Thank you, Tonette, for your commitment to changing the way we help children and families in our state.
In addition to student success and accountable government, people told us over and over again that we need to be rewarding work. Today, I am proud to report that more than 21,000 people have gone through our Food Share Employment Training program and are working in Wisconsin.
They are people like Sandy in northern Wisconsin. She was struggling as a single mother of four when she signed up for the program. Within weeks, Sandy had multiple job offers and is now employed full-time. Sandy's story is a model of success, and now she gives back, as a speaker and mentor in the Eagle River community.
And people like Leon, who now works in Wisconsin Rapids. Our program staff helped him get the skills he needed to be employed and now he has a dream of starting his own cleaning business.
These are just a few of the great stories of people who turned their lives around through our program. It is good for the taxpayers. 1t is good for employers. Most of all, it is good for people like Leon and Sandy as we give them a chance to positively control their lives.
Without a doubt, Wisconsin is working.
The number of people on the state’s W-2 welfare program dropped 27% to near historic lows. Continuing unemployment insurance claims are at a 40 year low. And our unemployment rate is the lowest it has been since February of 2001. Think about that. My sons Alex and Matt are 21 and 22 years old. The last time the unemployment rate was this low, they were five and six years old.
All this points to an obvious fact: we need more people in the workforce. This week alone there are nearly 80,000 job openings listed on JobCenterOfWisconsin.com. Earlier I listed many of things we are doing to improve education and training in this state to prepare and grow our workforce. Still we need to do more to get people into jobs.
Specifically, I am proud of the work we are doing to help veterans get into the workforce. A year ago, unemployment rates for vets were among the lowest - meaning the best - in the country.
Having visited so many of our service men and women out on deployment, I want to ensure that every one of them has a job when they return home.
We can also do more to help people with disabilities. The Department of Workforce Development has helped a record 9,507 individuals with disabilities reach their employment goals.
Still, we need to do more to get people into the workforce.
That means transitioning people from government dependence to true independence through the dignity that comes from hard work. Here in Wisconsin we are willing to help people who are down and out. But public assistance should be a trampoline, not a hammock.
I am happy to report that we now require adults on public assistance, who are able to work, and do not have children at home, to be employed or enrolled in our job training programs, looking for work at least five times a week, and be able to pass a drug test If someone fails the test, we help them with rehabilitation, so they can get healthy and ready to enter the workforce.
Over and over again employers are telling us of their dramatic needs for people who are ready to work and able to pass a drug test. We can find a job for everyone.
In 2017, we are going to push the federal government to allow Wisconsin to go even further - to be a leader once again on welfare reform. In the past, Governor Tommy Thompson led the charge across the nation. We can do it again. Rewarding work will be our top priority.
We are working and winning for Wisconsin.
As mentioned, more people are working than ever before in our state. Our schools continue to be some of the best in the country. The University of Wisconsin just moved up in another ranking. Chief Executive Magazine raised Wisconsin up again on the best places to do business - we're up 30 states from 2010. Our improvement in the tax climate is one of the best in the nation. The economic impact of tourism went up 30% since we took office. Health care systems in our state are ranked in the top three in the country. And our farmers continue to grow and produce some of the best food on the planet - heck we just won the gold medal for the best cheese in the world.
Let's face it. There is plenty to celebrate in Wisconsin - and don't even get me started on the Green Bay Packers.
The state of our state is strong. Wisconsin’s future is bright. But we're not done yet. There is more work for us to do, and I'm optimistic the federal government will finally heed the call to provide even more opportunities for us to lead the way on student success, accountable government, and rewarding work.
Together, we can move Wisconsin forward.
Thank you. May God bless you. May God bless our service members and their families. May God bless Wisconsin. And may God continue to bless the United States of America.”
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Adjournment
The Joint Convention arose
3:51 P.M.
