Wisconsin Senate
On September 14,2010,Larson defeated incumbent Senator Jeffrey Plale in the Wisconsin state senate primary election and defeated Republican Jesse Ripp in the general election on November 2,2010,becoming the youngest member of the senate. [13] [14] [15] In 2013,Larson was elected Senate Minority Leader. [16]
Larson represents the cities of Cudahy,South Milwaukee,St. Francis,Franklin,Oak Creek and Milwaukee. [17]
Following Democrats poor showing in 2014 elections,Larson resigned as Senate Minority Leader on November 11,2014. [18]
Larson was re-elected to the Wisconsin Senate for a fourth term in November 2022. [19]
Legislative positions
For the 2021-2022 legislative session,Senator Larson's priorities include COVID-19,public education,cannabis legalization,fair legislative maps,voting rights,environmental protection,healthcare expansion,and criminal justice reform.
In the 2011-2012 legislative session,funding for local public schools was cut by $1.6 billion, [21] and during the 2013-2014 session 50% of Wisconsin school districts received less state money than they did under the previous session. [22] Larson supported initiatives to fully restore funding for local public schools. [23] [24]
In February 2013,Democrats introduced a package of six jobs bills,which included funding for technical colleges and required state agencies,as well as state and local governments,to buy from Wisconsin businesses. [25]
Larson fought to accept federal health care money through the Affordable Care Act to strengthen Wisconsin's BadgerCare program [26] [27] since,according to Wisconsin's nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau,strengthening BadgerCare would expand health care coverage to 85,000 more Wisconsinites,save the state $119 million over the biennium,and create over 10,000 Wisconsin jobs. [28] [29]
Larson and his Democratic colleagues all signed on to a proposed constitutional amendment (2013 SJR 74) to reverse Wisconsin's ban on same-sex marriage. [30] Larson co-sponsored legislation to reinstate laws to prevent workplace discrimination against women,which had been removed from Wisconsin statutes during the 2011-12 legislative session. [31]
Larson introduced legislative proposals during the 2013-2014 Legislative Session to reform Wisconsin's jobs agency,the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation,which has seen numerous scandals since it was created in 2011,including losing track of $56 million in loans,misuse of taxpayer funds,exaggerated jobs claims,and lack of basic oversight,according to a national report by Good Jobs First. [32]
During the 2015-16 legislative session,Larson introduced numerous proposals aimed at improving public schools. For instance,Larson co-authored a proposal to implement and invest in the community schools model,which provides wraparound services for students,such as providing access to health care and a healthy diet. He introduced legislation to give schools support to provide services for students with disabilities. [33]
In early 2016,Larson and a group of environmental advocates and organizations led a fight against a bill that would have made it easier for Wisconsin water utility systems to be taken over by non-Wisconsin,for-profit companies and corporations. [34] After intense public outrage,the bill was not scheduled for a vote in the Senate and failed to become law. The lead poisoning of families in Flint Michigan galvanized opposition to water privatization in Wisconsin. [35]
For 2020,some of Larson's main legislative issues include public education in Milwaukee,addressing climate change issues,tackling lawmaker corruption, [36] improving access to senior care,and improving infrastructure in areas such as childcare [37] and public transportation. [38] In 2019,Larson has also called for increased regulation of trampoline parks and other amusement parks,which have seen an increase in the number of children injured. [39]
