Funding Requests

Wisconsin families are struggling to cope with the challenges of job loss, and the skyrocketing costs of health insurance that often make it unaffordable.

As federal spending is set for the upcoming fiscal year, I am fighting to ensure that Wisconsin gets its fair share. My requests for local project funding are focused on initiatives that will create jobs and strengthen our economy, provide access to quality health care, and help local governments fund important projects without increasing property taxes.

Below are the individual projects for which I have requested funding. Each has been identified as a priority by local governments, community leaders, and non-profit organizations. You can read their letters of request by clicking on the links provided. Whether any of these projects will be funded will be determined in the appropriations process. That process is likely to be concluded by the end of this year.

New rules established this year provide that no funding may be earmarked for any for-profit organization.

I invite you to check my website later this year to see which, if any, of these projects is funded and by how much.

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Fiscal Year 2011 Requests

The local projects that I have submitted to the Appropriations Committee, for its consideration, are as follows:

Aldo Leopold Nature Center, Inc., 300 Femrite Drive, Monona WI 53716
Request Amount: $727,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Climate change is a real and growing threat to our nation and the world. Failure to act now will result in catastrophe for future generations. These funds will be used to create programming to help Wisconsin children and families understand the challenges of climate change and the growing opportunities we have to modify its effects. The Center will partner with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison College (formerly MATC), state agencies, and non-governmental organizations to create teaching tools that can be used at other sites.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

The Babcock Institute for International Dairy Research and Development at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 216 Agriculture Hall, 1450 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1562
Request Amount: $624,120
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Wisconsin’s dairy industry is a mainstay of our state’s economy. Today, Wisconsin dairy farmers are struggling to make ends meet. These funds will support the University of Wisconsin-Madison Babcock Institute’s market and trade research and education programs to help our dairy farmers more effectively compete in a global economy. Keeping our nation’s dairy industry strong and globally competitive is an important component of economic growth.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Badger Oversight and Management Commission, 290 5th St, Prairie du Sac, WI 53578-1308
Request Amount: $250,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The blight on the landscape on Hwy 12 that was the former Badger Army Ammunition Plant is being returned to its natural prairie state creating extraordinary recreational, educational, and agricultural research opportunities. These funds will help coordinate citizen engagement with those who are overseeing this transformation plan and implementing key recommendations from the community consensus planning process.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Children’s Hospital and Health System, MS958, PO Box 1997, Milwaukee, WI 53201
Request amount: $285,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Countless lives have been saved through the use of defibrillators in public buildings. These funds support a pilot program in Dane County to provide approximately 60 schools with grants, education, and training resources to develop a public access defibrillator (PAD) program. The funds will also support research to help identify areas of need of PAD program support in Dane County and, eventually, throughout Wisconsin.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Beloit, 100 State Street, Beloit, WI 53511
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: New technologies have been an enormous help to local police in their crime fighting efforts. These funds will allow the City of Beloit to build on its program implementing ShotSpotter Gunshot Location System (GLS) technology to better protect civilians and police officers.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Fitchburg, 5520 Lacy Road, Fitchburg, WI 53711
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: One of the backbones of any community is its public library. These funds will help the City of Fitchburg install a money and energy-saving heating system in its first public library, now under construction. The library project provides 500 construction related jobs and will create 30 permanent library positions.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Jefferson, 317 South Main Street, Jefferson, WI 53549
Request amount: $881,496
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The safety and security of our children is a paramount concern. These funds will help the City of Jefferson build a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Crawfish River that will provide direct and safe access to three of Jefferson’s four schools.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Madison, 210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $2,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The junction of Mineral Point Road and County Highway M in Madison has been the site of many severe traffic accidents. Growth in the area is making the problem worse. These funds will help rebuild the intersection to save lives and protect property.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Madison, 210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Wisconsin’s small family farms are struggling to survive at the same time that Wisconsin families are seeking safe, healthy, locally-gown food. Building on Madison’s successful outdoor farmers’ markets, these funds will help construct and an indoor, year-round, public market in downtown Madison.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Madison, 210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $1,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Putting Wisconsinites back to work is my number one priority. One of the keys to sustained economic growth is transforming to a new, green economy that will help us compete in the global marketplace and combat climate change. These funds will be used to create a Renewable Energy and Sustainability Center in central Madison modeled upon the Solar Info Center (SIC) of Freiburg, Germany (Madison’s Sister City and a globally recognized model for renewable energy, energy efficiency and other related sustainability issues). The SIC in Freiburg has been the catalyst for creating more than 10,000 good jobs in the city and surrounding region. A primary goal of the Center in Madison will be to stimulate job growth in renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainability, and related fields for the Madison area, the State of Wisconsin, and the Midwest region. Specifically, funds will be used to provide public educational programming designed to increase understanding of renewable technologies.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Madison Police Department, 211 S Carroll St, Madison, WI 5370
Request amount: $200,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The Madison Police Department is developing innovative crime prevention efforts to reduce opportunities for criminal behavior by modifying closed or obstructed spaces that attract criminals. The program, known as Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED), will complement and enhance community policing efforts. As a component of the Crime Prevention and Gang Unit, CPTED targets problematic apartment buildings, parks, transit stations, and other spaces, to reduce criminal behavior and create safer, community-welcoming, environments.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

