Gov. Tony Evers announced Friday he will seek an additional $800 million in funding for the University of Wisconsin System in the next state budget, the largest budget increase in the system’s history.
At a Board of Regents meeting at UW-Milwaukee, Evers called on the regents to join him in support of his effort to increase funding to help prevent further staff and faculty layoffs, campus closures and program cuts the UW System is currently facing.
“We are here today at a critical juncture in the UW System’s history,” Evers said at the meeting. “We must make historic and significant investments in this next biennial budget if we are going to prevent further degradation of the UW System.”
Evers’ announcement comes after five UW branch campuses announced closures while other campuses resorted to making campus-specific spending cuts ranging from staff to academic programs.
Evers said at the meeting the $800 million in funding would be a “crucial step in the right direction” to get the UW System “back on the right track.”
“If we want to bring bright, new talent to our state, then we must invest in the University of Wisconsin System. It’s that simple,” Evers said. “Our state’s future depends on our ability to meet those goals.”
The UW System will submit its biennial budget request this fall for consideration as the governor prepares to introduce the 2025-27 executive budget early next year.
Anna Kleiber is the state news editor for The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as the arts editor. Anna has written in-depth on elections, legislative maps and campus news. She has interned with WisPolitics and Madison Magazine. Follow her on Twitter at @annakleiber03.
