With spring in the air, it won't be long until we can hit the links and start golfing again. In Wisconsin, we are blessed with some of the best courses in the nation. In fact, Golf Digest ranked seven golf courses in our state in the top 50 in the nation. No other state had that many in the top 50! Erin Hills even made that top 10. It's very exciting seeing Wisconsin getting recognition as a top destination for golfers.

Congratulations to the Nicolet High School's boy's wrestling team who are also in Madison for the WIAA State Team Wrestling Tournament. Good luck!

As always, if you have any concerns or ideas on how to improve our great state, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at 608-266-5830 or by email at Sen.Darling@legis.wisconsin.gov.

An important bill I authored that will help curb repeat drunk drivers is now law. It's difficult to see the astounding number of repeat drunk driver stories in Wisconsin. It's far too common to hear about someone committing their 3rd, 4th, or even 7th offense.

I have worked hard to try to reduce these crimes with tougher penalties and more funding through the Treatment Alternatives and Diversion Program. This week, the Senate Committee on Health held a public hearing on an important bill I authored to help prevent repeat drunk drivers by getting them the help they need.

Right now, courts must order someone convicted of drunk driving to submit to an assessment of their use of alcohol or drugs and develop a driver safety plan for that person. Substance abuse treatment can be a part of that safety plan.

Senate Bill 327/Assembly Bill 317 allows for targeting treatment. If a safety plan recommends substance abuse treatment, it must include an evaluation to see if medication-assisted treatment will help that person recover. By connecting people with the treatment that best suits them, we may be able to reduce drunk driving and the costs associated with that crime.

I am hopeful this new law will help provide targeted treatment to remove drunk drivers off our roads.

Next week, the Wisconsin State Senate is expected to take up several bills that put children and parents first by reforming our state’s K-12 education system.

On Friday, the Senate Committee on Education, which I chair, approved several bills in our Empowering Parents Agenda and other key reforms.

The Committee approved the following reforms.

Assembly Bill 963: Parental Bill of Rights - Establishes several parental rights relating to decisions regarding a child's religion, medical care, records, and education, and creates a cause of action for the violation of these rights. Allows a parent to bring a suit if those rights are violated.

Assembly Bill 965: School Accountability Reports – Establishes uniform standards for school accountability reports. Our state’s educational accountability system relies heavily on the state school and district report card. This bill improves the accountability reports to provide a clear assessment of student success. 

Assembly Bill 966: Milwaukee Public School Reform – Establishes by 2024, MPS will be divided into smaller community districts that are more manageable and accountable to parents and their communities. The new community district boundaries will be developed by a commission made up of elected officials with a vested interest in the community, including the Mayor of Milwaukee, the Governor, and the State Superintendent. 

Assembly Bill 967 & Assembly Bill 968 High-Performing Charter Replication and Creation of Statewide Charter Board – Charter schools are public schools that operate with less red tape. This bill will streamline replication for the highest performing charter schools in our state and will increase opportunities for more students and families statewide.

Assembly Bill 970: School Choice Expansion - Opens school choice to all Wisconsin families by removing state enrollment caps, family income limits, and grade entry points – marking the beginning of true school choice for all our students and families and ensuring money follows the student into the classroom.

Assembly Bill 975 Substitute Teacher Shortage - Like most states, Wisconsin is facing a shortage of substitute teachers. Unlike most states, it's very difficult to become a teacher of any kind in our state. AB 975 will help get more undergraduate students to get real teaching experience and make sure classes are staffed by professionals.

As a former teacher, I am extremely concerned about the significant drop in reading and English scores.

As I told the MacIver Institute, our state is facing an educational crisis. We have a reading and learning crisis and the only solution coming from Governor Evers and DPI is to study it more. I’m sick of studies. The shelves at DPI are stacked with studies. It’s time for action.

Sadly, every bold initiative we have proposed over the last couple of years has been met with strong opposition to protect the status quo. In fact, Governor Evers already vetoed one bill to improve reading scores. Our kids deserve better and I’m not giving up on them.

This didn't happen by accident. Wisconsin is on solid economic ground because we lived within our means, cut taxes, and reformed government. We were careful with your money.

We stopped Governor Evers from hiking taxes by more than $1 billion during the pandemic and raising the gas tax permanently. Instead, we delivered the largest tax cut in state history. Even after tax cuts, we continue to fund our schools at historic levels, balance the budget, and grow our economy.

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