City of Monona, 5211 Schluter Road, Monona, WI 53716
Request amount: $1,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Funding will be used for rebuilding the infrastructure of the Belle Isle neighborhood of the City of Monona for flood mitigation. The funds will be used for construction of roads, sanitary and storm sewers, as well as shoreline elevation, stabilization, and dredging.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Common Wealth Development, Inc., 1501 Williamson St., Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Putting Wisconsinites back to work and growing our economy in a safe, sustainable way are my top priorities. These funds will help transform a historic building on a brownfield site into a public arts incubator facility that will create or sustain 296 jobs during construction and 150 jobs after opening. When completed, the facility will become a cultural attraction that will stimulate economic growth.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Community Action Inc. of Rock and Walworth Counties, 200 W. Milwaukee Street, Janesville WI 53548
Request amount: $695,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Rock County has been particularly hard hit by the recession and the unemployment rate there is the highest in the state. These funds will be used to develop the Beloit Training and Education Center, a space where people can work and learn their way out of poverty.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Cooperative Network, 131 W. Wilson St. Suite 400, Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $505,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Funding will support the development of locally-owned biomass processing cooperatives to provide biomass for energy production. Biomass (such as corn, woodchips, and other plant material) is Wisconsin’s most abundant renewable resource. Transitioning to biomass-derived energy will reduce our reliance on foreign oil, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and create green jobs.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Dane County, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Rm 421, Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: With the coming high speed rail line linking Madison to Milwaukee and Chicago, our area is poised for tremendous economic growth. At the same time, we must be prepared to meet the challenges of population growth and its environmental impact. These funds will help establish a commuter train running from the City of Middleton to an east Madison station connecting to the new High Speed Rail line.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Diverse and Resilient, Inc., 2439 North Holton Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212
Request amount: $205,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: As people struggle with the loss of a home, a job, or a sense of security in these difficult economic times, domestic violence often results. Domestic violence affects all segments of the population. This funding would be used to support Diverse and Resilient’s project to improve the response to intimate partner violence within Wisconsin lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities. The project will be based in Madison and will serve communities throughout the state.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Domestic Abuse Intervention Services, Inc., P.O. Box 1761, Madison, WI 53701
Request amount: $300,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Domestic violence is an unwelcome byproduct of tough economic times. In this recession, we’ve seen an increase in domestic abuse in all segments of the population. These funds will help support a desperately-needed new shelter for victims of domestic violence.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Family Services of Southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, Inc., 423 Bluff St., Beloit, WI 53511
Request amount: $246,903
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: With the loss of the GM plant in Janesville, people in Beloit and the surrounding area are particularly hard-hit in this recession. Many families are suffering the consequences of job loss and home foreclosure. These funds will be used to increase the scope and intensity of financial counseling for people profoundly affected by the current financial crisis.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Food Systems Research Group, 140 Agriculture Hall, 1450 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1562
Request amount: $850,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Agriculture is a mainstay of Wisconsin’s economy, providing nearly 10 percent of the state’s jobs. The Food System Research Group (FSRG) at the UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences supports and conducts research on economic performance of regional, national, and global food and agricultural markets. These funds will support the organization’s work to provide essential information to the industry and policy makers to sustain and enhance this important segment of our economy.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Fort Memorial Hospital, 611 Sherman Ave. E., Fort Atkinson, WI 53538-1998
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Access to quality health care is often difficult for people living outside of major, metropolitan areas. Often patients must travel many miles for specialized care. These funds will be used to provide equipment necessary in the treatment and rehabilitation of people with orthopedic injuries in and around Jefferson County.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Forward Community Investments, 211 S. Paterson Street, #160, Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $100,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Our financial crisis has put a strain on many nonprofit organizations that provide critical services to communities and those in need. In many cases, their services are in even greater demand and their access to low-cost loans has dried up. These funds will help Wisconsin’s only nonprofit community loan fund continue to provide low-cost loans and solid financial advice to nonprofit organizations in Dane, Columbia, Green, Jefferson, Rock, and Sauk counties.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Fowler Memorial Free Dental Clinic, N3150 Highway 81, Suite B14, Monroe, WI 53566
Request amount: $190,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The lack of quality, affordable dental care for low-income children and adults is dire. These funds will help expand services at a free, volunteer-operated dental clinic for children from low-income families ages 3-12 in Green County.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Ice Age Park and Trail Foundation, 2110 Main Street, Cross Plains, WI 53528
Request amount: $4,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will be used by the National Park Service, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, or other public or non-profit partners to purchase land preserving the roughly 1,000 mile Ice Age National Scenic Trail. In 1980, Congress officially designated the Ice Age Trail as one of only eight National Scenic Trails in the nation. As such, the Trail is a national resource and is important for conservation, recreation, and tourism.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Jobs for America's Graduates ~ Wisconsin / Forward Service Corporation, 1402 Pankratz St., Suite 101, Madison, WI 53704
Request amount: $318,800
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Preparing young people, especially those facing barriers to success, for the job market is critical for their own future and for our economic recovery. These funds will help provide education, career and leadership development, and postsecondary education opportunities to deserving students in Sun Prairie, Verona, and DeForest.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Lussier Community Education Center, 55 S. Gammon Road, Madison, WI 53717
Request amount: $100,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Our communities and our economy benefit when people with disabilities can reach their full potential and are able to succeed in the workforce. These funds will help support programs that will lead to gainful employment and improved quality of life for people with disabilities.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Madison Children's Museum, 100 State Street, Madison, WI 53703
Request amount: $225,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: With a new building opening in 2010, Madison Children's Museum has an opportunity to expand services to provide intergenerational programming for families afflicted with early stage Alzheimer’s. These funds will support an art therapist/ social worker to facilitate and evaluate the program, as well as the remodeling of a space specifically designated for special needs programming.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Monroe Clinic, 515 22nd Avenue, Monroe, WI 53566
Request amount: $2,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The Monroe Clinic provides quality, affordable health care to people throughout Green County. A new, energy-efficient addition to the clinic will include an emergency department, a patient intake center with surgical area, and patient rooms. These funds will be used to help purchase equipment for the emergency department, medical imaging, surgery, patient rooms, women’s and infant’s health, and waiting rooms in the new addition.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Rock County, 51 S. Main St., Janesville, WI 53545
Request amount: $1,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: In the 21st Century, it is more important than ever that government agencies are able to quickly communicate with each other to respond to natural and man-made disasters. These funds will help purchase a single, digital radio communications system for all units of government within Rock County.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Sand County Foundation, 5999 Monona Drive, Monona, WI 53716
Request amount: $900,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Agricultural runoff of surplus nutrients has a serious, negative impact on our nation’s waters. These funds will support a program designed to reduce runoff of nutrients from agricultural lands, thus improving water quality.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Sauk Prairie Memorial Hospital & Clinics, 80 First Street, Prairie du Sac, WI 53578
Request amount: $323,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Specialized health care services are often hard to find outside of major, metropolitan areas. Patients are often forced to travel great distances, often losing time at work for treatment or even routine tests. These funds will help purchase a digital mammography machine for the hospital and computed radiography readers for two rural clinics. These will provide the best diagnostic images and allow access to these images by physicians regardless of location.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

