Unfunded Mandates

Transcript: 

Hi folks, I’m State Senator Jeff Smith. Today on the floor of the Senate, we’re debating several bills that, on paper, sound like great ideas. Bills that enhance safety for schools, bolster emergency services, and create more efficient public systems. Who could argue with those things?

But if you take a closer look… past the headlines and the talking points… you’ll notice something important is missing: money.

This is what we call unfunded mandates. They’re bills that add responsibilities to our teachers, our law enforcement, our EMS providers, and our courts—but don’t come with a dime to support the added work. That’s not responsible governing. That’s called smoke and mirrors.

The Chippewa Valley is still waiting for the Republicans to release the $15 million hospital closure money. So you can imagine my skepticism when the author of these bills says they will be funded later in the budget. The same thing happened with literacy funding for kids and for PFAS clean up in our drinking water. 

So in the spirit of bipartisanship, I authored friendly amendments to add the funding into the bills so we can get the job done for Wisconsin. 

These are good ideas. But they’re empty promises if we don’t back them up with the resources to make them real.

It’s easy to pass bills that look good in a press release. But it’s much harder—and more important—to make sure they actually work. That takes funding. That takes commitment. And that takes honesty with the public.

If legislators are not willing to do their job, they are not required to be here.  If they truly believe in these policies, we should be willing to pay for them—and give our public servants the tools they need to succeed.

Thanks for staying engaged. This is Senator Jeff Smith Signing off.