Compiled by the League of Women Voters

PORTAGE COUNTY — The League of Women Voters of the Stevens Point Area is committed to providing voters with education about issues and candidates for local elections. On Nov. 8, voters in Portage County will choose from two candidates in the Wisconsin State Assembly District 71 Representative race – Katrina Shankland and Scott Soik. The league solicited responses to the following questions from both candidates.

Katrina Shankland

Share with us your educational background and work experience that make you the best candidate to represent the citizens of the 71st District in the Wisconsin State Assembly.

I was born and raised in Central Wisconsin and earned a Master of Science in Community and Organizational Leadership from UW-Stevens Point and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from UW-Madison. Previously, I worked to build solar training capacity in six states at the Midwest Renewable Energy Association in Custer. Since 2013, I have been grateful to serve the people of Portage County in the State Assembly. Every session I have represented you, I’ve passed bipartisan legislation into law. Both Democratic and Republican governors have signed my bills into law, from strengthening public safety and investing in our workforce to expanding access to rural healthcare and supporting farmers with conservation practices. I am constantly present in the community at events and meetings and work hard to be a strong voice for everyone in our community. I take a thoughtful approach to solve problems and get results for Portage County.

A majority of Wisconsin citizens are in favor of some form of increased gun safety. Are you in favor of gun reform legislation in our state, and what kinds of specific laws would you support?

Wisconsin has a proud sporting heritage, and I will always defend our constitutional right to hunt, fish, trap, and take game. As a hunter myself, I understand the importance of gun safety and ensuring that individuals who own and use firearms are appropriately trained and store their guns safely. I support legislation to keep firearms out of the hands of domestic abusers and violent criminals. I have cosponsored bipartisan legislation to crack down on straw purchasing and close the domestic violence loophole.

As a state representative do you support a woman’s right to an abortion? Please explain why or why not, and under what circumstances.

As a co-author of legislation to repeal Wisconsin’s criminal abortion ban from 1849, I strongly support reproductive freedom. Private medical decisions should be between a woman, her family, her faith, and her doctor – not politicians. My opponent, however, filled out an IVoterGuide survey in 2020 and said, quote, “I do not believe in abortion at any time.” In 2022, he received a full endorsement from an organization that supports our state’s criminal abortion ban. He told them he does not believe in any exceptions—not for victims of rape and incest or even to save a mother’s life. This level of extremism is out of line with Portage County values. The majority of people in Wisconsin support access to reproductive healthcare. I am focused on strengthening access to healthcare and have introduced bipartisan legislation to allow people to access 12 months of birth control at one time.

A recent study has found that one in four wells in Portage County contain nitrate contamination over the limit of 10 parts per million. How would you work with agricultural community to propose and enact legislation that would safeguard clean drinking water in our state?

Throughout my time in the Legislature, I’ve worked hard to bring people together to find real solutions to serious problems. Ensuring that Portage County residents have safe drinking water and empowering family farmers to thrive are two of my top priorities. I served as the Vice Chair of the Speaker’s Task Force on Water Quality, working across the aisle to hold 14 public hearings around the state with 15 senators and representatives. Together, we introduced ten bipartisan bills and passed the majority of the legislation into law this session, from funding the Freshwater Collaborative to grow our water workforce and invest in water quality research to supporting family farmers with conservation practices.

I’m most proud of having written Act 223, which creates a nitrogen optimization pilot program to help farmers reduce nitrogen loading and leaching, a preventative strategy to tackle the source of nitrate contamination. The new law also includes a cover crop insurance rebate program at $5/acre, which will improve soil health and protect water quality. Additionally, we authorized a Wisconsin State Hydrogeologist position to help local governments find and address hot spots of contamination in our drinking water.

I recently secured $10 million in funding for a new grant program that helps Wisconsin residents repair or replace their private wells and treat their contaminated drinking water. The grant program launched on October 3rd and will cover 100% of the costs up to $16,000 to replace or repair a contaminated private well or treat contaminated water. I am committed to passing my bipartisan legislation to open the state’s well compensation grant program further to ensure more people can access remediation and get clean water. Additionally, I introduced bipartisan legislation to help local governments establish and expand private well testing and monitoring programs.

Moving forward, I will continue working with farmers and Portage County residents to find water quality solutions that benefit everyone. Because of my bipartisan leadership on this issue, I have been endorsed by the Wisconsin Conservation Voters, Clean Wisconsin Action Fund, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, and the Dairy Business Association, underscoring how I bring people together to solve issues.

Do you support the drawing of legislative maps to eliminate the effects of gerrymandering in Wisconsin to ensure that each person’s vote has equal weight? What do you suggest is the best way to accomplish this?

Yes. Wisconsin is one of the most gerrymandered states in the nation. Partisan gerrymandering is harmful to our democracy, undermining voters’ voices and insulating politicians in rigged districts from accountability.

For every session I have served, I’ve coauthored legislation creating a nonpartisan redistricting commission to ensure that everyone’s vote matters equally. This legislation is based on the Iowa model, which has been successful for decades. We owe it to voters to immediately end partisan gerrymandering. After all, voters should choose their representatives, not the other way around.

