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Joint Finance moves some federal education funds to schools that held in person classes

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Republican members of the state’s Joint Finance Committee have reallocated some federal school funding to prioritize school districts who were open for in person classes this year.

Co-Chair Senator Howard Marklein says schools ought to be rewarded for bringing kids back to school buildings. 

“The motion before us today provides an incentive to those districts that have been doing the right thing and by offering in-person instruction. It also provides an incentive for those schools that are not currently open to in-person instruction.”

But Democrat Senator Jon Erpenbach says that Republicans are being punitive for school districts that had to make a tough choice to move to remote learning.

“Teachers adapted quickly. Administrators adapted quickly. Parents adapted quickly, and the kids adapted quickly. They shouldn’t be punished for that. Individual school districts, through their boards, their elected boards, made their own decisions based on what their community as a whole wanted. They shouldn’t be punished for that.”

The move redirects around $66 million dollars in funding from the program. Another 615 million dollars is directly awarded by the federal government and cannot be moved. 

Evers adds funding for early education, long term care to proposed state budget

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Governor Tony Evers is previewing parts of his proposed state budget, including a new series of grants for those who are caring for their children and loved ones during the pandemic.

The programs will offer up 140 million dollars in total for early childhood programs, and 600 million dollars for long term care programs and those who are stay at home caregivers.

Evers says investing in childcare and the elderly is a moral issue, and not just an economic one and that the pandemic has shown just how frayed the social net in Wisconsin is. Evers is set to announce the full budget proposal next week.

Marklein opposed to cannabis legalization as part of budget

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Sen. Howard Marklein

Does Governor Tony Evers plan to legalize marijuana in Wisconsin have a chance to survive the budget process?

“If you want the short answer, no. I don’t believe it has a chance,” said state Senator Howard Marklein. He co-chairs the legislature’s Joint Finance committee, which will work on the budget Evers proposes next week.

“Marijuana I believe is a gateway drug,” Marklein said. “Not every person that uses marijuana ends up being an addict, but I can tell you every addict probably started with marijuana.”

The Spring Green Republican also said that legalization will increase pressure on law enforcement and social services.

“I certainly don’t think that kind of a topic should be in as part of the budget, this session anyway.”

According to Evers, legalized pot would generate about $165 million in annual revenues for the state. He wants much of that to go to local communities, and small, rural school districts.

 

 

 

GOP-authored COVID-19 relief package passes Senate, is immediately vetoed by Governor Evers

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A Republican-authored COVID-19 relief package has ended a month-long trip through the Legislature with the Governor’s veto.

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu urged Governor Evers to sign the legislation after it passed the Senate on Friday. 

“The governor needs to sign this bill. This bill is vitally important for the state of Wisconsin. Do you know why the governor needs to sign this bill? There are many important extensions of Act 185, very many important extensions.”

LeMahieu says that they wanted to protect businesses who were doing the right thing. 

“I wouldn’t let local Health departments unilaterally shut down a Main Street business that’s trying to operate, that’s had a year now to put CDC guidelines in place and operate safely. We shouldn’t have local Health Departments just shutting down a business.”

But Senator Jon Erpenbach said that Senate Republicans strayed away from the compromise they’d made with the Governor earlier this year. 

“So at the end of the day, Mr. President, we’re left with nothing. A big fat zero of doing anything to try and help out not only Wisconsinites but Wisconsin businesses, help them get open, help schools get open, anything.”

Erpenbach says that Republicans have stapled policy choices onto the bill that go far beyond supporting the people of Wisconsin during the pandemic.

“And now we’re taking this legislation and basically saying that the governor can’t order a mask mandate, even though I already has, but he can order an emergency order just to collect money. That’s not going to keep Wisconsinites safe, Mr. President, and I think we all know that!”

Immediately after the bill passed on Friday, Governor Evers announced a veto.

Alongside some extensions of the previous relief package, the bill would have stripped more powers away from the Governor’s desk including control over where federal relief funding is spent. It would have also restricted Governor Evers from issuing any more mask orders. 

Evers and Senate Republicans originally reached a compromise on the package, but Assembly Speaker Robin Vos balked at that, and accused the Governor of not negotiating fairly with the entire Legislature. 

State Assembly passes resolution to end Governor Evers mask mandate

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Assembly Republicans have voted in favor of ending Governor Tony Evers mask order and health emergency.

That resolution will go into effect on Friday. The removal of the health emergency will mean Wisconsin is no longer eligible for 50 million dollars a month in food stamp funding.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says this isn’t about masks, though, it’s about executive overreach. “What we’ve seen, unfortunately, is that rather than working with the legislature Governor Evers has done everything he can to work around us.”

Vos says plans are on the table to allow for a more limited mask order. “Some of those places would be hospitals, public schools, state government buildings, universities, nursing homes, those are areas that we should be able to have a broad general consensus around.”

