Today, I am working as a machine operator, providing for my family, buying them things I could never afford before.
But it wasn't always that way. I thought I would always be on welfare. I was always down on myself, thinking I would never accomplish anything.
When my welfare caseworker asked if I knew about W2, I didn't want to join because I had children at home to take care of. I was scared and nervous, but I knew I had to try this.
At first, they had me doing housekeeping and cleaning and I thought to myself – "I do this at home – what am I doing here!"
But I started volunteering to do more when others didn't show up for work. And I wondered what was back in the factory.
I always wanted to be a machinist – my dad was one. So when my boss, Dave, asked if I'd like to try it – I took a chance.
And it was hard. I learned about the machines using a CD rom and I had to do homework.
I took the first test and passed – then I took the second test and passed. Dave then called me for an interview – and he even offered to drive me there. I thought to myself – "Please don't let me mess this up…this is a real job."
I was so proud when I got the job. Now I tell my kids that this is what happens when you do your homework.
My kids see a difference in me. They see their mother making it. W2 gave me a chance and I feel good about myself – so thank you to everyone involved.
I especially want to thank my employers who are here tonight for believing in me. And I ask others to take a chance on W-2 workers. We won't let you down.
Thank you Governor.
Governor Thompson:
And her children are with us tonight too – I hope you are proud of your mom!
To the men and women participating in W-2, the message from your fellow workers is simple: You can do it. And we will help you.
Tonight, we seek to build upon our W-2 successes.
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My budget will propose allocating another $30 million to assist those entering the workforce to stay there and climb the economic ladder. All W-2 agencies would work with participants for 6 full months after an individual gets a job.
And let's help W-2 workers better meet the challenges of finding quality care for their children while they work. I propose that we:
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Expand eligibility for child care subsidies from 165 percent to 185 percent above the poverty line – a commitment of $2 million.
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Drop the assets limit for child care eligibility purposes.
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Provide child care assistance for families with disabled children between the ages of 13 to 18 – a $4 million commitment.
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Reduce the maximum co-payment for child care from 16 percent to 12 percent of a person's gross income -- a $7.5 million investment.
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And create get-well havens for sick children while their parents work. A $2 million investment will help W-2 agencies develop alternatives for sick children, such as child care pools or separate sick rooms at job centers and day cares.
Caring for a sick child should not put a mother's job at risk, and a working mother should not have to worry whether her sick child is getting quality care.
In addition, we should help steer at-risk children away from a life of trouble through new partnerships with our communities to provide safer neighborhoods and homes. Let's:
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Provide $150,000 for one-time grants to 25 communities for their own initiatives to bring fathers back into the family through our fatherhood initiative.
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Help needy children find stable homes with $170,000 for a statewide media campaign to recruit more foster families.
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Enlist the help of faith-based organizations, such as Faith Works in Milwaukee, to help us combat the devastation of broken families by fighting the ills of drug abuse.
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Help drug-addicted and alcoholic parents become clean and sober through a new million-dollar rehabilitation program.
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And provide $20 million in community youth grants for after-school programs for at-risk children. Neighborhood groups can tap into this money to provide programs that keep children away from crime, provide extra help with school, or prepare them for the workforce. The Safe and Sound program and the Good Samaritan Project in Milwaukee serve as models for this initiative.
With your help, we can make sure On Wisconsin means on to a higher quality of life for low-income children and families.
Health Care
For Wisconsin to be strong in the 21st century, we must be healthy -- our children, our adults and our seniors.
This budget provides the means to go forward with two landmark programs for our families – FamilyCare and BadgerCare.
FamilyCare would swing into action in 13 pilot counties – giving seniors one place to turn for an individualized package of long-term care services to meet their unique needs.
These 13 counties represent 25 percent of our elderly and disabled population, allowing us to cover a substantial portion of our seniors as we get the program off to a strong start. We plan to expand Family Care as aggressively as possible in coming years until it is statewide.
And we plan to have BadgerCare in place by July 1. With waivers from Washington finally in hand, we can proceed with helping low-income working families buy affordable, quality health insurance through Medicaid.
Badger Care is a grand testament to the good that comes when Republicans and Democrats put people ahead of politics. Because we worked together – in this chamber and in Washington -- 46,000 uninsured children and adults will now have health care.
And we can cover another 35,000 uninsured workers by coming together on a new Small Employer Health Care pool.
I propose investing $200,000 in one-time seed money to bring small businesses together -- pooling their resources and sharing the risk in order to provide health coverage for their workers. And the private sector will run the health care pool, not big government.
For those in HMOs, we can expand upon the landmark consumer protections passed last year in our Patients Bill of Rights by providing a managed care specialist in the Office of Commissioner of Insurance. This person will review the most complex consumer complaints and work on solutions.
Preventing health problems must remain a priority as well.
Last year, my wife Sue Ann unveiled an ambitious Women's Health Initiative and we thank you for supporting that endeavor. Tonight we seek to add a $2 million program to help pregnant women deal with alcohol and drug problems – a very important investment.
We also seek to draw attention to a disease infecting more and more men – prostate cancer. My budget will provide $50,000 – and ask for a $50,000 private sector match – to develop a prostate cancer awareness and prevention campaign. And a new advisory committee will develop guidelines for treatment of prostate cancer in Wisconsin.
Let's also launch a renewed assault on diabetes with $732,000 to match a federal grant aimed at improving the quality of life for more than 315,000 Wisconsinites who suffer from this disease, particularly in our minority communities.
