The Wisconsin State Assembly unanimously voted in favor of external investigations of officer-involved deaths.  Officers who take a life will no longer be solely investigated by their coworkers.

Now we must get Wisconsin Senators on board.

You’ve gotten us this far.  Will you please take just a moment to encourage your Wisconsin Senator to support Assembly Bill 409?

Here is where you can find your Senator’s email address: http://legis.wisconsin.gov/pages/waml.aspx  and, here’s an example of what you could write to them:

Dear ___________,

The fatal use of force is the ultimate life or death decision that law enforcement officers should hope to never have to make. However, in the instance of an officer-involved death, we believe that the internal investigation into the incident shouldn’t be run by police officers from the same jurisdiction.

Assembly Bill 409, passed with unanimous through the State Assembly on Tuesday, February 18.

This bill, quite simply, requires at least two investigators from outside the law enforcement agency in which the death occurred.

This bill, authored by Rep. Garey Bies (R-Sister Bay) and Rep. Chris Taylor (D-Madison), brought families and loved ones of those impacted by an officer-involved death together with law enforcement to address their concerns. The result is a bill that would insert more independence into the investigation, reassuring families while protecting the rights of law enforcement officers.

Wisconsin is on the precipice of becoming the first state in the nation to mandate and independent investigation into officer-involved deaths.

This bipartisan bill is supported not only by families who have lost loved ones, but also multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Wisconsin Professional Police Association.

As such, I’m writing to encourage you to vote in favor of Assembly Bill 409, when it comes before you.

Sincerely,  Your Name  Address  City, State Zip

This week, your federal legislators have an opportunity to show their support for American wind power in a very clear way – by signing a letter that urges the Congressional leadership to take quick action to extend the tax credits for the wind industry.

I urge you to take a moment to write to your legislators today and encourage them to sign this letter.

Recently, wind industry employees met with legislators from 140 different states and districts.  They shared their personal stories about their jobs, as well as updates on the wind industry’s impressive accomplishments:

• Employing 80,000 people across the U.S. today
• Driving $105 billion of private investment since 2005
• Bringing down the cost of power by 43% in the past four years alone

Shown above: Wind industry employees meet with Rep. Fleischmann (TN-03)

They asked their legislators to sign a letter to Congressional leadership that explains, “Like all businesses, the wind industry seeks certainty and predictability so that long term project decisions and investments can be made,” and asks for quick action to extend the tax credits that have driven the industry forward – the renewable energy production tax credit (PTC) and investment tax credit (ITC).

Please echo their request – ask your legislators to sign the letter today. 

Thank you for your support!

Sincerely,
Aaron

Aaron Severn
Interim Vice President, Federal Legislative Affairs
American Wind Energy Association