Violence Prevention
Common Sense Gun Reform
I am honored to be named a Moms Demand Action Gunsense Candidate.
Gun violence is a public health crisis. Every Wisconsinite deserves to be and feel safe, and deserves to have that safety valued by their legislators. We have spent many years studying what we believe to be the solutions, and now it is time to act. See my 2021 op-ed, “Gun Violence is a Public Health Crisis.”
I co-authored bills this session to require background checks for all gun purchases, implement a “red flag law”, ban ghost guns, create a 48-hour waiting period, and create a tax exemption for gun safes, trigger locks, and gun barrel locks. I also serve on the Gun Safety Coalition – a group of legislators and advocates dedicated to advancing policies that prevent gun violence.
As a mother of two, I understand the importance of keeping schools and households safe. I am committed to common-sense gun reform and co-sponsored bills that both protect human life and uphold the second amendment. I will continue working to increase safety in our schools and neighborhoods.
Violence Prevention & Intervention
Gun violence, and violence of all kinds, is a public health and public safety crisis. That is why I have supported multiple pieces of legislation aimed at stopping violence before it happens. I co-sponsored the bill and fought to establish an Office of Violence Prevention within the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to fund community violence prevention. Despite the bill being blocked by the Republican majority, our efforts led to Governor Evers establishing the Office of Violence Prevention through executive order.
One of Wisconsin’s strongest tools to prevent violence before it occurs is the Office of School Safety. The Office of School Safety’s Speak Out program is a 24/7 statewide confidential reporting system that provides a single point of contact for reporting concerns before violence occurs, and has received over 17,000 tips of potential violent actions in our schools. After Republican lawmakers cut its funding from the state budget in 2023, I successfully fought for its funding to be reinstated through 2025. Since then, I have cosponsored a bill to permanently fund the Office of School Safety.
A Zero Tolerance for Sexual Violence
Wisconsin saw the greatest increase in domestic violence-related deaths in the last two decades in 2022. This is unacceptable. We also know that when a gun is present in a domestic violence situation, women are 5X more likely to be killed. I will continue to work for a world where we have sufficient funding for violence prevention and intervention, with a focus that women and children are protected and not forgotten.
Protecting Children from Sex Trafficking
Passing the Safe Harbor bill is critical to capturing sex traffickers, and protecting children from sex trafficking. The fact this bill hasn’t passed in Wisconsin, but has in the majority of the United States, lands squarely on the Republicans for blocking its passage. I will continue to fight to protect Wisconsin’s children because every child deserves a childhood, and a childhood free of sex trafficking. It appears it will take flipping the legislature to Democratic majority to be able to call a vote on this bill, so I am asking you–if ending child sex trafficking is important to you, please vote for Democrats in the state legislature–the Republican majority is holding us back from creating the change necessary to protect kids from sex trafficking.
Protecting Kids Online
I am also committed to protecting our children online. That’s why I co-authored several bipartisan bills to ensure that kids are protected in a digital age with rapidly changing technology, including two that were signed into law. I was proud to join Governor Evers when he signed two bills into law that would provide additional positions and funding to the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force at the Wisconsin Department of Justice. I also co-authored bills to create an age-appropriate online design code, provide social media education to families, and require mental health warnings on social media platforms. Unfortunately Republicans never moved these bills forward – but I remain committed to finding common ground to protect kids online.