Do-nothing Republicans in the Legislature are holding hostage funding to address real and immediate challenges facing our communities, and Wisconsinites are suffering because of it.

Wisconsin Republicans have withheld funding for combating the opioid epidemic, addressing PFAS in Wisconsin’s water supply, and stabilizing health care in western Wisconsin—in some cases for months on end.

In April, an anonymous politician on the Republican-controlled Joint Finance Committee used a “shadow hold” to object to the state Department of Health Services’ comprehensive plan to distribute $36 million in settlement funding from an opioid lawsuit that would help local communities, law enforcement, and health providers combat the opioid epidemic statewide.

This obstruction is more of the same of what we’ve come to expect from Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee.

We should all be able to drink the water from our tap and know it’s clean and safe. In the last state budget, Gov. Evers approved $125 million to help Wisconsin communities address pollution from PFAS chemicals in our water. Republican politicians on the Joint Finance Committee have refused to release the critical resources municipalities are counting on.

After two hospitals and 19 rural clinics in the Eau Claire area announced plans to close their doors, Gov. Evers approved $15 million to stabilize care in western Wisconsin. But Republicans have held this funding hostage—for no good reason—forcing Wisconsinites to hours for care, endure longer wait times, or even forgo treatment altogether.