The Wisconsin State Assembly voted on the state budget yesterday, wrapping up around 10:20pm. After nearly 10 hours of debate, the Assembly passed the budget 60 to 39. The Joint Committee on Finance was presented with a budget from Governor Evers which included increased funding for education, healthcare, and transportation. Our town roads, highways, and bridges need work, our school districts need more resources, and our healthcare costs are too high. I felt the budget proposed by the Joint Committee on Finance was a partisan blue print and didn't provide the funding necessary to truly move Wisconsin forward, so I voted against the budget.
It's always been a philosophy of mine that bipartisanship is key to a successful government. That's why ever since my election I continue to bring a sense of bipartisanship every time I go to Madison. No party has a monopoly of good ideas and it's important to be open to compromise when discussing issues Wisconsinites care about.
However, I thought we could have done a better job in compromising and delivering a budget that wasn't a shortfall, but rather a mutual agreement between the people of Wisconsin and lawmakers here in Madison. Below I discussed some of the key budget provisions which passed in the Assembly:
K-12 Education
Governor Evers' proposed budget called for a $1.4 billion investment in public education. Of that $1.4 billion, $604 million would have gone to special education costs, which is presently eating up many portion's of each school districts remaining budget. However, the Assembly passed an investment of $500 million, with $97 million going to special education funding; two thirds of the Governor's proposal for education. Unfortunately, this will mean more school district referendums which will increase local property taxes.
La Crosse County lost nearly $11 million in special education funding with the passage of this budget compared to the Governor's budget. Below I listed the amount of funding lost for each district in our area:
La Crosse- $4,957,117
West Salem - $841,969
Bangor - $258,605
Holmen - $2,822,259
Melrose-Mindoro - $365,259
Onalaska - $1,573,616
UW-System Colleges
Governor Evers' proposed $127 million for our Universities, but $57.7 million of that was passed. The budget did not provide funding to: Nurse Educators, UW Extension Cooperative County Agriculture Agents, Environmental Education Grants, Physician and Dentist Assistance Program; a combined program total of over $19 million.
Wisconsin Technical College System
Evers' budget called for a $36 million investment in our technical colleges, but $25 million of that was passed. 94% of tech graduates stay in Wisconsin to work, so it's important we provide an adequate amount of funding to ensure a steady stream of future workers.
Technical colleges, along with our universities are at the front line for training workers for jobs that require diverse skill sets to keep up with the changing economy. Strong public education is the start of a trained work force, ensuring everyone is contributing to a growing economy. Because of that, I believe we should have invested more to keep up with the high demand of skilled jobs in Wisconsin.
Healthcare: Medicaid Expansion
As you know, Medicaid Expansion was stripped out of Evers' budget proposal during the first executive session held by the Joint Committee on Finance. It would have allowed our state to bring in $1.6 billion in federal funding for our healthcare system. Currently, 1.1 million Wisconsinites rely on Medicaid for high-quality care. It would have provided healthcare to 82,000 additional low-wage earning Wisconsinites while saving our state $324 million.
A recent Department of Revenue analysis shows that Wisconsin tax payers will be subsidizing other states' welfare programs in the amount of $1 billion as a result of this budget rather than keeping that money in Wisconsin to help low-income residents. It is important to note that these federal dollars will be spent whether expansion happens in our state or not. It makes no sense to spend our dollars in other state's while we have working poor families in Wisconsin desperately in need of health insurance.
When we combine state, federal, and the Department of Health Service programs, Medicaid Expansion would have provided $2.6 billion in new funding. $53 million of that would have been invested into La Crosse County, which is why I believe we should have accepted the expansion.
Investments in La Crosse County
$11.7 million in Expanding Medicaid to 1,365 county residents
$15 million in increased hospital funding
$17.5 million for continuing to provide coverage to current Medicaid, BadgerCare Plus, SeniorCare, and Foodshare Employment and Training program members, also ending the wait-list in the Children's Long-Term Support Waiver Program.
$1.1 million in increase funding for physicians
$1.7 million for new community health programs and postpartum coverage for new mothers.
$760,000 for increasing payments to dental providers, including those who serve disabled populations.
$2.1 million to prevent childhood lead poisoning
$937,000 for expanding access to behavioral health services
Transportation
Every Wisconsinite knows our roads are taking a serious beating. Projects are being delayed due to lack of funding and our vehicles are paying the price. Part of the transportation budget passed was an increase in vehicle title fees by $95 and registration fees by $10.
A total of $484 million was approved to fund our transportation infrastructure over the biennium. This was a shortfall for many reasons. The biggest shortfall is being funded by increasing costs solely on Wisconsin residents giving out of state drivers a free ride. I have heard from many of my constituents on the frustration regarding our roads and the current proposal which was passed. I believe we could have came up with better, more sustainable way to fix our roads here in Wisconsin.
The Budget Going Forward
With the passage of the budget through the Assembly, it's now going to be waiting outside the Senate Chamber for a vote. If they end up liking the budget, they will ship it off to the Governor's desk. If they don't end up liking it, we will continue to ride out former Governor Walkers' budget until the current budget makes a few more friends. I will continue to send out budget updates as the voting process continues, so stay tuned!
Until next time,
Steve
| State Rep. Steve Doyle - PO BOX 8952, Madison 53708 |