St. Clare Hospital and Health Services, 707 14th Street Baraboo, WI 53913
Request amount: $437,500
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Ensuring access to affordable, quality health care for all is one of my top priorities. These funds will improve medical imaging services and provide community-based care to both inpatient and outpatient elderly populations. These new capabilities will also improve Emergency Department services, allowing physicians to rapidly obtain medical information for trauma patients.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Sun Prairie Police Department, 300 East Main Street, Sun Prairie, WI 53590
Request amount: $200,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The inability of law enforcement agencies to communicate with each other in times of crisis seriously threatens public health and safety. Over the past six years, the Sun Prairie, Fitchburg, and Middleton Police Departments have designed, developed, and procured the necessary hardware and software to share an integrated records management system. These funds will provide financial assistance to these agencies to expand their shared integrated law enforcement computer database to neighboring law enforcement agencies in and around Dane County, and to share resources including staff, training, and best practices information.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Town of Beloit, 2871 South Afton Road, Beloit, WI 53511
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: More than 70 families in one neighborhood draw their water from shallow private wells that pose a health risk, and discharge their effluent into septic systems lying near fractured bed rock. These funds will be used to eliminate that health risk and improve the water quality of the aquifer serving the drinking water needs of the City of Beloit and Town of Beloit.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Town of Cross Plains, 4296 County Highway P, Cross Plains, WI 53528
Request amount: $200,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will be used to help replace the failing Valley Spring Road bridge to protect the health and safety of area residents.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Town of Madison, 2120 Fish Hatchery Road, Madison, WI 53713-1289
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The Novation Technology Campus Redevelopment Project is transforming a 57 acre parcel of land in the Town of Madison from a brownfield into an engine for economic growth. These funds will be used to complement private investment to support construction of the project and offset the burdensome cost of the environmental remediation and site preparation activities and help make the project economically feasible and sustainable.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

