On Wednesday, June 2, the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee (JFC) held an executive session to consider various motions related to the 2021-23 state budget. Click here to visit our main budget recap article for more information on the overall budget process as well as each executive session held by JFC in 2021.

Below is a list of motions that JFC considered on June 2, including whether each motion was adopted and how the committee voted. The committee includes 12 Republican members and 4 Democrats; all 12-4 and 4-12 vote tallies were along party lines.

Adopted

• Motion 62: Department of Safety and Professional Services (12-4)
• Motion 68: Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (12-4)
• Motion 71: Department of Natural Resources (12-4)
• Motion 72: Department of Workforce Development (12-4)

Not adopted

• Motion 60: Department of Safety and Professional Services (4-12)
• Motion 63: Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (motion ruled out of order)
• Motion 64: Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (4-12)
• Motion 67: Department of Workforce Development (4-12)
• Motion 69: Environmental Improvement Fund (4-12)
• Motion 70: Department of Natural Resources (4-12)

Below are highlights from the motions approved by JFC:

Department of Workforce Development

• Provide additional funding for various vocational training and apprenticeship programs.
• Set aside $25,000 in JFC’s supplemental appropriation for the department to study the effects of adding a “sliding scale” to the state’s unemployment insurance system, a method used in some other states. Under such a system, the number of weeks that claimants are eligible for benefits would change based on the state’s unemployment rate.
• Motion 72 did not provide the department with money to update the system used to administer unemployment insurance benefits. The governor’s budget requested $15 million for this purpose.