NEWS
McCallum finalizes budget
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Wednesday, July 31, 2002
Scott McCallum wants to make sure he does not have to sign another budget repair bill as late as July 26, if he does have to sign another one.
After finalizing his vetoes to the bill and signing it Friday, Gov. McCallum proposed a special legislative session for lawmakers to consider a few ideas of his, including withholding pay from congressmen, and the governor too, if a budget misses deadline.
The bill, which fixed the state’s $1.1 billion budget deficit for the biennium that actually began last July 1, had passed the most recent July 1 before partisan legislators compromised. The governor has had since July 8 to look it over.
McCallum struck out a number of provisions, but kept the $44 million cuts to UW System proposed by the legislature intact. Chancellor John Wiley said about $17 million of those cuts will come from University of Wisconsin.
Wiley applauded McCallum’s approval of a measure that tied state financial aid to rising tuition and more funding for UW’s BioStar program, which former Gov. Tommy Thompson initiated to stipend the university’s biochemical research.
The chancellor said he understood the economic circumstances which led to system-wide cuts.
According to the university, several vetoes directly affected the school:
- cutting a provision requiring a full cost surcharge on in-state undergraduates who take more than 165 credits
- halting a requirement that 20 percent of vacant state jobs remain unfilled after the fiscal year
- eliminating state approval of university publications and contracts
The budget uses the remainder of Wisconsin’s $1.2 billion tobacco settlement to balance costs.
In his appeal to the legislature, McCallum also said he wants amendments to Wisconsin’s constitution requiring tax changes to go to referendum before the people and establishing a permanent rainy-day fund.
