Takeaways from Gov. Evers' State of the State address

 

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Gov. Tony Evers introduced some new initiatives while also laying out his priorities during his sixth State of the State address.

Here are some of the key takeaways from his speech.

Access to Contraception

During his primetime address, Evers announced his administration will increase access to oral contraception to make it easier for women on BadgerCare to obtain it.

The Department of Health Services plans on issuing an order to allow BadgerCare recipients to receive over-the-counter contraception at no cost.

"Once this contraception is out on the shelves, an individual on BadgerCare Plus will be able to go to any pharmacy and pick up the contraception they need," Evers said.

Mental Health, Workforce Initiatives

After declaring 2023 the "Year of Mental Health," Evers said he'll be creating an Interagency Council for "state agencies to work together to reduce barriers and address gaps in mental health services."

Next week, he will also sign an executive order that focuses on "finding long-term solutions to the state's health care industry challenges."

The Healthcare Workforce Task Force will make recommendations for the governor to consider in his next biennial budget.

It comes as Evers and Republican lawmakers have been unable to find compromise on how to best attract and retain workers.

Child Care Funding

Evers also called on the GOP-controlled Legislature to find a solution to help aid the state's child care industry.

Republican lawmakers have rejected Evers' proposals that would fund day care centers and by expanding the state's pandemic-area Child Care Counts program. After Republicans refused to devote funding, Evers announced he would direct $170 million in federal funds to keep the program afloat for another year-and-a-half.

He asked the Legislature to not give up on finding compromise on the issue.

"If anyone on either side of this aisle has a better plan than mine, that not only prevents the collapse of our state’s child care industry but also helps us compete against our neighboring states for talent and invests in public education at every level to prepare our kids for the future, let’s hear it," Evers said.

The governor also renewed calls to expand paid family leave, an idea Republicans also rejected.

Vowed to Reject GOP Policies on Abortion

Reproductive rights were also a theme as Evers vowed to veto any attempts by Republicans to further restrict abortion access.

Ahead of his speech, Republicans amended a bill that would ban abortions after 14 weeks. The bill originally only made exceptions if the mother was experiencing a medical emergency. Now it includes exceptions for rape and incest after the Assembly Health, Aging and Long-Term Care Committed voted on the changes Tuesday.

Still, the proposal faces a veto from Evers who argued voters already made their voices heard on the issue by knocking his former GOP opponent Tim Michels, who lost by more than 90,000 votes in 2022.

"Wisconsinites have been abundantly clear," Evers said. "Republicans’ last candidate for governor wanted to take those same freedoms—and more—away. You’ll notice he’s not here delivering the State of the State address tonight."

GOP Response

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) called the address a "typical Tony Evers."

“Not a lot of new ideas and a lot of rehashing of old things that have been proposed over the course of the past few years and failed,” Vos told reporters.

When asked about child care, Vos said his caucus has already addressed the issue after passing a package of bills. One includes allowing families to create pre-tax savings accounts to help cover the costs. However, Evers has called those proposals insufficient.

"I'd much rather do that and give money to parents, rather than have it run through some bureaucracy that we hope the money trickles out to people over the course of time," Vos said.

Lawmakers do have a projected $4 billion surplus to work with, but it's unclear whether they can find compromise on how to spend it.

GOP leaders have insisted on using some of the funding toward tax relief. They proposed a $2.1 billiontax package ahead of the governor's speech that would target low to middle income earners.