Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, addresses members of the State Assembly on public access to the State Capitol building during the first Legislative Session 2021-22 in the Assembly Chambers at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis., Monday, Jan. 4, 2021.
MADISON, Wis. Republican leaders in the Wisconsin State Legislature accuse governments of Tony Evers of playing political games after vetoing a coronavirus bill they passed Friday afternoon.
Evers rejected the bill soon after it was passed, saying it did not do enough to address the pandemic in the state, abandoning an agreement previously reached with Republican Senate leader Devin LeMahieu .
“Wisconsinites know a compromise when they see one, and it’s not,” Evers said in a statement indicating his veto.
In response, LeMahieu and House Speaker Robin Vos issued a joint statement Friday afternoon criticizing the decision to veto the legislation.
“It appears that Governor Evers cares more about his own power than the people of Wisconsin,” the statement said. “The legislature has passed a coronavirus assistance bill that would provide the state with more than $ 100 million to fight the virus and ensure that Wisconsinites have access to the necessary medicines, vaccinations and COVID-19 tests.”
Evers indicated that he would sign the bill he agreed with Senator LeMahieu last month, but Vos and the Assembly rejected the proposal because it cut out, among other things, the provisions of the Assembly that would prohibit employers from firing employees. required to obtain and limit a vaccine. the ability of local health departments to close businesses.
The bill passed by the Legislature on Friday also included an amendment that would ensure Wisconsin would still receive federal food aid benefits if the Supreme Court issues the governor’s emergency order. Under current law, an emergency order must apply that Wisconsin will receive $ 50 million a month in SNAP benefits.
With the veto, Wisconsin could lose those benefits if the court rules against the governor.
“It is sad that Government Evers is playing games at the expense of the underprivileged by endangering $ 50 million in food aid benefits if the court eliminates the illegal public health emergency,” Vos and LeMahieu said in their joint statement.
While the veto was being announced, Governor Evers called on the legislature to pass the version of the Senate bill as soon as possible to prevent further delay in easing COVID to the state.
‘Wisconsinites do not care about political points or who gets the credit. “They just want to know that their family, their business and their neighbors will be fine if we continue to fight this virus,” Evers said.
COPYRIGHT 2021 THROUGH CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCASTED, REWRITTEN OR DISTRIBUTED.