Under the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP), Democrats moved to adopt the governor’s proposals, including providing five positions to regulate CAFOs and increasing Wisconsin pollution discharge elimination system permit fees for CAFOs by over $300. However, the committee instead voted 12-4 along party lines to convert four vacant Department of Natural Resources […]
June 11 – JFC Takes Up CAFOs, Building Projects & More in Second-To-Last Exec
Date Thu, Jun. 13, 2019 - 3:19pm By Hamilton
June 6 – Senate & Assembly Reach Compromise on Transportation; Other JFC Votes Include PSC, OCI, DOJ
Date Thu, Jun. 13, 2019 - 3:18pm By Hamilton
The focus of the June 6 executive session was one of this session’s (and previous budgets’) most contentious issues: transportation. After deliberations between the Senate and Assembly Republican caucuses, JFC approved a $484 million transportation plan that increases fees but does not increase the gas tax, as proposed by Gov. Evers. The transportation motion, approved […]
June 4 – JFC Passes Medicaid Budget
Date Thu, Jun. 13, 2019 - 3:15pm By Hamilton
JFC passed an omnibus motion on the Department of Health Services (DHS) budget, specifically addressing Medicaid, public health, FoodShare, behavioral health, and quality assurance. Overall, the motion spends: $187 million (in all funds) less than the governor’s proposal in 2019-20. $1.6 billion (in all funds) more in 2019-20 compared to the base year doubled. As […]
Marketplace Providers Tax Bill Advances in Committees
Date Thu, Jun. 13, 2019 - 3:06pm By Hamilton
Legislation from Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (R-Oak Creek) and Sen. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield) is advancing in the Wisconsin Legislature that would make clarifications related to the collection of online sales taxes from out-of-state retailers. The bill comes after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2018 in South Dakota v. Wayfair that states may collect online sales tax […]
JFC Budget Votes Continue
Date Fri, May. 31, 2019 - 9:59am By Hamilton
The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) has continued to meet in executive sessions to vote on the 2019-21 state budget. Over the past two weeks, JFC has moved into some of the bigger budget items, including Tourism, Education, and Natural Resources. JFC plans to meet next Tuesday, June 4 but has not yet announced which agencies […]
May 28 – JFC Takes Up DNR, UW System, District Attorneys/Public Defenders
Date Fri, May. 31, 2019 - 9:59am By Hamilton
Sen. Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) rejoined the committee on May 28 after a medical absence over the past few weeks. With the full committee present again, JFC took up the district attorneys and public defenders, the University of Wisconsin System, and the Department of Natural Resources. Under District Attorneys and Public Defenders, Gov. Tony Evers […]
May 23 – JFC Passes Education Budget
Date Fri, May. 31, 2019 - 9:58am By Hamilton
The Joint Finance Committee took up the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) budget in their May 23 executive session. JFC Democrats presented an omnibus motion to adopt Gov. Evers’s DPI proposals. Because the motion included items already removed from the budget in JFC’s first executive session, JFC chair Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette) ruled the motion […]
May 21 – JFC Reworks Gov. Evers Tourism Budget, Approves State Employee Pay Raises
Date Fri, May. 31, 2019 - 9:57am By Hamilton
Under Tourism, JFC voted to add $1.5 million over the biennium in the JFC supplemental appropriation for general tourism marketing. The amount reflects adjustments for Midwest inflation and is an overall 42 percent increase of GPR Tourism Marketing dollars, however significantly less than the $5 million proposed by the governor. The Department of Tourism would […]
LFB Releases Updated Revenue Projections
Date Fri, May. 17, 2019 - 11:13am By Hamilton
As the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) continued budget votes this week, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) released updated revenue numbers projecting the state will collect $753 million more in general fund taxes than previously estimated. Overall, the new projections give the state $2.9 billion more to spend in the 2019-21 budget than in 2017-19. According […]
May 16 – JFC Votes on Property Taxes, Military Affairs, Workforce Development, Other Agencies
Date Fri, May. 17, 2019 - 11:07am By Hamilton
Under, Shared Revenue and Tax Relief — Property Taxation, Democrats moved to pass several of the governor’s recommendations to expand levy limits, including: Repealing levy limit adjustments for covered services. Current law requires that municipalities receiving new revenues from fees for services previously funded by taxes reduce their levies by the new fee revenues. Creating […]