Democratic Radio: Republicans Reject Major Investments to UW System Print
Commentary
Written by Wisconsin Senate Democrats   
Monday, 03 June 2019 16:02

uwgb-students”It’s unfortunate that instead of working with Democrats to invest in one of the state’s strongest economic engines, Republicans are choosing to drive their own political agenda by cutting it.”


MADISON, WI – Senator Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) offered the Democratic weekly radio address last week on Governor Evers’ proposal to make significant investments in the UW System budget. 

The audio file of this week’s address can be found here

A written transcript of the address is below:

“Hello, I’m State Senator Chris Larson with week’s weekly radio address.

“This week, the Joint Committee on Finance took up Governor Evers’ proposed budget for the University of Wisconsin System.

“After eight years of UW System cuts under the previous administration, Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee cut nearly $70 million from Gov. Evers’ reasonable budget request that targeted areas in the system that need additional dollars – neglecting to invest in programs critical to improving and growing our state’s workforce like nursing and engineering.

chris_larson“The UW System is a key part of our state’s economy, educating thousands of young people – eighty percent of whom will stay and work in Wisconsin after they graduate. In addition, research driven by our R1 status schools, UW-Milwaukee and UW-Madison, have led to advances in protecting the Great Lakes from nanoparticle damage, as well as using 4D-flow MRI technology to better predict blood vessel ruptures in patients.

“From UW-Stout to UW-Milwaukee in my district, the governors’ budget recognizes the value of every campus in the UW-System, investing more than $120 million into its institutions and facilities while keeping quality higher education affordable for Wisconsin students so that every resident who works hard and wants to earn a degree at one our state’s colleges or universities can do so.

“Appropriately funding the UW System is one of the easiest investments in our state’s future we can make. The UW System contributes $24 billion to the state’s economy each year – a 23-fold return on each dollar the state spends on the university.

“This should be something both sides of the aisle can agree is a worthwhile endeavor for the future of our state. It’s unfortunate that instead of working with Democrats to invest in one of the state’s strongest economic engines, Republicans are choosing to drive their own political agenda by cutting it.”

Last Updated on Tuesday, 04 June 2019 10:08