Detailed state budget update

June 26, 2009

Thursday, June 26, the state budget conference committee voted 4-2 along party lines to approve a report reconciling the differences between the Senate and Assembly versions of the 2009-11 state budget.  Soon after midnight, the Senate voted 17-15 to approve the unamendable conference committee report.  Sen. Jim Sullivan (D-Wauwatosa) was the lone Democrat to join the 14 Senate Republicans in voting against the budget proposal.

The conference committee package includes the following changes to the budget plan approved by the Joint Finance Committee in late May:

• Repeals the Qualified Economic Offer effective July 1, 2009. Eliminates a provision prohibiting arbitrators from giving weight to accumulated fund balances and denying access to these funds to pay for school district employees' salaries if an arbitrator rules in favor of the union. Essentially the conference committee adopted the changes originally proposed by the Governor and supported by WEAC.
• Ensures no school district loses more than 10% <http://www.thewheelerreport.com/releases/June09/june25/0625LFBschoolaids.pdf>  in general school aid as a result of the $147 million base funding reduction to general school aids.
• Restores the prior-year base revenue hold harmless under revenue limits.
• Sets the low-revenue ceiling at $9,800 beginning in 2011-2012 and thereafter.
• Increases aid to consolidated school districts.
• Provides $11.4 million in sparsity aid.
• Restores $1.5 million in 2010-2011 for four-year-old kindergarten grants.
• Provides $60,000 in one-time grants to the Pepin Area, Cochrane-Fountain City and Plum City school districts.
• Eliminates a proposed bilingual-bicultural education program requirement for the Milwaukee private school voucher program.
• Provides that independent Milwaukee and Racine charter schools (2r charters), beginning with the 2011-12 school year, receive a per pupil payment adjusted by the per pupil adjustment allowable under revenue limits. Caps the proportional reduction for general school aids for all school districts at the 2010-11. Beginning in 2011-12 and in future years, expenditures for the program above the 2010-11 reduction amount would be funded from the general fund, rather than as a first draw on general school aids.
• Holds harmless school districts that have net pupil transfers out of the district under the open enrollment program of more than 10% of their pupil membership.
• Specifies that for 2009-10, no school district that is located in Milwaukee County may receive more in state aid under the open enrollment program as a result of accepting pupils who reside in MPS than it did in 2008-09.
• Provides for a nonresident tuition exemption for certain undocumented persons who enroll in a UW System institution or a Wisconsin technical college.
• Requires vacant unit supervisor positions within the Department of Corrections, Division of Adult Institutions, to be reclassified as teacher positions.
  

The provisions referenced above are in addition to the following proposals previously approved by the Joint Finance Committee:

 Removal of the requirement that arbitrators give "greatest weight" to revenue controls and "greater weight" to local economic conditions when resolving contract settlement disputes between school districts and labor union representing school district employees.
 Allowance of contract terms up to four years and combining two or more school district bargaining units when they so choose (Teacher/ESP units and across districts).
 Increased investments in technical colleges and financial aid for technical college students.
 Fair treatment of education support professionals under the Wisconsin Retirement System.
 Milwaukee private school voucher accountability measures.
 Revenue cap relief for energy efficiency measures beginning in the 2009-10 school year and for school safety costs, school nursing costs and higher than average transportation costs beginning in the 2011-12 school year.

The conference committee proposal now heads to the Assembly for a vote expected late today before being sent to Governor Doyle for his consideration.  The threat of a loss in federal funding has placed pressure to enact the budget prior to a July 1 deadline.

Legislative Fiscal Bureau Summary of Assembly/Senate/Conference Committee <http://www.legis.state.wi.us/lfb/2009-11Budget/2009_06_25Conf%20Comm.pdf>

Look to Connecting Leaders and Staff <https://www.weacm.org/blogConnections/index.cfm>  blog, and weac.org <http://www.weac.org>  for budget updates.