United Migrant Opportunity Services, 2701 S. Chase Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53207
Request amount: $240,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Wisconsin diary farms provide more than 160,000 jobs across the state and form the backbone of the Wisconsin workforce. Dairy farm workers and their families from seven counties in South Central Wisconsin face challenges presented by inadequate housing, domestic abuse, language barriers, and other issues. These funds will help support, emergency housing vouchers, domestic abuse assistance, English as a Second Language classes, GED training, and a variety of additional support services. The overall goal of this project is to address the growing needs of Wisconsin’s dairy farm workers who play a critical role in stimulating and sustaining the state’s economy.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

United Way of Dane County, 2059 Atwood Avenue, Madison, WI 53704
Request amount: $300,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Homeless people with chronic mental illness have special needs and present special challenges to the communities in which they live. These funds will help support construction jobs and related costs to build two facilities: one to provide traditional housing and intensive services for homeless men and women with severe and persistent mental illness; the other to provide permanent housing with case management support for formerly homeless persons with mental illness.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

University of Wisconsin-Baraboo/Sauk County, 1006 Connie Road, Baraboo, WI 53913
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: Educating this and future generations of students to compete in a highly-technical, global marketplace is vitally important to our economy and our standing in the world. These funds will help renovate existing, out-of-date science facilities into general purpose classrooms and create new science classrooms and laboratories. In a unique partnership, the City of Baraboo and Sauk County will provide the facilities and the UW System will provide the moveable equipment and programming.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, 140 Agriculture Hall, 1450 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1562
Request amount: $384,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: As we move to develop a new, green economy, these funds will help develop research in sustainable agriculture. In the tradition of “The Wisconsin Idea,” knowledge gained at the University will help develop a diverse Wisconsin agricultural and food system that is environmentally sound, socially just, and economically viable.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, 800 West Main Street, Whitewater, WI 53190-1790
Request amount: $1,295,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater has entered into a unique partnership with the City of Whitewater, the Whitewater Community Development Authority, and the Whitewater-University Technology Park Board to open a new business incubator in Spring 2011. These funds will help support the high-tech Innovation Center as a training center and incubator for the research and development of new enterprises, creating jobs in the region.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

