This week, we joined members of our Cabinet on the road in Western Wisconsin. Over the course of two days, 35 Cabinet officials made more than 100 stops throughout Barron, Buffalo, Chippewa, Dunn, Eau Claire, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, St. Croix, and Trempealeau counties.

Cabinet on the Road presents an opportunity for us to travel throughout the state so we can hear directly from our citizens about their ideas and what is most important to them and their communities.

One of our stops for Cabinet on the Road was in Chippewa Falls to celebrate a broadband expansion project connecting two major business parks in the area. This will ultimately help attract more businesses to the area and create more jobs.

We also had the chance to hear from the citizens of Western Wisconsin during listening sessions in Altoona, Cornell, and Fountain City. Finally, we joined Cabinet members in Ellsworth for a wrap-up meeting to share what we learned on the road.

The feedback we received from our Cabinet on the Road visits in Western Wisconsin will help us move Wisconsin forward. As we work to strengthen our economy and workforce, we will continue to seek the thoughts and perspectives of those who will be directly impacted by our investments in these areas.

Learn more about our Cabinet on the Road events by checking out #WICabinet on Twitter below!

On Monday, we visited Cornell, Wisconsin to host a listening session as part of our 2020 Vision Project. This marked our 50th listening session thus far, and we look forward to many more.

Our goal with each of these listening sessions is to bring the people of Wisconsin together for a candid discussion about the major issues facing our communities and our state.

We want to create a forum for our citizens to give feedback on what they think is working in our state, where we can improve, what our focus should be as we approach the next state budget, and what the role of state government should be.

We want these to be small gatherings, so every voice is heard throughout the discussion. Over 1,500 people have attended the 50 sessions.

Before every listening session, we contact area state legislators, no matter what party they represent, as well as community leaders to help us reach out and invite a good cross-section of people to represent the experiences and opinions of the community as a whole.

We hit a major milestone this week for our listening sessions, and we’re not finished yet! Our plan is to continue these listening sessions so we can hear from more of you – the citizens of our state.

Your input is important to us as we work to move Wisconsin forward, and we look forward to visiting a community near you soon!

Yesterday, we declared a State of Emergency in eight Wisconsin counties in response to flooding in northern Wisconsin.

Heavy rainstorms on Monday night caused flash flooding and widespread damage across Northwest Wisconsin, including power outages and damage to the region's roads and bridges.

Our State of Emergency declaration instructs the Wisconsin National Guard and all state agencies to help those affected by the storm so they can begin to recover from this natural disaster.

Yesterday evening, I had the chance to join Wisconsin's Adjutant General Major General Donald Dunbar and Wisconsin Emergency Management Administrator Brian Satula in Hurley to speak with local residents and survey the damage.

Our thanks and appreciation to all of the first responders in the area who are working tirelessly to manage this situation. 

We are saddened by the news of two fatalities as a result of the storm. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those individuals, and all the citizens of Northwestern Wisconsin affected by the storm.

As part of our Cabinet on the Road in Western Wisconsin, where over 100 events were held in ten counties over the course of two days, Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) Deputy Secretary Jay Risch received an up-close look at the Benitz Farm LLC dairy operation.

Benitz Farm, located near Maiden Rock, recently expanded and modernized its operations with financing assistance from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) and Security Financial Bank of Durand.

Security Financial Bank requested WHEDA provide $1.3 million in loan participation, on a one-year $3.3 million construction loan. WHEDA approved the loan, which allowed for a major expansion of new facilities that included a milking parlor, a free-stall facility with nine pens, alley scrapers, and a manure pit.

Deputy Secretary Risch said the following of his experience at Benitz Farm:

“Benitz farm is very impressive. It’s an extremely well-run and environmentally-responsible operation. The involvement of WHEDA and Security Financial Bank in the expansion is the perfect example of the important role Wisconsin’s financial institutions play in strengthening the economy by helping businesses expand and create jobs.”