State support for public education in Wisconsin has been declining over the years. Do you support using some of the state budget surplus in the next biennium to ensure that our public schools have the staff and funding they need to provide every student with a quality education?

I strongly support increasing public education funding, from ensuring we invest in mental health services, counselors, social workers, and nurses to enhancing funding for our state’s special education reimbursement rate. We also must provide our educators and staff with the support they need to help our students succeed. We can accomplish all of this while holding the line on property taxes.

Given the state’s record surplus, we should invest in our kids’ education through a stronger commitment from the state to our public schools. Despite our state’s financial position being stronger than ever before, local municipalities and school districts are cutting budgets and going to referendum. I believe the state must send our record surplus back to the people by increasing the state’s share of public school funding and shared revenue to our local governments. This way, communities can properly fund vital services, including police, fire, EMS, and public schools, without requiring residents to vote to raise their own property taxes. Let’s invest in our kids and local services and take the burden off of property taxpayers with our record state surplus.

Scott Soik

Share with us your educational background and work experience that make you the best candidate to represent the citizens of the 71st District in the Wisconsin State Assembly?

I was born and raised in Stevens Point and have raised my family here. Serving in the US Marine Corps, running my own small business, and sitting on several local boards, including the Portage County Board have prepared me to represent Portage County in the State Legislature. My life has been focused on service. Service to my country, my community, and if the voters elect me – my state. As a small business owner, I know what it takes to run a business and pay the bills at the end of the month. I didn’t get a handout from the government – I built my business and have worked hard to make a living. I believe that the men and women who represent us in Madison should have real-life experience in order to truly understand the issues our state faces. I am ready to go fight for our Portage County values in the State Legislature.

A majority of Wisconsin citizens are in favor of some form of increased gun safety.  Are you in favor of gun reform legislation in our state, and what kinds of specific laws would you support?

We need to hold criminals accountable, not pass more laws for them to break. Time and again our current representative has gone soft-on-crime, blaming guns instead of the people behind them. Right now, Wisconsin has a crime problem, as rates of violent crime, murder, and aggravated assault are at their highest levels in 35 years. At the same time, we have the fewest officers on the street than at any time in the last decade. We need to back our law enforcement, hold criminals accountable, and enforce the laws we have on the books now.

As a state representative do you support a woman’s right to an abortion? Please explain why or why not, and under what circumstances.

I understand this is an issue that people feel strongly about, and there will be much debate and discussion when the Legislature reconvenes after the election. I am pro-life and believe in exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother.

However, we cannot allow the extremist abortion positions like those supported by Representative Shankland, such as allowing an abortion because the baby is the wrong gender, race, or has Down Syndrome and refusing to pass a law to protect a baby that is born alive during an attempted abortion.

A recent study has found that one in four wells in Portage County contain nitrate contamination over the limit of 10 parts per million. How would you work with agricultural community to propose and enact legislation that would safeguard clean drinking water in our state?

The first step to addressing water quality issues is making sure we have accurate data identifying the problems that exist. There is no one size fits all solution to water quality in Wisconsin; varying soil types, bedrock, and land use make this a difficult problem. I believe the state can work to compile data collected by local governments and individual homeowners to pinpoint any areas with contamination and notify residents if their well may be in need of remediation. The state can also work to educate homeowners about the importance of regular well testing and resources that exist if test results raise concerns.

As a member of the Portage County Board, I am currently working with the agricultural community to address this issue. The Legislature needs to support farmers in their efforts and ensure that there is funding available for them to explore new methods to work their land in order to protect groundwater. However, it is not just wells that we should be concerned about. The other issue is lead laterals in the City of Stevens Point that are affecting drinking water in homes. Lead laterals need to be replaced before our drinking water is truly safe. We all drink water and expect it to be safe for our families, so I am committed to continuing to work on this issue as long as necessary. 

Do you support the drawing of legislative maps to eliminate the effects of gerrymandering in Wisconsin to ensure that each person’s vote has equal weight?  What do you suggest is the best way to accomplish this?

Under current law, the Legislature is responsible for drawing legislative maps, as has been the law for generations. Both Republican and Democrat controlled Legislatures have drawn maps under this law. After decisions by the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the US Supreme Court, our maps have been deemed constitutional and will be in place for the next ten years.

State support for public education in Wisconsin has been declining over the years.  Do you support using some of the state budget surplus in the next biennium to ensure that our public schools have the staff and funding they need to provide every student with a quality education?

As a graduate of Stevens Point public schools and a parent of three Stevens Point public school students, I support public education and support funding it appropriately. Over the last two years, public schools in Wisconsin have received over $2 billion in federal funds to cover costs related to COVID. Last budget, the state invested $125 million into mental health, high cost transportation, and special education as well. This was the most money ever spent on public education in Wisconsin history and achieved 2/3 funding. Unfortunately, my opponent voted against these increases.