February 26, 2024 - Introduced by Senators Wanggaard and L. Johnson, cosponsored by Representatives Haywood and Drake. Referred to Committee on Senate Organization.
SJR131,,22Relating to: honoring the service of former Wisconsin State Senator Lena C. Taylor. SJR131,,33Whereas, Lena C. Taylor, a distinguished public servant, was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly in a special election in 2003 and the state senate in 2004, where she served until 2024 before being appointed as a Wisconsin circuit court judge for Milwaukee County; and SJR131,,44Whereas, Lena C. Taylor is a graduate of Rufus King High School and the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, where she became a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority; and SJR131,,55Whereas, Senator Taylor earned her juris doctor from Southern Illinois University School of Law in 1993; and SJR131,,66Whereas, Lena C. Taylor, after graduating from law school, worked as a public defender representing low-income and underrepresented citizens in Milwaukee and ultimately opened a general practice firm on the north side of Milwaukee, Taylor and Associates Law Office, in 1996; and SJR131,,77Whereas, in 2004, Lena C. Taylor succeeded Congresswoman Gwen Moore in Wisconsin’s 4th Senate District; and SJR131,,88Whereas, Senator Taylor served several terms on the Joint Committee on Finance, including one term as cochair, becoming the first Black woman to hold the position; and SJR131,,99Whereas, Senator Taylor also served as the chair of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Corrections in the 2007-08 legislative session, where she worked tirelessly for state criminal justice reform; and SJR131,,1010Whereas, Senator Taylor also served on other senate standing committees during her time in the legislature, including Agriculture, Small Business, and Tourism; Judiciary and Public Safety; Utilities and Housing; Insurance, Financial Services, Government Oversight, and Courts; and Insurance, Licensing, and Forestry; and SJR131,,1111Whereas, Senator Taylor served on multiple joint legislative committees, such as Joint Legislative Council, the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties, the Law Revision Committee, the Joint Survey Committee on Tax Exemptions, and the Special Committee on State-Tribal Relations; and SJR131,,1212Whereas, Senator Taylor was also a part of several study committees, serving as the vice-chair of the Study Committee on Child Placement and Support and the Study Committee on the Investment and Use of School Trust Funds and as a member of the Study Committee on Increasing Offender Employment Opportunities; and SJR131,,1313Whereas, Lena C. Taylor is known by her colleagues for working with both Democrats and Republicans to pass important legislation to improve the lives of members of her community and constituency; and SJR131,,1414Whereas, Senator Taylor has worked tirelessly to give a voice to the Black community and is a member of many groups seeking to improve the lives of Black Americans, such as the National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women, the National Black Caucus of State Legislators, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; now, therefore, be it SJR131,,1515Resolved by the senate, the assembly concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin State Legislature extend their gratitude to Judge Lena C. Taylor for her work promoting the values of inclusivity, social justice, and civil rights that she championed throughout her remarkable career and wish her continued success in her new role as Wisconsin circuit court judge.
