The Joint Committee on Finance (JFC) met the past two weeks, on May 29 and June 5. Between the two meetings, we approved the budget for 17 agencies.

Our action on the budget so far has focused on helping government run smoothly and efficiently. We have made tweaks to our proven base budget, which was signed by the Governor. We added positions and increased funding where we believed it was necessary, and chose not to add positions and funding where we believed state agencies already have the tools at their disposal to be successful.

We made a massive investment in the Environmental Improvement Fund. This fund consists of two revolving loan programs: the Clean Water Fund and the Safe Drinking Water Program. These programs help communities design and construct new wastewater facilities and improve public drinking water systems. Over the past two years, $83 million of projects to provide clean water in the 17th Senate District were funded by the Environmental Improvement Fund, including $29 million in the Village of Oregon, and $10 million in the City of Lancaster.

Unfortunately, demand for this great program has outpaced supply. A number of municipalities applied for the program, but were not able to be funded. This includes projects in Muscoda and Hazel Green. That is why we voted to increase the bonding authority of this program by more than $732 million. Communities in the 17th Senate District have already submitted more than $300 million in applications for the next two years. By expanding capacity, we can help ensure more communities receive the support they need to provide clean water to their residents.

To make state government work more efficiently for taxpayers, we extended a handful of temporary positions in the call center of the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) to assist Wisconsinites who need help obtaining occupational licenses. These positions will ensure questions are answered in a timely matter to keep the license processing moving smoothly.

We also used one-time money to upgrade technology that is core to the functioning of many agencies. This includes one-time funding for the Department of Employee Trust Funds, which runs Wisconsin’s pension fund, to modernize their system. This will ensure our pension system continues to be one of the best in the nation. We also provided funding to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission to do necessary maintenance of the new Campaign Finance Information System (CFIS) website, which tracks state campaign finance reports.

Finally, we invested in the health and safety of Wisconsinites statewide. We made investments in the Medical College of Wisconsin to continue the Northwest Wisconsin residency rotation in Eau Claire and to expand the North Side Milwaukee Health Center’s medicine residency program. These investments help increase our capacity to train physicians in all corners of the state.

We also voted to continue the successful Youth Volunteer Firefighter Training program, which incentivizes volunteer fire departments to recruit high school and technical college students to assist local departments. This is an important program to continue as many of our local departments face low recruitment numbers.

In addition to these investments, we finalized work on more than a dozen other state agencies for consideration. These include the Board of Commissioners of Public Land, the Department of Financial Institutions, and the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.

As always, if you need assistance with any state-related matters, please call my team at the State Capitol – 608-266-0703 – or email me – Sen.Marklein@legis.wisconsin.gov. My team is ready and willing to help navigate your state government, clear obstacles, and receive your input.