Those who know Assemblyman Joe Sheehan will not be surprised to hear that he is very excited for 2025 after Governor Tony Evers declared it the Year of the Kid.
Sheehan, a Democrat from Sheboygan, is in his first term in Madison and tells SeehaferNews.com that his background in education fits right in with Governor Evers’ plans for the year.
During the State of the State address last night (January 22nd), the Governor laid out some broad ideas for helping children in the state, including one measure Sheehan is co-sponsoring.
“It has to do with healthy school meals,” he explained. “That is one significant piece of his 2025 Year of the Kid.”
Evers also addressed childcare, which Sheehan called “a tough position.…because if you do it for a price, people can afford it, then you can’t pay your staff enough to keep them. If you pay your staff enough to keep them, then the people can’t afford your child care. That’s something at the state level we’re going to have to work with.”
He did say that the issue is something both sides of the aisle want to address, they just have to find common ground.
“That’s what I ran on. That we can get along. We can see the other person’s point of view. Let’s get it done,” he said. “Is it going to happen overnight? No. But steps need to happen.”
With this being the longtime Sheboygan Area School District Superintendent’s first time attending the State of the State Address as a legislator, Sheehan said it was an awe-inspiring experience.
“This is our government, and I’m sitting in the assembly going, ‘Holy cat, I’m part of this,'” he said with a smile. “I was listening through an educator’s lens, but also through How do we get along this? There’s lots we can do to to work together.”
Sheehan was selected to represent the 26th Assembly District in November after receiving roughly 800 more votes than his Republican challenger, Amy Binsfeld.
He wasted little time getting to work as he announced his Lowering Costs, Improving Lives package of bills earlier this week.
The package included bills called the Homestead Tax Credit, Healthy School Meals for All, and Less for Rx.
