Katrina Shankland will work with anyone – Democrats or Republicans – to get things done for workers, farmers, and families.
A lifelong Wisconsinite, Katrina Shankland knows how to find middle ground and get things done. She has the experience to go to Congress and hit the ground running. In the State Legislature, she introduced, cosponsored, and passed 225 bipartisan laws and got them signed by Republican and Democratic governors — laws to make health care affordable, help farmers and first responders, and strengthen clean water laws.
Below are summaries of some of the 225 bills she has helped pass into law:
2013 Act 187: This law funds the construction of the skilled nursing facility at King Veterans Home. Wisconsin has three veterans homes and this law expanded opportunities for veterans to age with dignity near their homes.
2013 Act 58: This law leverages state funds to bring in federal money and fund nine new positions at the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, helping people with disabilities gain access to meaningful work and reducing the wait list for support at DVR. Working with then Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling from La Crosse, Katrina was able to convince Governor Scott Walker to change his mind on accepting federal funding. Because of her work, Wisconsin became a national leader in hiring people with disabilities.
2015 Act 266: This law strengthens reporting requirements for Wisconsin’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, tackling the opioid crisis head on by enhancing transparency and accountability.
2015 Act 43: This law bans the sale and manufacture of synthetic plastic microbeads in personal care products and over-the-counter drugs, protecting our water from harmful chemicals.
2017 Act 66: This law establishes uniform standards for community paramedic licensing and Community Emergency Medical Services in Wisconsin. Katrina spearheaded authoring this law during a ride-along with the Stevens Point Fire Department. Communities that have established these programs have lowered their 911 calls by double digits.
2017 Act 133, 2021 Act 218, 2023 Act 27: Dillon’s Law allows anyone trained to administer epinephrine to do so and provides liability protection. Dillon’s Law 2.0 expands coverage of epinephrine to pre-filled syringes and creates a statewide standing order to dispense epinephrine to anyone who has completed the training, and the third law opens up coverage of Dillon’s Law to all future FDA-approved epinephrine delivery systems. You can read more about our efforts to get more people trained under Dillon’s Law here.
2017 Act 195: This law creates the Hire Heroes program, incentivizing employers to hire veterans and reimbursing them for hiring unemployed veterans up to a certain amount of wages.
2017 Act 137: This law helps communities with removing lead laterals by authorizing grant and loan lead lateral removal programs so people can safely drink water from their taps.
2019 Act 7: This law prohibits businesses moving out of the country or state from deducting moving expenses on their state income taxes.
2019 Act 139: This law increases funding for monetary length-of-service awards for volunteer firefighters, emergency medical responders, and volunteer EMS practitioners.
2021 Act 9: This law prohibits pharmacy benefit managers from enforcing “gag clauses” to prevent pharmacists from telling patients about cheaper options of the same drug and regulates the middle man, pharmacy benefit managers, holding them accountable through audits.
2021 Act 29: This law expands PTSD coverage under workers compensation for police and fire.
2021 Act 30: This law requires education about the Holocaust in all schools in Wisconsin.
2021 Act 115: Spearheaded by Katrina’s constituents in the Amherst Fire District, this law enacts protections for first responders in emergency zones and enhances penalties for injuring or killing a roadside worker. Katrina invited Governor Evers to sign the law at Amherst Fire District.
2021 Act 207: This law invests funding in the agricultural exports program to help dairy farmers with marketing and promotion of their exports.
2021 Act 223: Working with conservation and farm groups, Katrina designed the nitrogen pilot program with lawmakers from both parties to help farmers reduce nitrate contamination. She also passed this law to enact a cover crop insurance rebate program to help farmers plant cover crops to take up nutrients and protect our water quality and authorized a state hydrogeologist to support communities grappling with water contamination.
2023 Act 5: This law expands opportunities for farmers in producer-led watershed groups to clean up their local lakes, rivers, and streams using DNR Lake and River Protection Grants.
2023 Act 13: This law establishes the Agricultural Road Improvement Program, a new grant program that reimburses communities for prioritizing projects on agricultural roads that will reduce costs for farmers in labor and fuel and reduce more trips and mileage.
2023 Acts 14-15, 17-18: The Workforce Housing Package expands affordable housing opportunities in Wisconsin, investing $50 million to support housing rehabilitation grants or loans, $275 million for Residential Housing Infrastructure loans, $100 million for Main Street Housing Rehabilitation loans, and $100 million for Commercial-to-Housing Conversation loans. Act 14 helps install, replace, or upgrade public infrastructure related to workforce housing and senior housing. Act 15 establishes the Restore Main Street Loan program to help improve housing above an existing commercial space. Act 17 expands access to the workforce housing loan program to help with home repair and rehabilitation. Act 18 helps cover the cost of converting a vacant commercial building to senior housing or workforce housing.
2023 Act 42: This law expands the Farmland Preservation Program in Wisconsin and makes it easier to enroll. It increases the tax credits per acre for farmers enrolled in the program who utilize best conservation practices on their farmland. Both conservation and agriculture groups came together with Democrats and Republicans on the Agriculture Committee to pass this much-needed expansion to protect our soil and water.
2023 Act 60: This law requires a half credit of personal financial literacy – from employment and money management to credit and debt – before graduating high school and first applies in 2028.
2023 Act 179: This law reduces barriers to purchasing over-the-counter hearing aids.
2023 Act 240: This law continues the Office of School Safety by funding the positions at their necessary full-time staffing levels to prevent violence and other threats in our schools.
2023 Act 249: This law expands crisis intervention in Wisconsin by opening regional Crisis Urgent Care and Observation Centers, helping open five new crisis centers in our state.
2023 Act 266: This historic law requires Hmong & Asian American history to be taught in public schools. Katrina worked with the Hmong and AAPI community over years to introduce this bill and expand support for it in the Legislature. She reached across the aisle to make the bill bipartisan.
Read more about the 225 bipartisan bills Katrina Shankland has passed into law here.