Budget committee releases $32 million to UW System for workforce initiatives

 

MADISON Wis (CBS 58) -- The final step in a broad deal between the Universities of Wisconsin and Republicans lawmakers has come to close after the GOP-controlled budget committee released funding to campuses.

Lawmakers on the Joint Finance Committee unanimously agreed to release $32 million, funding that was part of a controversial deal to curtail diversity programs on campus.

The UW System will use the funds to bolster the workforce by expanding programs in engineering, nursing, and health care.

"We challenged them to step up on the workforce, they brought us a plan and were accepting that today," said Rep. Mark Born, the Republican co-chair of the committee.

Republicans asked the UW to present a workforce plan to reclaim $32 million in cuts Republicans made in the 2023-2025 state budget in effort to curtail diversity, equity, and inclusion programs across all campuses.

That proposal was part of a deal Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) and UW President Jay Rothman agreed to in December. It included about $800 million for UW employee pay raises and a series of campus construction projects, such as a new engineering building on Madison's campus, in exchange for limiting DEI programs.

The funds were released eight months after lawmakers approved the funding. Democrats on the committee accused Republicans of holding the funding hostage.

"This money has been withheld for really no good reason," said Rep. Deb Andraca (D-Whitefish Bay). "We're playing politics with our university system."

This is not the first time Republicans have waited months to release state aid approved in the budget. Currently, $125 million is sitting in the committee that was earmarked to combat PFAS contaminants.

PFAS, known as forever-chemicals, persist in the environment and exposure to people can occur by consuming water or food.

It can be found in nonstick cookware, cleaning products, and groundwater. Studies have shown the chemicals have been linked to serious health problems, including low birth weight, cancer, and liver disease.

Many communities across the state including Madison, Wausau, and Green Bay are struggling with PFAS contaminants in their groundwater. While there's money in the state budget to address it, lawmakers have been unable to agree on how to spend it.

This week, Gov. Tony Evers called on lawmakers to release the funds and raised concerns it could go unspent for years if lawmakers are unable to find a compromise.