Friday March 29, 2024

An Independent Progressive Media Outlet

FacebookTwitterYoutube
Newsletter
News Feeds:
Democrats Wanted More Accountability and Transparency at WEDC PDF Print E-mail
News - Articles for State & Local
Written by Wisconsin Democrats   
Friday, 12 May 2017 08:07

walker-wedcJoint Finance Committee Republicans block Democratic attempts to recoup awards that are in default, limit outsourced jobs, and make job creation a condition of all awards.


MADISON - The budget-writing Joint Finance Committee met for an executive session on Tuesday, May 10th. Agency budgets debated by the committee included the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, Military Affairs, Justice, Secretary of State and the Child Abuse and the Neglect Prevention Board.

Democrats offered several motions to increase accountability, expand economic opportunities and invest in local communities that were rejected by the Republican majority. On the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), Democrats offered motions to increase accountability and transparency of the agency.

The motions included:

  • granting additional clawback authority for WEDC to recoup awards that are in default;
  • adding award conditions that would require an award recipient to notify WEDC when jobs are outsourced;
  • requiring that job creation be a condition of all awards, and;
  • requiring that a defaulted award recipient rectify their defaulted award before receiving additional tax credits, including the manufacturing and agriculture tax credit

joint-finance-statebudRepublicans voted against all of these motions, continuing the trend of punting on WEDC accountability. Republicans also opened the floodgate to unlimited internal fund transferring between dedicated WEDC funds, and moved to take away WEDC loan origination requirements, reinstating the loan program after loans had been frozen for two years.

JFC Dems offered a motion to transfer WEDC fund surpluses to a dedicated rural broadband fund, which Republicans voted against along party lines. JFC Dems offered a motion to cap the WEDC budget at base 2016 and to transfer the surplus in SEG funds to a new “Main Street Fund” that would support small, rural, start-up or minority-owned businesses, which Republicans voted against along party lines.

JFC Dems also offered a motion to keep the WEDC budget discussion open until the Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) concludes and publicizes its findings of the recently completed WEDC audit in an effort to allow JFC to apply audit findings to WEDC’s budget. The motion failed along party lines. Members unanimously supported a motion to extend Fab Lab funding to hire a contractor.

Last Updated on Friday, 12 May 2017 08:37
 
Copyright © 2024. Green Bay Progressive. Designed by Shape5.com