A state devoted to helping others lead better lives cannot tolerate a welfare system whose intentions may have been noble but whose results have been tragic.
Just consider some of the human tragedy of welfare: Studies have shown that
A child on welfare is twice as likely to drop out of school.
A child on welfare is twice as likely to become pregnant as a teenager....out-of-wedlock.
And a child on welfare is twice as likely to end up on welfare as an adult.... And each new generation will be on welfare three times longer than the previous generation.
We've allowed welfare to ruin too many lives for too long.
No more!
It is over!
It is finished!
As governor, I will not stand to lose one more generation to a morally bankrupt welfare system. I will not lose one more child because we didn't care enough to help.
Welfare must end now. And it must end in these chambers.
There is only one way to end welfare, for there is only one way a person can truly escape welfare and climb out of poverty.
And that is to work.
There is no shortcut. No simpler way. No alternative.
There's an old proverb that says very simply: "First work, then wages." And it is upon that principle that W-2 is predicated. No more something for nothing; from now on only work will pay.
When a family is down on its luck and turns to government for assistance, we're going to help them in a much more compassionate way.
We're going to give them a job.
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Instead of having them fill out this cumbersome 18-page application for welfare, we're going to have them fill out this -- a one-page job application.
W-2 puts people to work and helps them stay there. Instead of cash, W-2 provides ample child care, health care, food stamps, housing assistance and training until families earn enough to make it on their own. In fact, we're more than tripling our spending on child care to ensure the children of these parents are properly cared for. And they will be covered by health insurance.
W-2 also demands personal responsibility, just like the real world. For example, participants will make co-payments for child care and health care services, just as families not on public assistance are required to make.
And there couldn't be a better time to end welfare. Our economy is growing so fast that we have a surplus of jobs, with employers eagerly looking for workers. The Business Journal even reported recently that Milwaukee businesses were offering movie tickets, gifts and car loans as lures to potential employees.
The jobs are there.
And it is a job, as well as the pride of working, that lifts the poor out of poverty and sets them on the road toward achieving the American Dream.
Helping people lead better lives. That's what Wisconsin is all about. That's what W-2 is all about.
As lawmakers, you know perhaps better than anybody else how difficult it is to eliminate a program ...even when doing so is clearly in the best interests of the public.
Well today, you are in a position to do just that. You can end welfare.
Think about it. Don't underestimate the boldness of what we are undertaking.
You have the opportunity to make the greatest change in social policy in 50 years in this country. To help thousands of families lead better lives.
We will all be held morally accountable by history if we squander this opportunity.
Care enough to end welfare.
Summary
This legislative session will be remembered in history as ushering in the most monumental reforms of the century. No session in my memory has changed the course of this state -- and touched every life in this state -- the way the 1995-96 session has. We are charting a bold new course for success in the next millennium.
Tonight, we have set forth another ambitious agenda for the people of Wisconsin. And we pursue that agenda with the confidence that there is no idea too bold for action, no challenge too tough to meet.
We are living in a day of promise. Unlike most Americans, we believe our children will be better off tomorrow than we are today. And we're working hard to make it happen.
We build our economy....put people to work....preserve our natural resources....show zero tolerance for crime....invest in education....and lift the poor out of poverty -- All, so we can provide our children and families with the highest possible quality of life.
And we instill in our children values such as hard work, responsibility and a strong faith in God so they have the confidence to pursue a better future for themselves and their children.
Wisconsin Works -- for today and for tomorrow
In 1894, the great Justice Oliver Wendall Holmes said, "I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand as in what direction we are moving. We must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it. But we must sail, and not drift, nor lie at anchor."
In Wisconsin, we sail. We sail toward our dreams. And sooner or later, no matter what storms we encounter, we arrive safe and sound -- and better for having made the journey.
Good night, and God Bless Wisconsin.
Adjourned.
8:00 P.M.
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Senate Enrolled Proposals
The Chief Clerk records:
Senate Bill 245
Senate Bill 388
Senate Bill 413
Report correctly enrolled on January 29, 1996.
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Senate amendment 1 to Senate Bill 449 offered by Senator Petak.
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Corrections In:
SENATE SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1,
To 1995 ASSEMBLY BILL 441
Prepared by the Legislative Reference Bureau
(January 26, 1996)
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for the Month of January 1996
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Cowles for Dave "Doc" Mraz on the occasion of being named as Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Adelman for Edie Adelman on the celebration of her 80th Birthday
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Welch for Mary Rowley owner of the Goose Blind, Etc. and being named the WRA Outstanding Restauranteur of the Year for 1996.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Welch for Joshua Allen Helms on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Wineke for William B. Von Rutenberg on the occasion of being named Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year from the Madison area Chapter.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Darling for Michael Ehlinger on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Darling for Jason Kattman on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Wineke for Rene Weber on the occasion of becoming a U.S. citizen.
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A certificate of congratulation by Senator Darling for Tim Jaglinski on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Buettner for Alfred Loehr on the occasion of celebrating his 100th birthday.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Andrea for the Rotary Club of Kenosha-West on the occasion of celebrating it 25th Anniversary.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Lasee for Ryan L. Clarksen on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Lasee for Gary K. Wyman on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Weeden for Barbara A. Roherty on the occasion of being named Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year by the Blackhawk Chapter.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Chvala for Charles R. Hilston on the occasion of his retirement after 25 years service to the educational administration.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Buettner for Christopher Hunter on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Darling for Matthew D. Pagel on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Buettner for Mary Jo Keating on the occasion of 17 years of dedicated service to the Fond du Lac County Social Services.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Panzer for Officer Daniel H. Baranyk on the occasion of his retirement from the West Bend Police Department.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Schultz for Mr. Bruce Oradei on the occasion of his retirement form the Wisconsin Education Association Council after 27 dedicated and outstanding years of service.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Farrow for George Strieter on the occasion of being named Pewaukee's 1995 Person of the Year.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Ellis for Brian R. Rivet on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Moen for Helen Harry on the occasion of her receiving the truly deserved Alliance for the Mentally ill (AMI) Distinguished Service Award.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Weeden for David W. Luety III on the occasion of earning and attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Rosenzweig for Al Knief on the occasion of being named the prestigious citizen of the year by the West Allis Chamber of Commerce.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Welch for the Schultz-Klemp-Wentland VFW Post 5278 on its 50th anniversary.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Adelman for David A. Mayer on the occasion of being honored with the William Shehan Pioneer award by the Franklin Chamber of Commerce for a lifetime of service to the community of Franklin.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Adelman for Vernon E. Barg on the occasion of being honored with the William Shehan Pioneer award by the Franklin Chamber of Commerce for a lifetime of service to the community of Franklin.
A certificate of congratulation by Senator Rude for Duane W. Ring on the occasion of his retirement from the Norwest Bank in La Crosse.
A certificate of commendation by Senator Buettner for Adela Baumhardt on the occasion of her retirement from the Department of Corrections after 24 years of outstanding service.
