Lawmakers writing the state budget delayed a vote on the University of Wisconsin System, with Republican legislative leaders declining to explain why.
Committee co-chairs Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, and Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, wouldn’t elaborate on why the vote was pulled from the June 17 schedule.
The delay could stem from a simple lack of agreement on spending between the Assembly and Senate’s Republican caucuses, both of which will need to approve the budget committee’s proposal. Or it could be related to a specific concern, as was the case last session.
The GOP-controlled budget committee delayed the UW System vote in 2023 after the Legislature’s top Republican, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, suggested cutting funding for campus diversity offices and programming, which he sees as a waste of taxpayer money and source of division.
Ten days later, the committee voted to cut the UW System budget by $32 million, hold up pay raises for all UW employees and withhold approval of a widely supported engineering building for UW-Madison. These measures were restored months later after UW leaders agreed to transition some diversity employees to broader student success positions.
UW System President Jay Rothman has warned of tuition increases and campus closures without a significant financial boost this budget session. He requested an $855 million increase over the next two years, which Democratic Gov. Tony Evers supported in his own budget request.
Republican leaders, however, have already said the size of the ask is unrealistic.
Kelly Meyerhofer has covered higher education in Wisconsin since 2018. Contact her at kmeyerhofer@gannett.com or 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @KellyMeyerhofer.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin lawmakers delay vote on UW System budget