The Black River Falls City Council voted 5-2 at a special meeting Sept. 23 to place a special healthcare advisory referendum on the city ballot this November.

“Through a referendum, we do have the ability to show how many people are in favor of this,” council member Don Mathews said.

Council members Randy Eddy and Jay Eddy cast the dissenting votes. Alderman Dave Johnson was absent.

Earlier this month, Citizen Action of Wisconsin, along with local residents and coalition partners, turned in signatures to place the referendum on the Black River Falls November ballot. A total of 195 signatures were collected in the Black River Falls area. The group is collecting signatures to send a message to the state Legislature that the time has come to do something about affordable healthcare.

The city council had the option to either place the advisory referendum on the ballot or approve the content of the referendum. If the council would have opted to approve the content of the referendum, it would have bypassed voters and went straight to the state legislature.

Andrew Werthmann, western region coordinator for Citizen Action of Wisconsin, urged the council to place referendum on the ballot.

“Think of how vital it is for citizens to have a say in this,” he said. “A resolution is not the best way.”

Randy Eddy, though, asked why the city should consider the referendum at a local level if it is a state issue.

Werthmann told him the state of Wisconsin does not have the ability to collect signatures statewide, which is why it is done at a local level.

On the ballot, the referendum will state: “Shall the state Legislature enact healthcare reform legislation by Dec. 31, 2009, that guarantees to every Wisconsin resident affordable coverage as good as what is provided to state legislators.”