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Legislative Update for Wisconsin Technical Colleges

May 20, 2019

 

Joint Finance Approves $25 million Increase

The Joint Finance Committee (JFC) held an executive session on Thursday, May 16, on the budget for the Wisconsin Technical College System, approving a historic $25 million increase in general aid for college operations. Prior to the vote, legislators from both parties pointed to the remarkable outcomes for graduates and employers that are produced by technical colleges across the state. Each college should be proud of their work to put student success first, the impact they have each day in their communities, and the fact that policymakers recognize the impressive return on investment state taxpayers receive from our colleges.

Joint Finance has taken votes on the following topics of interest to technical colleges:

• The Governor’s budget bill proposed increases of $6 million in 2019-20 and $12 million in 2020-21 for technical college general aid, equal to 6.8% in 2019-20 and 13.6% in 2020-21. JFC increased these amounts to $12.5 million in each year, an increase of 14.1% over the base year. Read more in the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) issue paper on WTCS.
• The Governor’s budget bill proposed increases of $1.1 million in 2019-20 and $2.4 million in 2020-21 for technical college need-based student financial aid, equal to a 5% annual increase. The bill likewise proposed 5% annual increases in need-based grants to UW students and to private college students. JFC deleted these provisions, and base-level funding will continue for all three sectors. Read more in the LFB paper on these grants.
• The Governor’s budget bill proposed increased flexibility under the revenue limit on WTCS property taxes. The proposed limit for technical colleges would be equal to the change in the district’s value attributable to net new construction, or 2%, whichever is greater. JFC removed this change for all local units of government, one of 131 budget changes approved during the first day of voting. The current law revenue limits continue to apply.

The District Boards Association thanks both Governor Evers and the Joint Finance Committee for investing with confidence in Wisconsin’s technical colleges.

Yet to be decided is the fate of the Governor’s proposed changes to dual enrollment programs for high school students. The bill would eliminate the Start College Now program (tech colleges) and the Early College Credit program (UW and private colleges), replacing both with new “Dual Enrollment Programs.” The change would represent a step backwards, having the unintended effect of reducing opportunities available to high school students overall, and threatening the financial sustainability of dual enrollment at technical colleges specifically. The array of dual enrollment opportunities currently offered by technical colleges reach more than 48,000 students annually, providing over 190,000 college credits to high school students, with 85% of those credits offered tuition-free. The DBA has advocated that any proposed dual enrollment changes should be heard in the context of the standing committee process, where public testimony and additional background information can be carefully considered. JFC will take up this item on Thursday, May 23, when they vote on the LFB paper.

Please note that, in addition to the massive budget legislation, a number of stand-alone bills of interest to technical colleges are also being considered by the Legislature, including:

• AB-13/SB-17 – Workforce training grants micro-credentials in high-demand fields
• AB-23/SB-16 – Career and technical education incentive grants
• AB-36/SB-44 – Tools of the Trade apprentice scholarships
• AB-57/SB-88 – Youth apprenticeship
• AB-76/SB-103 – Hours of instruction for CNAs
• AB-189/SB-165 – Transferability of courses between WTCS, the UW System, private and tribally controlled colleges

The DBA continues to work actively on behalf of improved transferability of courses and programs, with the overall goal of reducing credit loss for WTCS students who transfer into the UW System. For more information on these efforts, please contact Layla Merrifield.