WEMTA Members Testify Before Study Committee on BCPL, CSF

WEMTA was invited to present to the Legislative Council Study Committee on Investment and Use of the School Trust Funds on August 16. We were asked to answer questions about the Common School Fund and how it benefits school libraries. 

WEMTA's presentation was led by Legislative Committee Chair Janet Vraney and WEMTA members Micki Uppena, Tony Spence and Kay Benning.  They educated Committee members on all of the great things happening in our school libraries because of the Common School Fund and, explained that for the vast majority of WEMTA members, CSF dollars are the only funding they receive for their school library program. In addition, they highlighted the stability of the Common School Fund and told the Committee that school libraries want a dedicated, reliable and consistent funding source. 

You can view WEMTA's presentation and the full Committee meeting here. They plan to meet again on September 5. 

The Committee also heard from:

• Staff from the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands talked about how they invest the Common School Fund and other trust funds. They talked a lot about the history of the BCPL and the Common School Fund and their investment policy. They said that the State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) would generate the same return for the Common School Fund as BCPL because they would need to operate under the same statutory and constitutional constraints. They also said that if the Common School Fund had been invested in a more risky manner during the economic downturn of 2007-09, there would not have been any Common School Fund Distributions for 5-8 years. 
• A panel of local government officials discussed the importance of the BCPL Trust Fund Loan Program. They said that many small municipalities can't access the bond market and that private loans have higher costs. Robert Scott, director of finance for the City of Brookfield, said: "Restriction or elimination of the Trust Fund Loan program would not only jettison a smart fiscal tool for hundreds of local governments in Wisconsin, but it could also curtail infrastructure and economic development projects that but for the state Trust Fund Loan program would have either not occurred or would cost taxpayers more in the long run."
• BCPL Commissioner State Treasurer Matt Adamczyk  testified about why he thinks the BCPL and the Common School Fund should change. He said that the goal of making changes is to double the rate of return for schools.He said that the state should remove school libraries as the dedicated beneficiary of the Common School Fund so that the CSF could be "free money for the school districts." He said that they could find a different way to fund school libraries; for example, through the general fund. He told the Committee the SWIB is the gold standard and should be allowed to invest the money. Adamczyk also told the Committee that he opposes the loan program because it is "stealing money" from a private entity (banks). 
• A panel of school district officials  spoke about the importance of the BCPL Trust Fund Loan Program and the Common School Fund. They said it can be challenging for their small local banks to help them with loans.Todd Carlson, superintendent of the Gillett School District said that the Common School Fund is vital to his district. Carlson said that 95% of their yearly operating budget is fixed costs for things like transportation, salaries and utilities, so they often don't have room for the extras. Brian Krey, business manager for the River Valley School District, which has four schools, said the Common School Fund is the sole budget for his libraries and that he supports keeping it as a dedicated funding source for libraries. "Knowing that it's stable and dependent is really important to us. School funding is anything but that, especially in a district like ours where we're declining in student enrollment. So knowing that that money is going to be there, year-after-year, is very, very beneficial for our entire community," said Krey.  
• BCPL Commissioner Secretary of State Doug La Follette. He said that the BCPL system is working and that it has been modernized. 

Don't Forget to Vote Tomorrow, Tuesday, August 14th!

Be sure to vote in the primary election tomorrow, Tuesday, August 14th! There are statewide primary races for Governor, Lt. Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer and U.S. Senate. There are also local primary races for State Assembly and State Senate seats as well as Congressional seats. 

  

Primary: August 14, 2018 Polls Open: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Review A Sample Ballot Before Heading to the Polls: https://myvote.wi.gov/en-US/PreviewMyBallot

One-Party Primary Voting: You can only participate in one party’s primary. You will need to decide whether you want to vote in the Republican, Democratic, Libertarian, Wisconsin Green, or Constitution party primary.

Registering to Vote: You can register to vote at the polls on Election Day. You will need to bring proof of residence, such as a valid driver’s license or state ID card, a bank statement, paycheck, or recent gas, electric or telephone bill. NOTE: This is not a complete list of acceptable proof of residence documents.

Photo ID: A photo ID is required to vote. Visit  https://www.bringitwisconsin.com/ to see a list of acceptable IDs.

Find your polling place and see a sample ballot at https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/

BCPL Candidates: The Offices of Attorney General, Secretary of State and State Treasurer are extremely important to the WEMTA because they serve on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands (BCPL) which oversees the Common School Fund. WEMTA surveyed every candidate for Attorney General, Secretary of State and State Treasurer about their positions on key BCPL and Common School Fund issues. Their responses have been compiled in this non-partisan voter guide, and their answers appear in the order in which their names are listed on the ballot.

Wisconsin's Primary Election is 11 Days Away!

Wisconsin’s 2018 Partisan Primary is Tuesday, August 14. There are several statewide races on the ballot. Primaries are also required for some State Assembly, State Senate and U.S. House races. The winners of these primaries will be on the general election ballot on November 6.

Governor

An eight-person Democratic primary field is vying for a chance to challenge Governor Walker, who is running for his third term. Democratic candidates include State Senator Kathleen Vinehout, Madison Mayor Paul Soglin, State Superintendent Tony Evers, former State Representative Kelda Roys, attorney Matt Flynn, political activist Mike McCabe, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin Mahlon Mitchell, and attorney Josh Pade. Governor Walker has a Republican primary election against software publisher Robert Meyer.

