Wisconsin Lawmakers to Vote on Suicide Prevention Funding
Funding had Been Approved as Part of the State Budget
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A suicide prevention hotline could receive a boost in funding from the Legislature’s budget committee under a vote scheduled to take place after a bitter partisan fight.
The Republican-controlled budget panel was expected to approve the $110,000 annual grant on Wednesday. The vote was scheduled a week after a Republican-led suicide prevention task force recommended releasing the money.
The funding had been approved as part of the state budget signed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in July. But Republicans who control the budget committee refused to make it available for the Hopeline suicide prevention hotline until after the task force released its recommendations.
Democrats pushed unsuccessfully for the funding to be available sooner.
The hotline is run by the nonprofit Center for Suicide Awareness based in Kaukauna. It provides immediate help to people in crisis by sending text messages.
