsin Student Government and has served as an intern in my Capitol office since August of 2013. Each year WSG plans this seminar as a conduit for student representatives to contact their legislators and make their voices heard.

In hopes to assist these student leaders on their mission to advocate within the legislature, I shared my own story about my journey into the Assembly.

I also spoke in support of the positions that WSG chose to advocate for this year which includes strengthening state funded aid programs and opposing additional credentialing barriers on technical college programs. This is a great group of students does a wonderful job of representing Wisconsin technical college students and advocating for their needs.

Cell Phone Privacy Bill Heads to the Governor's Desk

The Cell Phone Privacy Bill which I co-authored with Rep. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield) has now passed the Assembly and the Senate on unanimous votes. The bill will now head to the Governor’s desk for his signature. The bill will prohibit law enforcement from tracking an individual’s movements or historical data through their cell phone without first obtaining a search warrant. Privacy-related bills have been a major focus of my first term.

Our cell phone location data creates an intimate portrait of our lives. It can reveal whose house we visited, our place of worship, a doctor’s office visit, and much more. This information should have a higher degree of protection under the law.

This bill creates a legal framework for law enforcement seeking to track a suspect’s movements electronically, putting in place uniform rules that would still allow officers to act quickly in an emergency. It puts in place, the higher warrant standard for historical data records. The bill also ensures that if a person is found innocent, the data will be deleted; similar to the process of DNA collection in our criminal justice system.

By providing parameters for the collection of this high personal data, we are providing clear guidelines, and less chance for data to be found inadmissible in court. No officer wants to collect information on a potential crime, and then have it ruled inadmissible by a judge.

I want to thank Rep. Hutton for his leadership and pragmatic work on this bill. I am pleased that we could work across the aisle in a bi-partisan manner on this important legislation.

YSOSW New Location Opening

After years of hard work, we are now able to celebrate the opening of the new location of Youth Services of Southern Wisconsin and the opening of 8 beds in our community for homeless and unaccompanied youth. Youth Services of Southern Wisconsin has provided services to some of our community’s most vulnerable people for more than 4 decades.

Unaccompanied, homeless youth is a serious issue. Couch-surfing, sleeping in cars, staying with unsafe strangers – it’s estimated that approximately 300 Madison youth live that life every night. This is a problem that deserves a strong solution, and I’m proud to say that we’re working each and every day towards a solution. This is a something we will earn day by day and inch by inch, but we will get there.



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February 24, 2014
Issue 28

State Capitol
P.O. Box 8953
Madison, WI 53708

Office: (608) 266-0960

Email:
Rep.Sargent@legis.wi.gov

On the Web: sargent.assembly.wi.gov
 

Library Legislative Day I  recently welcomed a group to the Capitol who were advocating for our local libraries. Our libraries are important and special for many reasons. Healthy communities, healthy families, and healthy societies depend on their funding. I am thankful for the outreach and advocacy that these great people took the time to share with me. My friend, Dr. Dipesh Navsaria pointed out this wonderful quote to me regarding libraries: "My two favourite things in life are libraries and bicycles. They both move people forward without wasting anything." -Peter Golkin HealthWatch Wisconsin Conference I was on a legislative panel for the 7th Annual HealthWatch Wisconsin Conference discussing the realities of health coverage in Wisconsin and where Wisconsin could be headed in 2014 and beyond. I shared with the group my legislation which would allow counties to access the federal Medicaid expansion money despite Governor Walker's ill-advised decision to turn it down. Visit from 'The A-Team I was thrilled to welcome the A-Team of South Central Wisconsin to my office during their "Day at the Capitol" on February 19th. This group supports community integrated employment for those with disabilities or rehabilitation needs. These jobs provide independence and self-worth for many throughout or community. I support them and was honored to hear their stories during their visit.

Ask Rep. Sargent

Q: I've heard the term 'pulling motion' used before. What does that mean? A: Under the Assembly Rules, a legislator is allowed to make a motion on the Assembly floor to 'pull' a bill from committee (and onto the Assembly floor) for a vote if it has been in a committee for 21 days.

Quote of the Week

"We will never have true civilization until we have learned to recognize the rights of others." -Will Rogers

WORT Interview

I had a great time on 'A Public Affair' on WORT here in Madison. Senator Miller and I discussed the anniversary of the 2011 Wisconsin protests. Those protests awoke the people of Wisconsin like never before in our history. The people knew that our values were under attack and they raised their voices in opposition to the attack on workers’ rights. I am proud that I was part of those protests and I will continue to fight for our shared values. Let us continue to work with the passion we harnessed during those cold months, 3 years ago. We are strongest when we speak together with one united voice. Thank you to John Quinlan for having me on the show. Forward.

WSHA Conference

After a late night session in the State Assembly last Thursday, I was up and at 'em with the early birds talking with the Wisconsin's Speech Language Pathology & Audiology Association (WSHA) about the power of advocacy. WSHA's mission is to provide leadership and support for speech-language pathologists, audiologists and speech, language and hearing scientists in Wisconsin through advocacy, education, and public awareness.

 

Tax Season is HERE

Wisconsin's Department of Revenue offers free tax help on their website. Their Youtube page is a great place to start if you are having trouble filing or e-filing your taxes this year. Click HERE to be directed to the help page. And if you need further assistance, please contact my office at 608-266-0960 or Rep.Sargent@legis.wi.gov and we will be happy to direct you to a tax specialist within our state government.