Rep. Robyn Vining Statement on Passage of Amended Assembly Bill 1

MADISON – Today, the Wisconsin State Assembly passed an amended version of Assembly Bill 1, with Assembly Republicans adding additional amendments with provisions that had been removed from the version of the bill that had passed the Wisconsin State Senate with bipartisan support earlier this month. Representative Robyn Vining (D-Wauwatosa) issued the following statement in response:

“I appreciate the State Senate working to compromise and amend Assembly Bill 1, and it is my hope that this show of bipartisanship will continue into further action by the legislature. I drove to Madison today with the hopes of passing the version of Assembly Bill 1 that passed the Senate, that had bipartisan support from Governor Evers and the Wisconsin State Senate. Instead, the Assembly Republicans decided to cast bipartisanship aside, and cast aside the compromise work of their Senate counterparts to play political games. A devastating pandemic that has created both a public health crisis and an economic crisis is no time for political games. In April we were able to overcome partisanship, and I wish it was in that same spirit that my Republican colleagues had shown up to work today.

“Our work as legislators does not and cannot end here. We need to continue to fight for the survival of our small businesses, we need to come alongside our schools and childcare providers, we need additional fixes to the unemployment system, we need to support our frontline healthcare workers, and we need to do absolutely everything we can to protect the health and safety of each and every Wisconsinite from COVID-19. We need to create a bridge for Wisconsin to stability and recovery as we fight forward, all of us, together.

“I have been ready for months to pass legislation that will provide relief and protections to the people of Wisconsin in response to this virus. The time is now to act on legislative proposals that will protect the lives and livelihoods of the people of Wisconsin.”

Rep. Vining represents the 14th Assembly District, which includes parts of Brookfield, Wauwatosa, and Milwaukee. For more information, visit Rep. Vining’s website here.