Senator Agard joins Attorney General Josh Kaul, Senator LaTonya Johnson in Support of Governor Evers’ Gun Safety Budget Provisions

MADISON- Today, Senators Melissa Agard (D-Madison), LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee), and Attorney General Josh Kaul called on Republican leaders in our state to support universal background checks and extreme risk protection orders proposed in Governor Evers’ 2021-23 Budget. This call to action comes in the wake of several mass shootings across our country over the past two weeks. Senator Agard released the following statement:

“Today, I was proud to join Attorney General Kaul and Senator Johnson in calling on Republican leaders to support the crucial gun safety measures in Governor Evers’ biennial budget, including expanding universal background checks to all gun sales and Extreme Risk Protection Orders.”

“The fact is, the only place that addressing gun violence is a partisan issue is in the Capitol. The people of Wisconsin know that those who skirt our gun laws using loopholes do a disservice to responsible gun owners everywhere,” Senator Agard stated. “It’s common sense to prevent domestic abusers and felons from purchasing weapons using the ‘gun show loophole.’ That’s why we need universal background checks for all firearm purchases like Governor Evers is proposing.”

There is a societal and fiscal impact to gun violence. Recent research revealed that the annual cost of gun violence in the United States exceeds $229 billion.

“I cannot, and will never, treat gun violence and mass shootings as inevitable. Inaction is an admission that this is our fate as a state and nation. We need a commitment from Republican leadership in both chambers that they will keep these provisions in the budget. These common sense reforms have the power to save lives. We can no longer ignore the pervasive threat of gun violence in communities across Wisconsin. We must pass these policies to keep people safe. We must be brave enough to take action.”

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.