Call for Letters to the Editor

Recent Letters to the Editor >>

We encourage everyone to consider writing a Letter to the Editor (LTEs) as a way to build support for Democratic candidates and causes, and to hold our elected officials accountable.

Focus Topics

Please choose ONE of the following topics for your letter. Optional talking points for each are included further down so you have real bills and numbers to cite:

  • Education & lowering property taxes
  • Supporting family farmers
  • Health care costs
  • Tax cuts for working families
  • Housing affordability
  • Child care costs
  • Restoring workers’ rights
  • Energy costs & price gouging

Submission Guidelines

  1. LTEs should be limited to 200 words. Newspapers enforce a length limit.
  2. Newspapers require your name, address, phone number, and email address. Please include this info when you submit.
  3. Stick to one of the eight focus topics above and lean on the economic angle, how it affects local families’ cost of living, rather than national politics.
  4. End with a brief Call to Action, e.g., “Vote for (Candidate’s last name) in District (##) on November 3rd”, “Vote for Democrats in November.”

You’re welcome to send your letter to multiple newspapers:

Talking Points by Topic

Pick your topic, then pull two or three of these points, put them in your own words, and add a local example if you have one. Real bill numbers help your letter stand out.

  1. Education & Lowering Property Taxes
    • Republicans have spent decades defunding our public schools, shuffling public funds for private schools resulting in two paths for local communities. 1) call another referendum raising local property taxes or 2) bankrupt the local schools with many closing.
    • Assembly Democrats’ budget amendment raises the special education reimbursement rate to 60%, freeing up general fund dollars districts currently have to divert from classrooms to cover special ed costs.
    • Every dollar the state shorts our public schools becomes a dollar Jefferson County homeowners have to make up through higher property taxes via a local referendum.
  2. Supporting Family Farmers
    • WI Public Radio: Ag Leaders – Trade Could make or break wisconsin farms in 2026
    • Sen. Keyeski: Introduces bills to support Wisconsin’s farmers, agriculture industry, & rural communities
    • Agriculture generates over $116 billion for Wisconsin’s economy every year. Farmers are the backbone of Jefferson County, and they’re hurting right now from reactive tariffs, lost export markets, and a rising wave of farm bankruptcies. Wisconsin farm bankruptcies are up 700%. 16 farms filed for bankruptcy in 2025, up from just 2 in 2024.
    • The “Farmers and Agriculture Keep Wisconsin Growing” bill package invests in Wisconsin’s farmers instead of ignoring them: expanding grants that connect local producers to stores and schools (Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin), funding the Something Special from Wisconsin marketing program, and creating new farmer support agent positions at the Wisconsin Farm Center to help producers facing financial or herd-health crises.
    • The package also updates the Farmland Preservation Program to index it to inflation and protect more acres, so family farmland stays in production instead of being sold off or developed.
    • It strengthens the Healthy Food Incentive Program, helping SNAP participants buy fresh, local produce and helping farmers markets afford the equipment to accept those benefits, connecting family farms directly to the neighbors who need affordable food.
  3. Health Care Costs
    • Senate Bill 50 would eliminate cost-sharing for prescription drugs under BadgerCare and create a Prescription Drug Affordability Review Board to keep drug costs in check.
    • Senate Bill 901 caps the cost of insulin at $35 a month; over 470,000 Wisconsinites live with diabetes.
    • Senate Bill 251 caps asthma medication costs at $25 a month and supplies at $50 a month, for the 580,000+ Wisconsinites managing asthma.
    • Senate Bill 1032 would remove the state sales tax from over-the-counter medication, an immediate savings for every family that buys it.
    • Create a state-based insurance marketplace: Exchanges have been shown to hold down prices better than the federal exchange, making individual health insurance coverage more affordable for Wisconsinites.
    • Expand BadgerCare eligibility: Require the Department of Health Services to request federal approval to allow any Wisconsin citizen, regardless of income, to purchase coverage through BadgerCare. The state would also set up its own health insurance marketplace where people could shop for plans and enroll in that BadgerCare buy-in option, all in one place.
  4. Tax Cuts for Working Families
    • The Homestead Tax Credit expansion (Senate Bill 60) raises the income limit from $24,680 to $35,000 and indexes it to inflation, real property tax relief for low-income homeowners and renters, especially seniors on fixed incomes.
    • AB 1030 raises Wisconsin’s Earned Income Tax Credit to 34% of the federal credit regardless of family size, and creates a credit for workers without kids for the first time.
    • AB 686 expands the Veterans and Surviving Spouses Property Tax Credit to veterans with a 70% service- connected disability rating, up from the current 100% threshold.
  5. Housing Affordability
    • Wisconsin’s housing stock is the 12th oldest in the nation, and outdated local zoning rules are part of the problem. SB 943 directs cities and villages to plan for a wider range of housing types, letting the market build more homes instead of restricting supply through red tape.
    • Senate Bill 142 would ban landlords from using algorithmic software to set rents, so prices reflect the local market, not a formula designed to maximize profit.
    • AB 916 protects the supply we already have, putting up to $25,000 in grants and interest-free loans toward keeping older homes livable instead of losing them to disrepair.
  6. Child Care Costs
    • The average cost of child care in Wisconsin hit nearly $17,000 a year in 2025, more than the cost of a year at an in-state public university around $13,000.
    • Senate Bill 322 would continue direct monthly payments to certified child care providers so they can keep their doors open without passing costs on to parents.
    • AB 1016: Building the workforce behind the workforce – investing in boosting the supply of trained child care workers. Covers the cost of required training for current and future early educators, funding more than 10,000 courses and removing financial barriers that deter qualified people from entering or staying in the profession
  7. Restoring Workers’ Rights
    • AB 593 and AB 999 would restore collective bargaining rights stripped from UW System, technical college, and UW Hospital workers.
    • AB 464 would restore Wisconsin’s prevailing wage law, repealed in 2017, ensuring workers on public construction projects are paid fairly.
    • A strong middle class starts with workers who have a real voice on the job. Jefferson County families do better when local workers do better.
  8.  Energy Costs & Price Gouging
    • Senate Bill 729 requires data centers to cover the cost of the grid expansions their operations require, instead of passing those costs on to everyday ratepayers.
    • Senate Bill 869 requires utilities to invest in energy efficiency operations
    • Utility costs have exceeded regional averages every year for two decades; Wisconsinites deserve relief, not more of the same.
    • Senate Bill 1140 and AB 1027 crack down on grocery stores and retailers using algorithmic “dynamic pricing” that charges different customers different prices for the same item in real time, with real penalties for violators.

Questions?
Reach out any time. And thank you, as always, for putting your name and your voice behind the work of bringing real change to Jefferson County and Wisconsin.