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz says Vos and Republicans haven’t done a thing to make the state safer from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

“You know, on September 16th, at a Wispolitics event, [Vos] said that ‘The world is beginning to return to normal, and is doing so safely.’ Well, since then more than 4,500 people in our state have died.”

Beloit Democrat Mark Spritzer says that nothing that’s happening on Thursday or Friday will in any way protect Wisconsin from losing food stamp funding. 

“They’re playing chicken with the governor, they’re playing chicken with us, and they are doing it at the expense of food on people’s tables.”

Republicans have added a limited emergency order provision to their COVID-19 relief plan, but to get that Governor Evers would also have to sign away other powers, including control over how the state handles COVID-19 funding from the federal government. 

State Senate sends GOP COVID-19 bill back to Assembly, with new health order provision

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The State Senate is sending the GOP backed COVID-19 relief package back to the Assembly, with a new rider.

The bill will allow Governor Evers to issue public health emergencies solely for the purpose of receiving federal relief funding. The addition was made after it was discovered that ending the Governor’s health emergency order would cut Wisconsin off from nearly 50 million dollars a month in food aid. 

Minority Leader Janet Bewley says Republicans aren’t doing anything to actually help people through these bills. 

“This is insulting to the people of Wisconsin, to make them think that all these good things are going to happen. It’s not. We can do so much better, we did so much better, we were capable of it and we still are.”

Senator Steve Nass says the new rider will allow the state GOP to end the current health emergency and mask mandate without jeopardizing those funds, while still ending the Governor’s restrictions on businesses and the mask mandate. 

Governor Evers sets date for special session on unemployment system

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A date has been set for a special session of the state Legislature to discuss the state’s unemployment program.

Governor Tony Evers signed an executive order on Wednesday setting that special session for January 19th.

Evers made the announcement about that session during his State of the State Address on Tuesday night. In it, he said that he understands that revamping the outdated and aging system will take years, and that’s why it’s got to be done as soon as possible.

It’s unclear if Republicans will take up the session, or just gavel out like they have with the last several special sessions.

There’s already pushback from some members of the Legislature. Senator Howard Marklein says the governor has, and has had for months, all the money and authority he needs to fix problems at the Department of Workforce Development.

Governor Evers calls for fair maps, more broadband funding, and DWD overhaul in State of the State address

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Governor Tony Evers laid out his roadmap for 2021 at Tuesday night’s State of the State Address.

Evers took little time in laying out tall goals for 2021. Evers says he’ll be calling for a special session of the Legislature to overhaul and rebuild the state’s unemployment system.

“We know that replacing the system will take years. That’s why it should have been done sooner. But it’s also why we don’t have another moment to waste.”

Republicans have been decrying the backlog of unemployment claims that were generated by outdated systems and processes at D W D, and Evers wants them to get together and fix the issue.

Evers says that the massive push for increased internet access showed the vast digital divide across parts of Wisconsin, and that he’ll be stepping up the funding for broadband expansion to $200 million in his next budget.

“This pandemic has shown us first-hand that lack of access to high-speed internet continues to be a setback for kids, families, and businesses across our state.”

Governor Evers says that a fair and open redistricting process will be vital to the state in 2021. Evers says that the last time maps were drawn in the state, Republicans did so in secret with the help of attorneys, and that no one got to provide any input. 

“I’m announcing that my biennial budget is going to make sure that the legislature draws our maps in the light of day, in the public eye, and with public input by requiring public meetings for map drawing process.”

Many of the records for those strategy sessions were never released, and Evers says he doesn’t want to see a repeat of that process. “Because the people of our state deserve to know how these maps are drawn and by whom.”

Evers thanked the people of Wisconsin for their strength and perseverance through the pandemic and what was a tough year, and alled for continued unity among the people of the state.

State Senate moving quickly on COVID-19 package

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The Wisconsin state Senate is poised to amend a coronavirus relief package passed by the state Assembly last week.

On WISN‘s “UpFront” Sunday, Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the goal is to get something Governor Tony Evers will support.

“What we’re looking to do in the Senate is find a bill — and this was our goal all along — was to find a bill that the governor will get that bill done for the state of Wisconsin.,” LeMahieu said.

A Senate committee scheduled a hearing Monday, with the goal of amending the Senate bill before the full Senate takes it up on Tuesday.

Governor Evers sends new compromise COVID-19 bill to GOP leaders, calls for a vote this year

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Governor Tony Evers has sent Legislative Republicans plans for another COVID-19 relief bill, and wants them to vote on it before the end of the year. 

Evers is calling the bill a representation of compromises that both sides can agree on. The Governor would have liked to see more support for eviction moratoriums and help for people looking for work, but says that action needs to be taken now.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos owns several rental properties, and has expressed his opposition to any moratoriums.

It is unlikely that a vote will happen, as incoming Senate President Devin LeMaheiu says he doesn’t plan on calling a lame duck session this year.