(MADISON) – Today, the Joint Committee on Finance, Wisconsin’s budget committee, held a contentious debate about the backlog of investigations of child abuse and neglect cases in Milwaukee. According to the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, backlogged cased of child abuse and neglect in Milwaukee grew to 2,918 in June, 2014. Last year, more than 30 percent of the Milwaukee Bureau of Child Welfare social workers and the director quit amidst high caseloads. Below is Senator Lena Taylor’s (D-Milwaukee) statement:

“While Governor Walker is off campaigning for President, he’s abandoned his responsibilities back home. On the Governor’s watch, the backlog of uninvestigated cases of child abuse and neglect grew to nearly 3,000. Governor Walker has shown clearly that his main concern is voters in Iowa, not black kids in Milwaukee.

“Budgets are about priorities. In the same budget Governor Walker increased his own office spending, child abuse and neglect allegations continue to go uninvestigated. Black lives matter; especially those who are too young to advocate for themselves.”