ONLINE: Criminal Justice Reform & Democracy Budget Action Meeting

media release: The events of the last year have made it clear that Wisconsinites can't wait any longer to reform our criminal justice system and reinvest in our democracy. Governor Evers’ Badger Bounceback Budget makes critical investments to build a more just justice system and rebuild the health of our democratic systems.

Join us for our first virtual meeting on March 3 to hear from legislators, experts, and other impacted Wisconsinites about our priorities for this budget, from reforming our revocation system and supporting treatment and diversion programs, to returning 17 year olds to the juvenile system and automatic voter registration. We’ll share more about how to engage throughout the budget process, and provide ways to let our legislators know we want them to invest in criminal justice reform and our democracy for all Wisconsinites.

The Assembly Democratic members of the Joint Committee on Finance launched Forward Wisconsin, an initiative to educate and engage the public in the 2021-23 Wisconsin State Budget. State Representatives Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee) and Greta Neubauer (D-Racine), along with their Democratic Assembly colleagues and various organizations, will host Forward Wisconsin’s virtual Budget Action Meetings every Wednesday throughout the month of March.

Following the launch of this new public engagement initiative, Rep. Goyke and Rep. Neubauer offered the following remarks:

“One of the best parts of being members of the Joint Committee on Finance is hearing from people all over Wisconsin about their budget priorities and where they want to see state dollars go. Budgets are moral documents and where we invest our tax dollars matters.”

“Wisconsinites deserve a budget that puts them first. In order to win a budget for working families, we need people from across the state to engage in this process. Forward Wisconsin creates a safe opportunity for Wisconsinites to not only weigh in on the budget, but to also take action and be able to advocate for issues that matter to them and their neighbors.”

The virtual budget action meetings will take place every Wednesday in March at 7:00 pm. Registration will be live for each meeting one week in advance. A full schedule of budget action meetings and topics is available here.