Letter to the Hon. Donald J. Trump, President of the United States - Senator Baldwin and Representatives Kind, Moore, and Pocan Call on President Trump to Extend Federal Funding for Wisconsin National Guard in Fight Against COVID-19 Pandemic

Letter

We write today to request an extension of 502(f)(2)(A) of Title 32, U.S. Code, funding for the Wisconsin National Guard in support of the fight against COVID-19 through at least July 31, 2020, with the possibility of an extension through the end of the year. An extension of this funding is critical to ensuring the safety and health of our citizens, as well as advancing efforts to reopen our state.

The work of the Wisconsin National Guard has significantly advanced our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hundreds of National Guard servicemembers have provided invaluable logistics support and are fully integrated in the Wisconsin State Emergency Operations Center. The Wisconsin National Guard is supporting taskforces working to assist local communities with creating isolation facilities and hospital surge capacity, including staffing an alternative care facility in Milwaukee. Most importantly the Guard is operating 25 field testing teams working throughout the state to provide both community and targeted testing. All of these efforts are essential to mitigating the impact of COVID- 19 on Wisconsinites, and the need for this support is expected to persist through the end of the year. We share the Governor's concern that prematurely ceasing federal funding for National Guard COVID-19 support operations will hinder Wisconsin's ability to respond and could contribute to a possible second wave of infection.

In order to safely reopen the state of Wisconsin, we must continue to respond to the public health challenge before us. The Wisconsin National Guard is vital to this effort. Therefore, we request that you extend the 502(f)(2)(A) funding authorization in order to allow the Wisconsin National Guard to continue supporting these mission critical tasks.

Thank you for your urgent consideration of this important matter.