RICO’S PRIORITIES

Wisconsin families are hurting right now. Hundreds of School Districts and Cities went to referendum last year, raising property taxes on Millions of Wisconsinites. Inflation and rising rent costs are forcing many to work second and third jobs just to get by, and small businesses are facing the possibility of shutting their doors. As a single father, homeowner, and Alderman-- Rico knows what families are facing right now, because he's feeling it too. In the State Assembly, Rico will be a champion for working families, fighter for small businesses and will lead the charge to make Wisconsin affordable and make our economy work for everyone. 

Rico is one of the few democrats in Wisconsin who supports cutting the personal income tax. This is the fastest way to put more money in the hands of working families amid inflation, rising rent and mortgage costs and unaffordable health insurance. Rico will be a reliable champion for small businesses, in leadership, not words. Fighting for expanding small business tax credits to keep small businesses open and more Wisconsinites employed, modernizing and expanding apprenticeship programs connecting high schoolers and college students with businesses ready to train, educate and employ them in the industries Wisconsin's future needs, and building an economy that works for all of us, grounded in unionized labor and opportunity. 

• Cut State personal income tax

• Expand small business tax credits & incentives for job creation

• Expand apprenticeship programs to educate, train and employ students

• Champion unionization in the public & private sector

• Raise the minimum wage

• Invest in our communities; creating jobs and building a brighter future

Last year, nearly 100,000 cases of domestic violence occurred in Wisconsin, resulting in the injury, trauma, displacement and death of thousands. All over this state, while statistics of domestic violence and abuse is going down, many families don't feel that in their own homes, disproportionately affecting women and children. As a career educator, and single father of three, Rico will protect our children as his own and lead the charge statewide for improved victim protections, expanded anonymous reporting, and faster police/EMS response times. This includes increasing funding for community-based help centers, homeless shelters & local police departments. We also need more psychologists in our schools, increasing mental health research and funding for Wisconsin's children, connecting families with support systems earlier, rather than later.

• Expand programs for anonymous reporting

• Increase funding for homeless shelters and crisis prevention resources

• Increase police/EMS response times

• Invest in mental healthcare in our schools, hospitals and community-based programs

Education is our best deterrent of crime and poverty, and the vessel through which we educate, mentor, train and prepare the next generation of Wisconsin's leaders. That's why, as a career educator, Rico believes in fully funding our k-12 schools, supporting public educators, and expanding curriculum to raise standards and strive for excellence. In the Wisconsin State Assembly, Rico will be a champion for teachers, fighter for students, and a megaphone for parents, because when we come together, our kids win. Parents with children who have special needs and disabilities often feel left out of this conversation. Funding lacks, staffing is abysmal, and some School Districts simply cannot support systems for these families. We need to increase funding for special education departments across the state, hiring more aides and teachers, providing hands-on tools for learning, and expanding resources for families who need their school's help. However, quality education doesn't simply start in grade school, and it doesn't end at high school graduation. We also need to increase funding for childcare and early learning centers, providing support and resources for parents who can't afford the high costs of even part-time child care, and employ more Wisconsinites in these fields. We also need to increase funding for our UW system, and utilize scholarship incentives within our schools to encourage students to stay in Wisconsin, and start their careers and businesses in Wisconsin. 

• Fully fund K-12 Education

• Raise teacher, staff and aides salaries

• Work with the State Department of Instruction to implement quality, rigorous curriculum

• Partner with local School Districts to solve budgetary challenges resulting in tax increases

• Increase funding for UW schools

• Expand scholarship incentives for Wisconsin students to stay in Wisconsin during their higher education

• Invest in support systems and additional resources for special needs students, special education departments and parents with special needs children

• Increase the special education reimbursement rate to be equal to private schools, rather than 30% lower

Wisconsin families are asking for our help, because in many cases they have no other option but to go without insurance, or pay for insurance that is too expensive to use. Right now 41 states have expanded Medicaid, including some of the most conservative states in our nation like Arkansas and Idaho, and Wisconsin is one of the few states left that has not expanded Medicaid postpartum coverage past 60 days. Our solution starts there. Wisconsin needs to join the list of states expanding medicaid, and extend that to full postpartum coverage for women. Across the country, many states are implementing Drug Affordability Review Boards to investigate and crackdown on pharmacy middlemen who profiteer from corporations price gouging the costs of life-saving pharmaceutical drugs. Bringing that idea to Wisconsin will help us not only advocate for folks who need our help, but legislate in a way that helps them succeed.

• Expand Medicaid in Wisconsin, including Medicaid postpartum coverage past 60 days

• Implement Drug Affordability Review Board to lower the cost of pharmaceutical drugs

• Increase funding for drug rehabilitation programs & community-based addiction support

• Increase funding for healthcare prevention rather than cures, to make all of Wisconsin healthier

Within the last few years, hundreds of School Districts, Cities and Counties have had to make tough budget cuts, raise fees and prices of services, or go to referendum to raise property taxes on residents. This is because of our broken shared revenue system that incorrectly calculates how much funding localities receive based off of previous years' spending, rather than need. We all believe in funding our first responders, garbage pickup, schools, and parks. However, since last year alone, more than half of Wisconsinites saw a double-digit increase in their property tax bill. Rico will provide real tax relief to working families by fixing our broken shared revenue system, rather than leaving you to foot the bill, like Republicans in the Legislature are expecting you to now.

• Utilize our budget surplus to invest back into our cities, school districts, and municipalities

• Reform our broken shared revenue system to prevent property tax increases

• Cutting the personal income tax

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimates Wisconsin is losing about $166 million in tax revenue to neighboring states every single year, because Wisconsinites travel out of state to purchase medicinal or personal use marijuana, instead of investing that tax revenue right back into our communities, our classrooms, and drug rehabilitation for individuals addicted to dangerous narcotics. In the State Legislature, Rico will fight to legalize marijuana and expunge the records of folks previously incarcerated for personal use, non-violent drug possession charges of marijuana. In states that have legalized marijuana, drug-related deaths dropped and people started buying verifiable & safe marijuana, rather than relying on street-sellers with possibly laced batches. We also need to look at drug addiction as a health emergency, and oftentimes a mental health crisis, rather than a legal one. Incarceration does not end addiction, but mental health, rehabilitation and a good job does. Rico will fight to invest more money in addiction prevention, cracking down on intoxicated driving, and providing more community-based addiction services.

• Legalize & decriminalize personal possession use of marijuana

• Decriminalize individuals incarcerated for non-violent personal possession charges

• Utilize new tax revenue from legalization to fund community-based drug rehabilitation programs & infrastructure projects to crack down on drunk/intoxicated driving

Since Roe V. Wade was overturned and states have been left to make their own determination about a woman's right to choose, Wisconsin has time and time again made their voice heard in the name of protecting the freedom of choice. Back to back to back Supreme Court races, re-electing Governor Evers & Senator Baldwin, where abortion access was paramount in those elections, it is time Wisconsin Legislators took the cue from voters, and finally protect a woman's right to choose. In the Wisconsin State Legislature, Rico will work with his Assembly colleagues to codify Roe V. Wade protections and restrictions into law in Wisconsin. The will of the people should be the law of the land, whether or not we personally agree.

• Codify Roe V. Wade protections and restrictions into law in Wisconsin

• Increase funding for prenatal care in Wisconsin

• Expand Medicaid postpartum care past 60 days