Myra Enloe

Dodgeville

To the Editor:

There are two questions on the August 13th ballot that will dramatically change our state’s constitution and the way federal money is allocated in Wisconsin. They add a lot of extra steps to getting money out the door to Wisconsin residents who need it and put lots of power into the hands of the state legislature.

Right now, if there’s a tornado or flood, the Governor requests federal relief money and can send that money exactly where it’s needed as soon as it’s received. If these questions pass, that process would change and the governor would have to wait for the legislature to pass a joint resolution empowering him/her to allocate the money. Right now, the current state legislature is holding up money that they allocated and approved over a year ago during the state budget process. Can you imagine if Wisconsinites had to wait for them to agree on how to allocate disaster relief funds?

Our federal taxes go toward federal funds that support schools, infrastructure, parks, health care, renters, small businesses, public benefits and so much more. They provide relief to Wisconsinites in urgent times of crises such as natural or economic disasters and public health emergencies. When Wisconsin gets federal funds, it’s our tax dollars coming back to us.

No governor — Democrat or Republican — would ever sign legislation making this the law in Wisconsin. That’s why the legislature passed these questions as joint resolutions, which they were only able to do because of the gerrymandered voting maps. Then they wrote them in a way that confuses people and put them on the ballot in a primary election when few people vote. 

This is a power grab by the legislature, and it’s a problem. Vote No August 13th.