University Research Park, 510 Charmany Drive, Suite 250, Madison, Wisconsin 53719
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: High tech companies have the potential to create hundreds, if not thousands, of new jobs in South Central Wisconsin. University Research Park supports commercial uses of university research and is home to more than 110 companies that employ more 3,500 people. These funds will create jobs by supporting the development of a biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility, operated by a public/private partnership. In addition to job creation, this facility will translate new discoveries from research into medical therapies and treatments that benefit the public.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Village of Belleville, 24 W. Main St., PO Box 79, Belleville, WI 53508
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will help restore the health of Lake Belle View and its surrounding habitat. The restoration project will strengthen the regional economy by creating short-term and long-term opportunities in construction and environmental services sectors. The community will benefit from enhanced outdoor recreational and educational opportunities.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Village of Brooklyn, 102 N. Rutland Ave., Brooklyn, WI 53521
Request amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will provide infrastructure and development of Brooklyn’s first business park and incubator building. More than thirty local entrepreneurs are potential future tenants of the Village’s incubator program. The project will stem the loss of local small businesses which seek to expand, diversify the community’s tax base, and stimulate economic recovery.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Village of DeForest/Town of Windsor, 306 DeForest Street, DeForest, WI 53532
Request Amount: $4,500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will help support the reconstruction of US Highway 51 in the DeForest-Windsor area. Expanding US 51 from its current status as a two-lane highway into a four-lane highway will have a significant impact on traffic safety, congestion, and the continued growth of the local economy.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Village of Footville, P.O. Box 445, Footville, WI 53537
Request Amount: $80,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: In the current economic crisis, rural villages are in need of public support to maintain their quality of life and attract job-creating businesses. These funds will help complete an overhaul of the public facilities at the municipal park. Much of the work to improve the park has already been completed. The Village of Footville needs funds to complete its work to improve the park’s public facilities and ensure all of the buildings are fully compliant and handicap accessible.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Village of Sauk City, 726 Water Street, Sauk City, WI 53538
Request Amount: $1,150,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will support the expansion of USH 12 to accommodate increased traffic capacity needs. The expanded four-lanes through the Village of Sauk City will provide an additional direct and safe route from Madison to Wisconsin Dells.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Bioenergy Initiative (WBI), 1550 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706
Request Amount: $1,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The Wisconsin Bioenergy Initiative (WBI) at the UW-Madison has partnered with the Burnett Dairy Co-Op and Cool Clean Technologies in efforts to produce environmentally safe and sustainable biofuels, providing income for farmers and sustainable, environmentally-friendly biofuels to the state of Wisconsin. These funds will be used to implement a project to demonstrate the effectiveness of the plant Camelina as an environmentally safe and sustainable biofuel crop for Wisconsin farmers, creating 15-20 jobs.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, 2811 Agriculture Drive, Madison, WI 53708
Request Amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: The Division of Food Safety in Wisconsin's Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection serves the people of Wisconsin by assuring safe, wholesome foods. At a time when we’re all concerned with the safety of our food supply, these funds will help the agency better ensure milk safety through a pilot program of remote-monitoring of bulk tank temperatures and other scientific measures.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Department of Transportation, 4802 Sheboygan Avenue, Madison, WI 53707 
Request Amount: $1,500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: As we begin work on the High Speed rail line that will create jobs and benefit our local and state economies, these funds will be used to update the warning devices at highway/railway grade crossings to improve safety on the Federal Railway Administration-designated High Speed corridor in Wisconsin.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Department of Transportation, 4802 Sheboygan Avenue, Madison, WI 53707
Request Amount: $7,104,400
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will support both preliminary engineering and regulatory compliance required for the track improvements needed to provide high speed passenger rail service from Madison to Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Division of Emergency Management, 2400 Wright St., Madison, WI 53704
Request Amount: $1,000,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will be used to upgrade technology and capacity for the Wisconsin Division of Emergency Management’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Wisconsin Statewide Information Center. These enhancements will allow the state to better respond to all types of disasters. Funds will support up to 40 construction jobs during the upgrade and at least 5 long-term employees once the EOC is completed.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

