Agency Briefings for the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) began this week. On April 6th, the Department of Public Instruction and the Department of Workforce Development held their briefings; on April 7th, the Department of Natural Resources and the Public Service Commission held theirs.  Over the course of these two days, department heads and their staff discussed their portions of the budget with JFC. 

Each agency briefing follows this basic format:

1.) The secretary or department head provides a brief summary of what their agency does and will go over their major budget appropriations.

2.) Committee members ask the secretary and their staff numerous questions on specific programs and funding requests. Each committee member is allotted a certain amount of time or number of questions per agency. 

Below, I will briefly discuss some of the requests made from the agencies mentioned above. As there are always changes to the proposed budget, agencies rarely are ever granted their full wish-list. 

Department of Public Instruction

• Increased Special Education Funding 
• Mental Health & Student Wellness Aid 
• Transportation Aid for Students 
• Increased School Breakfast Reimbursement
• Energy Efficiency Grants  
• Computer Science Education Grants 
• Public Library System Aid 
• Driver Education Aid 

Department of Workforce Development

• Unemployment Insurance Modernization
• Pandemic Recovery Grants for Local Workforce Boards 
• Wisconsin Fast Forward Green Job Training 
• Apprenticeship Expansion 
• Investigation and Enforcement of Worker Classification  
• Family and Medical Leave

Department of Natural Resources 

• PFAS Action Plan
• Stewardship Reauthorization 
• Trail Maintenance 
• Increase Deer Carcass Disposal Sites
• Urban Forestry Grant Program 
• Well Compensation 
• E-Cycle Grants 
• Proposed Ban on Coal-Tar Based Sealants

Public Service Commission 

• Major Expansion of Broadband
• Energy Program Expansion 
• Internet Assistance Program 
• Electric Vehicle Charging Stations 
• Water Assistance Program 
• Civil Penalties for Gas Pipeline Safety

Stay tuned for more updates on the other agency briefings! 

Until next time,

Steve