Many of Governor Tony Evers’ budget proposals will be on the chopping block Tuesday (May 2) as the GOP-controlled, budget-writing Joint Finance Committee (JFC) takes its first votes on the budget.
In a memo to committee members released on Friday (April 28), JFC Co-chairs, Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) and Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) outlined the process the Committee will follow in reviewing the 2023-25 state budget.
The Co-Chairs’ memo also stated their intention to draft a motion to remove a list of 545 of Evers’ proposals from further budget consideration. The full list of items was contained in the memo.
The meeting notice for Tuesday’s (May 2) executive (voting) session was also released Friday (April 28). That notice included the draft motion and list of items to be removed. (See page 2 of the notice.)
The list of items slated for removal that are related to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is provided below.
Interestingly, the governor’s recommendation to provide $10 million per year for early literacy and reading improvement is not on the list of items slated for removal. That item can be found at page 493 of the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) summary document. It is item #6.
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION (page numbers refer to the LFB summary document, which you can access here)
General School Aids and Revenue Limits
- Four-Year-Old Kindergarten Membership (Page 486, #6) Page 16 Categorical Aids
- Aid for Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems (Page 487, #3)
- Aid for School-Based Mental Health Professional Staff (Page 488, #4)
- Peer to Peer Suicide Prevention Grants (Page 489, #5)
- Supplemental Nutrition Aid (Page 489, #6)
- Locally-Sourced Food Incentive Payments (Page 490, #8)
- Grants for Milk Coolers and Dispensers (Page 490, #9)
- Aid for English Language Acquisition (Page 491, #11)
- Per Pupil Aid — Clarify Current Law (Page 492, #13)
- Grants for Out-of-School-Time Programs (Page 492, #14)
- Computer Science Education Grants (Page 494, #16)
- Milwaukee Mathematics Partnership (Page 494, #17) • Grow Your Own Educator Programs (Page 494, #18)
- Personal Financial Literacy (Page 495, #19)
- Grants to Replace Certain Race-Based Nicknames, Logos, Mascots, and Team Names (Page 497, #24)
Choice, Charter, and Open Enrollment
- Private School Choice Programs and Special Needs Scholarship Program — Cap Participation at 2023-24 Levels (Page 500, #3)
- Private School Choice and Special Needs Scholarship Programs — Teacher Licensure Requirement (Page 501, #4)
- Private School Choice and Special Needs Scholarship Programs — Information Required on Property Tax Bill (Page 502, #5)
- Special Needs Scholarship Program — Delete Actual Cost Reimbursement Provision (Page 503, #7)
- Special Needs Scholarship Program — Private School Accreditation (Page 504, #8)
- Special Needs Scholarship Program — Religious Activity Opt-Out (Page 504, #9)
- Choice, Charter, and Open Enrollment Payment Indexing Mechanism (Page 505, #11)
- Open Enrollment Aid Transfer Amount — Special Education (Page 506, #12)
- Independent Charter Schools — Driver Education Program Fees (Page 506, #13)
School District Operations and Curriculum
- Computer Science Course Required in Curriculum (Page 507, #1)
- Prohibit Vaping on School Property (Page 507, #2)
- Opioid Antagonist Availability in Schools (Page 507, #3)
Administrative and Other Funding
- Delete Lapse of Teacher Licensing Fees (Page 508, #4)
- Stipend Programs for Future Educators, Librarians, and Cooperating Teachers (Page 509, #5)
- Staff Support for State Programs (Page 509, #7)
- General Education Development Test Fee Payments (Page 510, #9)
- Wisconsin Seal of Biliteracy (Page 511, #10)
- Agency Supplies and Services Funding Increase (Page 511, #11)
- Equity Officer Position (Page 511, #12)
- Graduation Alliance (Page 511, #13) Page 17
- Adult Literacy Grants (Page 512, #15)
- Mentor Greater Milwaukee (Page 512, #18)
- Bullying Prevention Grants (Page 514, #24)
- Health Problems Education Program (Page 514, #25)