Wisconsin Security Research Consortium, 455 Science Drive Suite 240, Madison, WI 53711
Request Amount: $500,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: To foster the growth of small business and create jobs in Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Security Research Consortium (WSRC), working with the Wisconsin Technology Council (WTC), will use these funds to identify small businesses that have the capabilities and resources to commercialize technologies developed by taxpayer-funded research at national laboratories. The grants will help start-up companies attract investment from other investment groups.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

YWCA Madison, 101 East Mifflin Street, Madison, WI 53703 
Request Amount: $750,000
Organization Request Letter
Public benefit: These funds will support the YWCA Madison initiative, “Dismantling the School-to-Prison Pipeline.” The project will provide preventative programming to enable the most at-risk children to stay in school and avoid the pipeline to incarceration. The project will invest in pro-active neighborhood-based initiatives in low-opportunity neighborhoods; establish Restorative Justice Programs in areas that are experiencing racial and cultural tensions that involve the criminal justice system; and reduce the number of unlicensed drivers through the support of community-wide Driver’s License Recovery and Employability Program. It will help kids stay in school, enter the workforce, and become productive members of society. In addition, these funds will help reduce crime and the costs associated with it.
Letter of Financial Disclosure

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Federal Transportation Bill/High Priority Projects

Periodically, Congress reviews and reauthorizes transportation programs throughout the nation. The current transportation law (SAFTEA-LU) has been extended through 2010. As a part of the reauthorization, Members of Congress are given the opportunity to identify “High Priority Projects” in their districts which they believe are particularly worthy of funding. The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has set forth guidelines for these projects and will prioritize those that provide increased safety, economic development, mobility, and environmental benefits. In determining which projects to submit to the Committee, I have considered all of these factors. In addition, I considered whether projects meet state, regional and community needs. This funding is only provided to state, county and municipal governments. No funds are earmarked for private organizations or companies.

Projects that I have requested funding for are as follows:

Beloit: Henry Avenue Bridge ($2.24 million)
Public benefit: The Henry Avenue Bridge across the Rock River serves many cars, bicycles and pedestrians each day, including traffic to and from the high school. Reconstruction of the bridge is important for increased safety and economic development.

Beloit: Bus Capital Project ($960,000)
Stoughton: Bus Capital Project ($240,000)
Sun Prairie: Bus Capital Project ($240,000)
Public benefit: This funding will be used to replace city buses and shared-ride vehicles that are safer, compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and provide better gas mileage.

Columbia County: Highway V reconstruction ($1 million)
Public benefit: This funding will be used to reconstruct CTH V between State Highway 113 and CTH J. The existing road does not meet current design and safety standards, due to sharp curves, hills and deteriorating structure over the backwater of Lake Wisconsin. In addition to vehicle safety, the proposed improvements will dramatically improve the safety and mobility for bicyclists and pedestrians by the addition of wider paved shoulders.

Dane County Roundabout ($500,000)
Public benefit: Significant improvements are being made to the intersection of Interstate 94 and CTH N. With the very close proximity of the intersection of CTH N and CTH TT, improvements also must be made at that intersection. These funds will support the construction of a roundabout at the CTH TT / CTH N intersection to enhance public safety and ensure an expeditious completion of the Interstate 94 interchange project.

DeForest and Windsor: Widening US Highway 51 ($2 million)
Public benefit: The growing volume of traffic on Highway 51 in DeForest and Windsor has created a life threatening situation. The number of automobile collisions on this stretch of road has increased dramatically in recent years. With the projected doubling of jobs and residences in the corridor by 2030, significant upgrades to the highway are needed. This funding will help the Wisconsin Department of Transportation expedite these improvements, reducing the number of collisions and resulting injuries, saving lives and creating jobs both directly in road design and construction and indirectly through greater economic development in the area.

Edgerton: Highway 59 improvements ($760,000)
Public benefit: These funds will support the planning, design, and construction of improvements to State Highway 59, providing for access to and from the Edgerton Hospital and Health Services Facility.

