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Our Voice blog
January 12, 2023

Another Wisconsin Co-Sponsor!

byJake Beckstrom
Four white men face the camera, two of the men are in wheelchairs

Above: from left, Rep. Rob Summerfield, Jason Stoffer, Matthew Rodreick, John Martinson.

We secured another legislator’s support for our $3M SCI Research Grant Bill yesterday! After meeting with Matthew Rodreick, Jason Stoffer, and WI CAN Advocate John Martinson, Representative Rob Summerfield (R - Bloomer) agreed to co-sponsor our Bill.

Rep. Summerfield is the Majority Caucus Chair, as well as a member of the Committee on Health, where it is looking likely our Bill will be assigned after it is introduced this session. Additionally, Rep. Summerfield is a member of the Committee on Colleges and Universities, where he first heard our testimony for this Bill last April.

Here’s what Rep. Summerfield had to say in a Facebook post this morning:

Yesterday, I met with representatives from Unite 2 Fight Paralysis about the need for research into spinal cord injuries. I’ll be co-sponsoring Wisconsin State Representative Paul Tittl and Senator Van Wanggaard’s bill to create a $3 million research grant program for spinal cord injuries. I hope this legislation will move us forward on finding effective treatment for people suffering from spinal cord injuries. It’s always a pleasure to meet with the good people at U2FP, and I’m excited to see where this legislation will go!

Today is our last day at the Wisconsin Capitol - and it’s packed. We have 9 meetings scheduled, many that happened this morning, with many more happening this afternoon. In total, we will have officially met with 20 legislators this trip, making our case for lawmakers to support our $3M SCI Research Grant Bill.

Jason said it yesterday, and I can’t agree enough: Your phone calls and emails are a huge factor in determining whether legislators will support this bill. So keep calling, no matter what state or country you live in.

And again, if you do live in Wisconsin, check to see if you’re a constituent of these lawmakers. When you contact these legislators, you can say something like this:
 

Dear [Representative or Senator Name Here],

My name is ____  ______, and I [have a spinal cord injury / am family/friend of someone with a spinal cord injury]. Please support our Spinal Cord Injury Research Grant Bill by signing on as a co-author.

This is a smart, efficient bill that would:

Keep the funds in Wisconsin

Allow SCI Community members like me to help decide what research gets funded

Cap indirect costs at 8% (ie no bloated admin costs)

This legislation will get SCI research out of the lab and into people like [me/my family/friend]. We desperately need this bill to be heard and passed this session. Our community can’t wait!


Please contact the following WI Legislators - no matter where you live - and tell them to support the $3M SCI Research Grant program:


Let’s do this!