Legislature Sends Budget Bill to Governor

Both houses of the Legislature passed the budget bill this week. It now heads to Governor Evers' desk. The Governor can sign the bill as is, make partial vetoes or veto it in its entirety. 

The following items of interest to WEMTA are included in the budget bill:

WISELearn: Reduce funding for WISELearn by $150,000 in 2021-22 and by $200,000 in 2022-23. 

Library Service Contracts: Increase funding for the library service contracts by $12,900 in 2021-22 and by $25,300 in 2022-23 to fully fund the costs of the contracts. The following organizations receive library service contracts: the Milwaukee Public Library; the University of Wisconsin-Madison; the Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library; and the Cooperative Children's Book Center.

Public Library System Aid: Increase public library system aid by $2.5 million in 2021-22 and by $4 million in 2022-23. 

Wisconsin Reading Corps:  Increase funding for Wisconsin Reading Corps by $300,000 in 2021-22 and by an additional $1.3 million in 2022-23.