As a state, we can take pride in being a national leader in organ procurement and transplants through our renowned Wisconsin Donor Network and the University of Wisconsin Hospital.
We can make our network of life even stronger, however, by adding to the Department of Health and Family Services an organ donor procurement coordinator, who would also enlist more people as donors.
Ladies and gentlemen -- we need more organ donors. So I ask every person in this chamber and across the state to pull out their driver's license, sign on the line, and pledge to be part of a generous and thoughtful group of life-saving heroes.
Each year at the Medal of Life Ceremony I am inspired by the people who gave the gift of life. Caring families like Darlene and Duane Woldt of Madison. When their son Derek died, four of his organs and his eyes were donated so four others could lead healthier lives.
We are a very giving state. Working together, we can give the greatest gift of all to our citizens – a healthy life.
So On Wisconsin – with the healthiest children, families and seniors in the country.
Rail Initiative
A state ready to charge into the next century, must do so with an efficient and modern transportation system.
Therefore, I am proposing several new initiatives on passenger rail.
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As the new chairman of Amtrak, I intend to help lead this oft-troubled organization out of the tunnel of darkness and into the light of success – for the benefit of Wisconsin and the nation.
Tomorrow in Chicago, I will join Amtrak and federal agencies in formally announcing the railway's $25 million investment in a new Midwest Rail Initiative aimed at bringing new high-speed rail technology to this region.
The Midwest Rail Initiative would carry people between nine states, on 3,000 miles of track, at 110 miles an hour. It will travel to nearly 70 different metropolitan areas and 11 urban centers – including a line that will connect Milwaukee and Madison to Chicago and Minneapolis.
Imagine the joy in Illinois when they find out they can escape to Wisconsin at 1/7th the speed of sound. And if we want to travel to Soldiers' Field to watch the Packers beat up on the hapless Bears – we won't have to pay their tolls.
And the best part is that the Midwest Rail Initiative would be funded largely by federal dollars, with minimal investments by the states.
Tomorrow's announcement will include a commitment of more than $2 million by Amtrak to start preliminary engineering on a high-speed route between Milwaukee and Madison, as well as a $200,000 grant by the Federal Railroad Administration to study equipment needs for the Midwest Rail Initiative.
And we are directing $500,000 in federal money to improve railroad crossings on the Hiawatha Line between Milwaukee and Chicago.
In addition, I am asking Transportation Secretary Chuck Thompson to find another $1 million to match Amtrak money so we can examine possible locations in Madison for a station on the east side, connecting to the airport and continuing to Minneapolis.
But you do not have to wait until tomorrow for the opportunity to discuss this project in more detail. George Warrington, the new president of Amtrak, is here with us tonight. And you can meet him in the Governor's Conference Room after the speech.
In fact, George and I will be recruiting one Democrat and one Republican lawmaker – and yes even one reporter – to accompany us on the inaugural run of Amtrak's new high-speed trainsets this fall in the Northeast Corridor. We will see firsthand its amazing potential for reducing congestion on our highways, shipping freight, and providing people a more efficient way to travel.
As you can see: These are not your father's trains.
So all aboard. On Wisconsin – to the transportation system of the future.
Conclusion
Pioneers are everywhere around us.
They are the young and old, men and women. They are the faces of all races and religions that call Wisconsin home. And their deeds, whether grandiose or commonplace, are all significant.
As we close tonight, let us honor some of the bold pioneers who are leading Wisconsin into the next millennium. Please hold your applause until the end.
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Bruce Borden – Who encouraged us to develop Pathways to Independence, a breakthrough program allowing the disabled to work without losing their health benefits. Now, Bruce is working with Fannie Mae on a new program to provide low-income housing for the disabled.
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Brother Bob Smith and Howard Fuller – Two men who refused to accept the notion that poor children in Milwaukee's worst neighborhoods were incapable of learning and succeeding in life. They pushed for bold changes in our schools, from charters to choice, so all children would get a world-class education.
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James Thomson – Whose groundbreaking developments in stem cell research at the University of Wisconsin is helping to combat Parkinson's disease and childhood diabetes, and one day grow human organs for transplants.
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Jerry Frautschi – Who is using his success to give back to his community with a $50 million donation to create a cultural arts district in Madison – a gift that will inspire children and enhance our quality of life for generations to come.
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Pleasant Rowland-Frautschi – The Top Woman Entrepreneur in the Country is blazing new trails for women in corporate America.
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Keith Holzberger – Who with business partner Deb Radder, are giving former welfare mothers a chance to reap the rewards of work, showing other companies that investing in these workers is smart business.
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And Jerry Hamilton of Racine – Who is creating stronger Wisconsin families by turning fathers into dads. Jerry's fatherhood initiative – Children UpFront – is reconnecting families, strengthening family relations and promoting self-sufficiency.
Wisconsin's pioneers are just everyday people doing spectacular things so we can all live better lives.
They are the W-2 mothers in Milwaukee who are working and raising their children; the entrepreneurs in the Chippewa Valley developing new technology for a higher quality of life; the students in Sussex learning skills for the jobs of tomorrow; and the farmers in Janesville applying space age technology to feed the world.
They are building the America of the 21st century – molding it in the shape of Wisconsin.
At the dawn of another glorious century, the gates to the Frontiers of Possibility stand wide open.
Tonight, let us once again proudly raise our colors as our forefathers did and charge forward together with the impassioned cry of: On Wisconsin!
Thank you and God bless.
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Adjourned.
8:08 P.M.
