PROFS is pleased to cosponsor the WISCAPE 2017-19 biennial budget forum at noon, Wednesday, July 26 in Room 159 Education, 1000 Bascom Mall.
Jack O’Meara, PROFS Legislative Representative, will serve on the panel alongside Madison College Vice President of Institutional Learning Tim Casper, UW-Madison School of Education Professor Nicholas Hillman, and UW Colleges/Extension Chancellor Cathy Sandeen. More information is below.
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Nicholas Hillman
University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education professor Nicholas Hillman, an expert on higher education financing and state funding models, prepared the following recommendation for members of the Joint Committee on Finance as they consider an outcomes-based funding proposal in the 2017-19 state budget.
The committee is scheduled to discuss the University of Wisconsin System portion of the 2017-19 state budget at noon, Thursday, May 25. Livestream coverage is available on WisconsinEye.
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The following papers were prepared by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau in advance of the Joint Finance Committee executive session on the University of Wisconsin System portion of the 2017-19 biennial budget.
Each paper includes a summary of Governor Walker’s budget provision and discussion points, along with options for the committee to consider when voting on that particular budget item.
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The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee statewide public hearings on the 2017-19 budget proposal last month and began voting on individual items last week. PROFS is meeting with university and legislative leaders to discuss several items in the budget proposal:
State funding tied to performance measures The Board of Regents would rank all UW institutions and distribute funds based on:
UW Pay plan A pay plan tied to presumed savings from a switch to self-insurance (see below) for all state employees would be offered in 2018 and 2019.
Policy Items in the budget The co-chairs of the Joint Finance Committee said last month all policy items in the budget would be removed, but could be considered after being vetted in committee or as part of the committee’s omnibus motion. Several policy items dealt with the university:
Self-Insurance
The Group Insurance Board recommended a switch to self-insurance beginning in 2018, but the Joint Finance Committee must review the proposed changes before they go into effect. The committee received the formal recommendation to switch to self-insurance today and has 21 days to decide whether or not to reject the plan. The committee co-chairs and other members have publicly expressed concern over the plan in the past.
Video from the PROFS/ASPRO forum on self-insurance is here.
Campus Free Speech Legislation
Several legislators, including the chairs of the Legislature’s higher education committees, announced their plans to introduce legislation that would direct the Board of Regents to draft a free speech policy that encourages all points of view. Regents would also be required to create rules that discipline students who interfere with campus free speech. PROFS is concerned about the reach of these proposals and has begun working with UW free speech experts on a response to these proposals.
AB 299 (below), sponsored by Representative Jesse Kremer (R-Kewaskum) was introduced last week, and Senator Leah Vukmir (R-Brookfield) intends to introduce legislation (below) later this month.
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Speaking in his weekly radio address, Governor Scott Walker reiterated his intention to freeze UW System tuition for two more years and said he will tie any increases for UW System in the 2017-19 state budget to performance measures such as number of graduates and graduate employment rates.
A transcript of the address is here.
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