On August 22 of this year, the law creating the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program (TANF) turns 25 years old, and that’s not a cause for celebration. At the national level and here in Wisconsin, TANF is serving only a small fraction of the families who are living in poverty and are eligible for assistance. The TANF law...
The huge tax cut that Wisconsin lawmakers passed in the state budget far outstrips the minimal investments they made in critical priorities like education, health, and workforce development. The size of the tax cut will make it harder for schools, communities, and families with low incomes to get the resources they need to thrive....
The Wisconsin Legislature passed a state budget that stripped out several provisions introduced by Governor Evers that would expand opportunity for immigrant families and communities. The Governor signed the budget passed by the legislature, and it is now law. Driver Licenses for All The Legislature removed a proposed change that would...
Introduction The events of the past year have made the deep, longstanding racial disparities in our nation much more obvious. The COVID-19 pandemic and the current recession have not only shined a light on those disparities, but have also made them much worse. On many different indicators, Wisconsin is at or very near the top in terms...
Wisconsin’s Legislators Fail to Invest in Higher Education During a time of unprecedented revenue growth, the Legislature approved a higher education budget that does not include any significant new resources, and does not take steps to undo the steep budget cuts of past years or expand access to higher education. The legislature...
The 2021-23 Budget for K-12 Education Wisconsin students across the state deserve access to an excellent public education, and Wisconsin residents should be able to enjoy the economic benefits generated by a first-class public school system. To ensure that the doors of opportunity are open to everyone, Wisconsin needs to invest in our...
The legislature’s Joint Finance Committee put forward a budget that in many ways continues the status quo while providing substantial increases for personal care services and boosting funding for certain Medicaid providers, such as dentists and emergency physicians. It also increases funding for hospitals, nursing homes, and behavioral...
Wisconsin lawmakers still refuse to expand BadgerCare. Instead they are relying on the Affordable Care Act Marketplace to cover low-income individuals and parents who would otherwise be eligible for BadgerCare if Wisconsin joined the 38 states that have expanded Medicaid (known in Wisconsin as BadgerCare). This decision leaves thousands...
This guest blog was written by our UW Public Humanities Fellow, Kate MacCrimmon. She has been at Kids Forward over the past academic year. Kate offers a unique perspective as both a former Family Child Care provider and doctoral candidate researching the subject. This is the second in a two-part series connecting family child care...
Last week the budget committee of the Wisconsin legislature removed a provision from the state budget that would have provided health insurance to almost 100,000 Wisconsin residents with low incomes, while saving the state more than a billion dollars in tax revenue over the next two years. On the same day, the committee preserved a tax...
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