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Wisconsin’s Governor, Legislature spar over use of American Rescue dollars

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers announced a small business COVID relief plan while vetoing proposals from the legislature last week.

Evers’ proposal would take 420-million dollars from the American Rescue Act federal funding to create small business recovery grants of up to five thousand dollars per business for rehiring, restocking.  Overall, Evers says 600-million from the program will go to small businesses.

Evers vetoed eleven bills from Senate and Assembly Republicans the same day that would have directed American Rescue Act funding to specific projects.  One of the bills would have required 500-million of the federal dollars to go to broadband expansion grants.  Another would have set aside 100-million dollars for rural economic development and farm support programs.  Another bill would have targeted 40-million dollars to forgivable loans under the safe drinking water loan program.  For these three, the Governor says he has already addressed these areas in the budget plan he gave to the legislature.  Evers also said all eleven Republican bills would have limited his ability to use federal funds with the flexibility necessary to confront challenges posed by COVID 19.