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Official Government
Communication
Dear Friend,
Welcome to my email newsletter.
There is a lot happening at the State Capitol and it is my hope that this
email will help you stay in touch with your government. As your Senator,
I truly believe in public service. If there is anything my office can do
to assist you, please feel free to contact us.
Here to serve,
Sen. Lena Taylor
4th District
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BREAKING:
DMV
system outages cause problems for Voter IDs
 Today I was notified that because of a
server crash at the Department of Administration there were system outages at
DMVs statewide. The problem has been resolved, however, my office called DMV
officials to express my concern that these outages prevented people from
getting voter IDs. The DMV has agreed to extend their Saturday hours to
3:00pm at two Milwaukee-area locations tomorrow. If you still need to get
your ID, head to the NW DMV (7301 W. Mill Rd, Milwaukee) or the SW DMV (5500
W. Grange Rd, Greendale) between 8:30am and 3:00pm. If you are inside the
lobby of either of these DMVs by 3:00pm you are guaranteed assistance in
obtaining a voter ID.
Get the Lead
out, Milwaukee!
 Did you know that almost twice as many
Milwaukee kids tested positive for dangerous lead levels than the kids in
Flint, Michigan? Wisconsin Public Television did a story on the lead issue in which they
revealed 4,000 Wisconsin Children tested positive for elevated lead in their
blood. 60% of those kids live in Milwaukee. In fact, 8.6% of our kids tested
positive for dangerous lead levels compared to 4.9% of Flint Michigan kids.
In Flint, Michigan, kids had so much lead in their system that the Mayor
declared a state of emergency. Where’s our state of emergency? This is a
major issue that not nearly enough people are talking about. Lead is
extremely toxic and it affects the liver, kidneys, reproductive system and
nervous system. Lead’s most dangerous impact is on the brain and can cause
serious development problems in our youth. Milwaukee is an old city with old
infrastructure. There is lead in our paint, in our pipes, and probably in our
soil too. There are over 70,000 lead lateral pipes bringing drinking water
right into our homes in the “old” parts of town. Many of those homes are in
the heart of the 4th Senate district. I understand that there will not be a
cheap or easy solution to this problem, but we need to implement solutions
immediately. I think our best first step is to create a lead poisoning task
force to devise a smart lead abatement plan that just might save our
city.
MPS graduate receives prestigious
Fulbright award
 Sojourner White, a 2012 graduate of Milwaukee Public
Schools' Rufus King International High School and student at Bradley
University in Illinois, has received the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student
Award. White, who attended MPS' Elm Creative Arts School and Roosevelt
Creative Arts Middle School before heading to King, will teach English and
serve as a cultural ambassador in Spain. King's
International Baccalaureate program opened her eyes to the fact that
"there's a world beyond high school and a world beyond Milwaukee."
Watching her father, an MPS teacher, work with students will also prepare her
for the trip, White said. The MPS alumna plans to work in school psychology
after she returns from Spain and continue on to graduate school. The
Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program
sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to increase mutual
understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other
countries, according to the program. The Fulbright U.S. Student Award has
been in existence since 1946, and fewer than 2,000 students receive the award
each year.
Volunteers wanted!
 Join me in a great opportunity to give
back to your community and celebrate Earth Day on Saturday April 23, 2016 at
the 2016 Annual Spring River Clean-up! There are four different locations:
Havenwood’s State Forest, Lincoln Park on the water, Lincoln Park on land and
Lincoln Creek. Volunteer check-in is from 8:30-9:00am and clean-up will go
until about noon. Please wear closed toed shoes and dress appropriately for
the weather. You may also want to bring a reusable water bottle for your use.
They will provide you with gloves and garbage bags, a FREE T-Shirt and food
after the clean-up! For Lincoln Park "on the water" cleanup, a
canoe and pre-registration is required. The other three locations, you will
be on land and no pre-registration is required. For more information visit milwaukeeriverkeeper.org or call
(414) 287-0207.
Governor Walker's startling change of
heart
 Today Governor Walker declared that he has finally seen the
error in his ways, that educating our children and young people is a
top priority for Wisconsin. In a move that shocked and appalled the Tea
Party, Walker announced he will reverse his largest cut to K-12 public
schools in Wisconsin history and his most recent $250 million cut to the UW
System. I am surprised and delighted that our Governor suddenly agrees with
principles I have been at odds with him on for so long. What a relief to
finally work together to address the real issues in our state. This is
the sort of good judgment and visionary leadership I—frankly—didn’t think I’d
ever see from Scott Walker. But as I’ve always said, I’m all about second
chances. I will work for the good of our community with anyone who is
willing, and if today’s the day that Governor Walker joins me in fighting to
give our babies a leg up with excellent education, I welcome him to my cause.
This is the kind of bi-partisan cooperation our state needs. Unfortunately,
this is also a huge, unbelievable April Fools Joke!! Did I get you? I only
wish that I could share such good news on any day of the year, not just joke
about it on April 1st.
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Community Events:
Spring Gallery Night and Day! Free gallery hopping and art viewing for the
avid galler-goer and the beginning admirer. April 15th and 16th, more
information here.
TEDxUWMilwaukee presents 60 For 60: Take the
Stage: Understanding of diverse topics
and engagement from all sides of the intellectual spectrum through live talks
and short clips of potential TEDx speakers. April 11th, 7pm. Details here.
Home Loan Assistance Event: Mortgage worries? Get the FREE help you need on Thursday
April 28 at Hillside Terrace Resource Center (1452 N. 7th Street, Milwaukee,
WI 53205) 1-7pm. Lenders and housing counselors will be on hand to listen and
help you understand you options, provide information about payment plans and
foreclosure mediation and offer mortgage refinance options.
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