Here is this week’s letter to the editor of the Oshkosh Northwestern. See our letters policy below for details about how to share your views.
Senate adjourns for the 2025-26 session
This month, the Wisconsin State Senate held its final regular floor period of the 2025-26 session. We had some bipartisan successes: $125 million was released to address PFAS contamination, three programs administered by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) were updated to encourage new housing construction, and a workforce home loan program was created to help working families purchase a home.
These are good policies, and I’m glad we were able to have bipartisan votes to get them done. The problem? It’s not enough.
Rising costs, from gas prices to utilities to health care, is the No. 1 concern I hear from constituents. For months, Democrats have had legislation introduced that would curb costs, such as caps on insulin and asthma medications, and tax relief in the form of expansions of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the Homestead Credit, and the Veterans and Surviving Spouses Property Tax Credit. None of these bills received a public hearing. All were voted down by Republicans when Democrats offered them as amendments on the last day of session.
The Legislature could’ve done so much more to alleviate the financial burdens weighing on everyone from retirees to working families, but Republicans chose not to. It’s frustrating to be told to pack it up and go home when there’s so much left to do, but that’s not going to stop me from continuing to advocate for the needs of my community. My office is just a phone call or email away.
Kristin Dassler-Alfheim
State Senator, District 18
Our letters policy
Letters to the editor are published in the order in which they are received and letter-writers are limited to having one letter published per month. Letters can be emailed to oshkoshnews@thenorthwestern.com and Editor Brandon Reid at breid@usatodayco.com. Letters must meet specific guidelines, including being no more than 250 words and be from local authors or on topics of local interest. All submissions must include the name of the person who wrote the letter, their city of residence and a contact phone number. Letters are edited as needed for style, grammar, length, fairness, accuracy and libel.
This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: State Sen. Dassler-Alfheim reflects on 2025-26 legislative session
Reporting by Oshkosh Northwestern / Oshkosh Northwestern
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