We’re in the beginning of the biennial session, which means state lawmakers are working on a new state budget into the summer months.
Sen. Howard Marklein co-chairs the Joint Finance Committee, which is in charge of reviewing and modifying the governor’s state budget proposal. The committee also reviews all bills that relate to taxes, revenue, or appropriating money. Senator Marklein says he is concerned about a few cases in the court that might slow down their work.
He gives us a quick update on the litigation:
Gov. Tony Evers proposed an $80 million DATCP budget that includes support for producer-led watershed groups. Marklein says he backs these farmer-led initiatives, but is unable to commit to a dollar amount at this time.
The Department of Public Instruction proposed $60 million in Career and Technical Education funding in the state budget. Agriculture and FFA fit into that category. Wisconsin is one of six states that doesn’t have ongoing funding for CTE. While Marklein did not commit to that dollar amount either, he says he does support the concept.
He notes that agriculture topics tend to receive bipartisan backing. Marklein says he’s been telling lobbyists to focus their time educating new lawmakers or urban lawmakers about the importance of farm program investments.
Marklein says the state budget deadline is June 30, but unlike the federal government, the state wouldn’t “shut down” if it gets past that date. The state would run on the previous budget until a new one is passed. However, he says lawmakers do like to get a budget done before the fall for tax reasons.
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