Fitchburg: Lacy Road/USH 14 Interchange ($2.5 million)
Public benefit: The city of Fitchburg is working to develop a Fitchburg Technology Neighborhood to attract new business and create up to 20,000 jobs. Improved access will be essential to the project. These funds will support the right of way acquisition and construction of four ramps for a Lacy Road--US Highway 14 interchange and provide an improved connection with CTH MM.

Jefferson County Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge ($881,497)
Public benefit: These funds will be used for the engineering, design and construction of a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Crawfish River in the City of Jefferson. This bridge will provide direct and safe access to three of the City’s four schools.

Madison: Glacial Drumlin Trail ($4 million)
Public benefit: These funds will be used to construct a six mile bicycle and pedestrian path that will connect the existing Capital City Trail, Glacial Drumlin State Trail and Military Ridge State Trail. The result will be a trail providing 113 miles of continuous pathway between Dodgeville and Waukesha. The trails offer economic, environmental and safety benefits.

Madison: Cannonball Bicycle and Pedestrian Path ($2.4 million)
Public benefit: These funds will be used to construct a bicycle and pedestrian bridge over the Beltline Highway (US Highways 12 and 14) as a part of the Cannonball Path Project. The bridge is a key component of the project which will link neighborhoods in Madison and Fitchburg south of the Beltline with central Madison. In addition, it will provide connections to the Capital City Trail, the Southwest Path, the Military Ridge Trail and the Badger State Trail.

Madison: Multimodal Transportation Stop ($5 million)
Public benefit: Linking transportation systems is essential if they are to fully serve commuters and travelers. This funding will support design, engineering, site acquisition and preparation for a transit station that connects a variety of transportation systems, including intercity passenger rail, intercity bus, local bus, bicycle and pedestrian, and possible commuter rail.

Shorewood Hills: Bicycle and Pedestrian Path ($2.08 million)
Public benefit: These funds will be used for land acquisition and construction of a bicycle and pedestrian overpass of University Bay Drive and a path along University Avenue. Currently this area is a missing link in the pathway, creating a safety hazard for automobile, bicycle and pedestrian traffic along the corridor.

Whitewater: Multi-use Trail System ($250,500)
Public benefit: These funds will support the extension of the Whitewater Multi-use trail system to connect to Whitewater High School and the planned Whitewater Technology Park. The project will enhance public safety, promote economic development and provide environmental benefits.

Wisconsin High Speed Rail Preliminary Engineering ($32.3 million)
Wisconsin High Speed Rail Construction ($560 million)
Public benefit: President Obama has recently noted the significant potential for high speed rail. It will have both environmental and economic benefits. I have been a very strong supporter of creating a high speed rail system connecting Chicago, Milwaukee, Madison, and Minneapolis (among other communities). Funds for the construction of a high speed rail system from Milwaukee to Madison are likely to be secured through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). I am joining Congressman Ron Kind and Congressman David Obey in supporting full funding for land acquisition, planning and construction of high speed rail between Madison, Wisconsin and Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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Water Resources Development Act of 2010

The Water Resources Development Act (“WRDA”) is the comprehensive water resources law typically authorized every two years. Specifically, WRDA authorizes studies and projects within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers mission areas including navigation, flood damage reduction, hurricane and storm damage reduction, shoreline protection, and environmental restoration. Projects must be feasible and justified on the basis of Corps policy and regulation.

Projects that I have requested funding for are as follows:

Madison, Monona, Village of McFarland: ($3,686,000)
Funds will be used for constructing a segment of the Lower Yahara River Bicycle Pedestrian Trail between the Capital City Trail and McDaniel Park in the Village of McFarland, WI.

Roxbury and Westpoint Townships: ($400,000)
Funds will be used to plan, design, build, and upgrade a pumping system to alleviate the impacts of flooding of homes and roads on Fish, Mud and Crystal Lakes.

Madison, Village of Shorewood: ($3,543,000)
Funds will be used to provide flood relief by constructing a storm sewer box in the University Ave. corridor from Shorewood Blvd. to Walnut Drive.

Madison, Monona, Village of McFarland: ($3,202,500)
Funds will be used to replace an existing railroad trestle on the Yahara River in Dane County, WI that is restricting both water flow and navigation.

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