This week, I was humbled to be recognized by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) as a "2015 Legislator of the Year." The group recognized eight legislators from Wisconsin for leadership in the Wisconsin Legislature to stop drunk driving.

I was proud to be able to bring two bills forward this year to help combat drunk driving. The first, Senate Bill 222/Assembly Bill 266, would create an Ignition Interlock Resricted Driver's License. Under the bill, a person with a restricted license would be prohibited from driving a vehicle without an ignition interlock device (IID). Currently, the IID is tied to a vehicle, which means a convicted drunk driver could drive a different car without a device and would only be guilty of a traffic violation if caught.  This bill ties the IID to the driver's license, so the driver is required to use an IID on any vehicle they drive.

I also drafted Senate Bill 335/Assembly Bill 432, or the "5 Strikes and You're Out" bill. This bill would revoke someone's driver's license for 10 years if they have been convicted of drunk driving at least five times.

Although, I am honored to be named for this award, I didn't offer these bills thinking I would receive recognition for it. I authored these bills to address the all-too-high cost that drunk driving, and especially repeat drunk driving, is taking on our families, our communities and our state. I am thankful for the award, but we must remember the battle against drunk driving continues, and there is more to be done. 

 
Do you know a high school student who wants to be a Senate Scholar? Applications are now being accepted for this intensive week-long educational program offered by the Wisconsin State Senate. Admission to the program is highly competitive and is limited to 33 academically exceptional high school juniors and seniors aged 16-18 from around Wisconsin. Each Senate Scholar receives a hands-on, up-close view of the Legislature’s role in our democracy. 

Senate Scholars gain experience in such diverse areas as policy development, constituent relations, and processing legislation by working with Senators, legislative staff and University of Wisconsin faculty. The program will run for three separate weeks on the following dates: February 7-12, February 14-19 and March 6-11, 2016. Applications must be received by January 3, 2016 and applicants will be notified of their acceptance around January 15, 2016. To learn more about the program, and to download an application, click here.

 

On October 24, I was pleased to attend the Kansasville Fire promotional program and dinner to celebrate the promotions of five upstanding individuals. Congratulations to Kevin Bower who was promoted to Lieutenant, Matt Callies and Brad Londre who were promoted to Captain, and Rich Quilling and Tom Kalbas who were promoted to Assistant Chief. Fine job!



On November 11, I had the opportunity to speak in honor of Veterans Day at the Union Grove Veterans Home (pictured above). It was a privilege to thank the brave men and women who have served our country and to be able to give a legislative update on what my colleagues and I are doing to honor veterans.