Conservation jobs program could be resurrected to tackle education costs

A new bill could revitalize a dormant program from last century to create environmental conservation jobs for some of the nearly 70 percent of young people struggling with higher education costs and student debt in the state.

The Wisconsin Conservation Corps would hire state residents between 16 and 25, half of whom must be high school students or graduates from families making no more than double the federal poverty level.

These young people would then be put to work constructing and improving trails, restoring forests and prairies and stabilizing stream banks, among other projects, according to the text of the bill.

Workers would be eligible for funds from Americorps, a federally funded network of domestic nonprofit organizations, which could be paid out in the form of tuition assistance, student loans or vocational training.

Both the Wisconsin National and Community Service Board and Americorps federal administrators would have to sign off on the program, which seems likely, as similar local community service groups have been approved in Racine and La Crosse.

State Sen. Robert Cowles, R-Green Bay, and state Rep. Jeff Mursau, R-Crivitz, have garnered several bipartisan sponsors seeking to revive the corps, which was eliminated by Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle and GOP legislators in 2003 in an attempt to mitigate a $3.2 billion budget deficit.

Under their bill, the state would shift $400,000 from other agencies to the program, which would offer grants to organizations seeking to complete environmental conservation projects.

“The projects completed by the Wisconsin Conservation Corps would be a huge benefit not only to the state’s natural resources and wildlife, but to the residents and tourists who spend time on public lands,” Mursau and Cowles said in a statement. “Furthermore, [this bill] will help teach young adults many of the job and life skills they need build a productive path for their future.”

With the average loan-dependent Wisconsin student leaving college with a debt burden of almost $30,000, the bill’s supporters think the program would be welcomed by students.

"As millennials struggle to find meaningful, family-sustaining employment, reestablishing the Wisconsin Conservation Corps is more important than ever," Mursau and former Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, wrote in a memo.

The Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy and the Assembly Committee on State Affairs both recommended the bill for passage to the floor for a vote.

However, with the legislative session set to end relatively early, as lawmakers run for re-election, the program could find itself overlooked unless GOP leaders make a floor vote a priority within their tight schedule.