Education has become a top issue in the race as Governor Walker is campaigning as the “pro-education” governor. He has featured his investments in education in his campaign ads and has said that he will continue the UW System Tuition Freeze if re-elected. Walker’s Republican primary opponent, Robert Meyer, says he will work to improve education outcomes for all students. Every Democratic candidate calls for increased K-12 education funding in their education proposals. Roys, Soglin and Vinehout all reference the need to make changes to the school funding formula on their campaign websites while Evers has released a proposal to change the formula as part of his 2019-21 state budget request.  In addition, all of the candidates have gone to the record saying that they support the repeal of Act 10. Flynn, Evers, Mitchell and Roys say on their campaign websites that they support creating a way to re-finance student loans. Flynn says on his campaign website that he will stop expansion of the school choice program, Vinehout has links to several columns she’s written expressing concerns about expansion and funding of the choice program, and McCabe and Roys say that they will phase it out.

Governor Scott Walker Education Proposals

Robert Meyer Education Proposals

Matt Flynn Education Proposals

Tony Evers Education Proposals

Josh Pade Campaign Website (does not have dedicated issues section)

Mike McCabe Education Proposals

Mahlon Mitchell Education Proposals

Kelda Roys Education Proposals

Paul Soglin Education Proposals

Kathleen Vinehout Education Proposals  

Lt. Governor

There is also a Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor. Former state representative Mandela Barnes is running against entrepreneur Kurt Kober. Kober says that education will be his top priority if elected, and lays out proposals to change the school funding formula, reduce standardized testing and streamline education to promote lifelong learning on his campaign website. Barnes also lists education as a top priority and supports modifying the school funding formula, community schools, free two-year college and debt-free four year college.

Kurt Kober Education Proposals

Mandela Barnes Education Proposals

Current Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch does not have a primary challenger.

Lt. Governor Kleefisch (does not appear to have an active campaign website yet, but is featured on Governor Walker’s site).  

State Treasurer and Secretary of State

There are both Republican and Democratic primaries in the race to fill the open State Treasurer seat. A key issue in the campaign has been the future of the office now that voters have rejected the idea of eliminating the office. There are also Republican and Democratic primaries for Secretary of State. Both of these offices serve on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, which oversees the Common School Fund. To see where the candidates for the two offices stand on issues important to WEMTA, check out our voter guide or older posts that we've done on this blog about the races.

U.S. Senate

A tough Republican primary is taking place for one of Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate seats. State Senator Leah Vukmir is squaring off against retired Marine Kevin Nicholson for a chance to challenge Senator Tammy Baldwin.

Leah Vukmir Campaign Website

Kevin Nicholson Campaign Website  

Current U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin does not have a primary challenger.

Tammy Baldwin Campaign Website

Wisconsin Primary Election Information

Primary: August 14, 2018

Polls Open: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

One-Party Primary Voting: You can only participate in one party’s primary. You will need to decide whether you want to vote in the Republican, Democratic, Libertarian, Wisconsin Green, or Constitution party primary.

In-Person Early Voting: Check with your local clerk about early voting hours in your municipality: https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/MyMunicipalClerk. 

Absentee Ballots: The deadline to request an absentee ballot be sent to you is 5 p.m. on August 9. You must provide a photocopy of your photo ID when requesting an absentee ballot. Your completed absentee ballot must be delivered no later than 8 p.m. on Election Day.  It is recommended that you place your completed absentee ballot in the mail one week before Election Day to ensure that it arrives in time.

Registering to Vote: You can register to vote at the polls on Election Day. You will need to bring proof of residence, such as a valid driver’s license or state ID card, a bank statement, paycheck, or recent gas, electric or telephone bill. NOTE: This is not a complete list of acceptable proof of residence documents.

Photo ID: A photo ID is required to vote. Visit www.bringitwisconsin.com to see a list of acceptable IDs.

Find Your Polling Place: Find your polling place and see a sample ballot at www.myvote.wi.gov.

General Election: November 6, 2018. The winner of each party’s primary will advance to the General Election ballot.

BCPL Commissioners Schimel, La Follette Raise Concerns About State Treasurer's Treatment of BCPL Staff

Several news outlets are reporting that BCPL Commissioners Attorney General Brad Schimel and Secretary of State Doug La Follette said on the record at last week's BCPL meeting that they feel their fellow Commissioner State Treasurer Matt Adamczyk is treating BCPL staff inappropriately. Schimel described Adamczyk's approach to working with staff as  "abusive and unreasonable."

BCPL Commissioners and BCPL staff oversee the investments of the state trust funds, including the Common School Fund.

During the meeting, Adamczyk said he was concerned that the BCPL staff was not qualified to make investments and argued that the BCPL trust funds, including the Common School Fund, should be transferred to the State of Wisconsin Investment Board.

You can listen to the full board meeting here: ftp://doaftp1380.wi.gov/doadocs/BCPL/2018-07-24_BCPL-BoardMtgRecording.mp3 

Wisconsin State Journal: Attorney General publicly slams State Treasurer as 'unreasonable and abusive' to state workers

The Cap Times: Treasurer Matt Adamczyk's demands to state employees 'abusive' and 'unreasonable,' says AG Brad Schimel