March Update: County Newsletter
Happy March folks,
I want to give a brief update on the County Board. There have been a few resolutions passed that have some consequence, but a lot of our folks are out campaigning, and next month I’ll have an update on who will be on the County Board for the next two-year term. This could have a huge impact on what the county does in the next few years, so if you live in a district with a contested race, please do your research and vote! If you live in my district, you should probably vote for me 🙂
At the March 3rd County Board meeting, many of the resolutions that I described in detail in my last newsletter (when they went through the Legislative Committee) passed on the board floor. If you are interested in the details of these resolutions, please see last month’s newsletter. Among these resolutions were:
A Resolution in Support of Lowering Costs While Improving Health Outcomes for Incarcerated Individuals with Substance Use Disorders
A Resolution Opposing Proposed Rulemaking Relating to Wireless Deployments
At the March 17th County Board meeting, a resolution to move County Board meetings from 7:30 pm to 7 pm was passed. This is great news for early birds like myself, and if you ever attend County Board meetings to speak, just know this change will go into effect in the next term. No other notable items came up during this meeting
As we move into our next term, I am thinking a lot about the kinds of things I would like to see the County Board prioritize. We had many constituents come to speak at the March 17th meeting, and it’s worth watching the recording to see what they had to say. My constituent Jim Kennedy spoke about ways that the County Board can help ensure transparency from the Sheriff’s Office in light of their 287g agreement. Numerous unhoused residents of Kenosha County came to the podium to tell their stories. These are problems that need to be solved, and although the red tape of the government makes real change slow, it’s necessary and important to do it. I hope in my second term, now that I have a good sense of how this system works, I can start to push to do a bit more than acting as a rubber stamp in the process. I have really enjoyed prioritizing communication and making the community aware of the issues, but there is more that can be done, and I am looking forward to figuring out what that looks like.
As a final parting thought, I know a lot of subscribers are residents of Southport and Allendale. There is a City Council race happening this election, and we have two candidates that bring a lot of different strengths to the table. I have already publicly endorsed my friend Josh Maglesang, so I wanted to state that here as well. Regardless of where you stand on your support (and there are lots of reasons to support either candidate), I highly recommend you meet Josh and talk to him. He has truly inspirational ideas about how the city can be more functional, and I have been inspired hearing him think about issues, speak to voters, and bring new and fresh ideas to the table.
Regardless of where you land, get out and vote on April 7th! I hope you all take care.
Links:
County Board Meeting (March 3rd): https://www.youtube.com/live/uocK7nsrTLQ?si=GaBFGLZGHgS79WR8
County Board Meeting (March 17th): https://www.youtube.com/live/FndEiTypgKQ?si=SghPSsCJlezfT4MA