Dear Friends,

Once again, Wisconsin finds itself on a list of the best states in the country. U.S. News and World Report ranks our state as the 11th best. The ranking is based on 70 metrics that include health care, education, and opportunity.

Wisconsin ranks 6th in opportunity and 14th in education, health care, and fiscal stability. Over the last eight years, Republicans have worked hard to shore up our finances and protect taxpayers. It's clear those reforms are working and have caught the attention of national publications.

This week, the Joint Committee on Finance continued our work of protecting taxpayers and reforming state government. We made sure more students can afford to attend our state universities by freezing tuition. Republicans also made major investments in higher education. You can read more about that below.

Finally, congratulations to Homestead and Menomonee Falls High Schools Boys Golf Teams. Both squads qualified for the state tournament at University Ridge in Madison on June 3rd and 4th. Nicolet's Softball team is also headed to state. Good luck to all!

As always, if you have any concerns or ideas on how to improve our great state, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at 608-266-5830 or by email at Sen.Darling@legis.wi.gov .

On, Wisconsin!
Republicans Continue UW Tuition Freeze
For the fourth budget in a row, we are keeping costs low for UW System students by freezing undergraduate tuition. If UW continued to raise tuition at their ten-year average, college would cost thousands more for undergraduate students. According to the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, our freeze saved a resident undergraduate student $6,311 over the first four years of the freeze. 

All 39,000 UW System employees are getting a 4% raise over the biennium. In addition to the pay raises, Republicans are providing an additional $57.7 million for UW System. System's total funding is now $6.35 billion in all funds. 
The Truth About the Education Budget
You may hear Democrats say that Republicans cut education. Here’s the truth:

In the 2003 budget, Democrats ended two-thirds funding for public schools and cut education. In his 2009-11 budget, Governor Doyle and Democrats cut public education by $284 million. They also didn’t offer any reforms to help districts bear that cut.
Governor Doyle left the state in a fiscal mess. We faced a massive $3.6 billion structural deficit, in part because he used one-time federal stimulus money to pay for ongoing education costs.

Every part of the government was cut in order to dig our state out of the hole that Democrats dug. Thanks to the reforms in Act 10, school districts were able to make up the dip in funding with savings in health care and pension cost.  

Act 10 allowed school districts to have their employees pay for part of their pension and health care. That’s saved school districts $2 billion in pensions alone. They’ve saved billions more because districts could finally negotiate for health care. Those reforms are still saving taxpayers money.

It’s also important to note that districts that took the Act 10 reforms didn’t have to lay off teachers. Schools didn’t close and sports weren’t cut.

Since then schools have seen an increase in funding ever since. This year is no different. Funding for public education will top $12 billion thanks to a $500 million INCREASE we added to the budget. Our schools are getting more actual dollars than ever before and more of your tax dollars go to funding K-12 education than anything else in the budget.
Assembly Committee Approves Drunk Driving Bills
In April, Senator Darling and Representative Ott testified in favor of their bills which will toughen drunk driving laws in the state in front of the Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice.
On Thursday, the Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety approved our bills with a bipartisan vote. Both bills send a strong message that our state is serious about stopping drunk driving.

Assembly Bill 15 makes first-time drunk driving offenders appear in court. Not only is a first-time offense not a crime in our state, but offenders also don't even have to show up to face the charge. We hope this bill will help people understand the seriousness of their crime.  

Assembly Bill 17 creates a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison for committing homicide while driving drunk. If a judge believes that sentence is too harsh, they must put their reasons in writing.

Even though alcohol-related crashes have decreased in recent years, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation reports that alcohol remains the single greatest contributing cause of fatal crashes.  

Getting behind the wheel and driving while intoxicated is still a serious problem in our state. It's my hope these bills will show that we are serious about putting an end to drunk driving.
How a Tax Credit Fuels Wisconsin's Economy
A 2017 study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, credits the Manufacturing and Agriculture Tax Credit with creating 20,000 manufacturing jobs and over 42,000 total jobs in our state. Despite that resounding success, Governor Evers tried to eliminate part of the credit in his budget. His plan would be a major tax hike on many small businesses.

I'm happy to report that Republicans have stopped the governor's tax hike. Watch the video above to see how the tax credit doesn't just benefit the company receiving it.
Happy Birthday Wisconsin!
Happy birthday to the greatest state in the nation! This week, in 1848, Wisconsin became the 30th state to enter the union. 
Wisconsin Led in Giving Women the Right to Vote
Did you know Wisconsin was the first state to ratify the 19th amendment to the Constitution which gave women the right to vote?

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of that historic occasion, the Wisconsin Historical Society is hosting an event on June 10th in Madison. Click on the picture above to see all the events planned for that day and learn more about this historic event.

I'm happy to say that I am one of the sponsors of a reception in your State Capitol. I hope to see you there!
Around the 8th...
The Wisconsin Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run will be in Milwaukee and Menomonee Falls next week! Click on the picture above to learn more about how you can get involved.