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Guv Calls Special Session to Spend $550 Million on Education
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | July 26, 2021
From WisPolitics.com …
Assembly Republicans will try to override Gov. Tony Evers’ veto of legislation seeking to cut off enhanced federal unemployment benefits when the chamber convenes tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Evers wants lawmakers to approve $550 million for K-12 and higher ed while they’re in the Capitol, calling a special session tomorrow to coincide with the veto override attempt.
Assembly Org this afternoon circulated a ballot adding AB 336 to the extraordinary session used last month to take up the budget and several other bills.
The enhanced benefits of $300 a week are set to expire in early September. The Legislature isn’t scheduled to be in regular session again until Sept. 28.
As word spread on Friday that the Assembly planned to come in, speculation immediately turned to the enhanced unemployment benefits bill. Minority Leader Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, tweeted on Friday that Assembly Dems would uphold the veto.
Evers today signed an executive order calling on lawmakers to meet and take up a bill to increase education funding.
While the guv can call the special session, he can’t force lawmakers to act.
In a video announcing the special session, Evers said he was glad lawmakers aren’t “taking this summer off,” a dig over the Legislature not returning in 2020 after passing a bipartisan COVID-19 bill in April. He then accused Republicans of trying to play politics by seeking to override his vetoes.
“If Republicans have time to come into session just to try and override my vetoes, then they sure as heck have time to come into session and to do what’s best for our kids,” Evers said. “So If they’re going to come to Madison, then they have work to do.”
The offices of Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, didn’t immediately return requests for comment.
Evers’ call was accompanied by these proposals:
*$240 million for increasing per-pupil aid by $146 per student;
*$200 million for special education aids;
*$90 million for the UW System;
*$20 million for the Wisconsin Technical College System.
The overall price tag of $550 million matches the transfer to the rainy day fund that GOP lawmakers had proposed in the budget. Evers vetoed that.
GOP lawmakers originally put $128 million in state taxpayer dollars into K-12 education with $89.3 million in GPR for special education, including money for special education, and $22.3 million for the UW System, the Wisconsin Technical College System and the Higher Educational Aids Board.
After the Legislative Fiscal Bureau upped revenue projections by $4.4 billion, the Joint Finance Committee approved another $408 million into general school aids and $72 million into funding technical colleges. That money was added to drive down property taxes.
Watch the guv’s video here.
See Evers’ release here.
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