Welch Group: State budget deal adds $7 million a year for municipal services; Madison to receive roughly $3.1 million annually

Jim, a lobbyist with the Welch Group, briefed the Madison Common Council Executive Committee on a state budget agreement that he said boosts the municipal services payment by $14 million over the biennium — $7 million per year — and includes several other funding changes.

The briefing opened with Jim describing a flurry of late negotiations in Madison and at the State Capitol and the role Welch Group played in pressing for the municipal services increase. “This morning that the municipal services payment was boosted, as part of the deal. It's 14,000,000 over the biennium, so 7,000,000 every each year over the course of the biennium,” he said.

The nut graf: the increase to municipal services payments is the central local win noted in the briefing. Jim told the committee that the change cleared the Joint Finance Committee and that Welch Group expects both legislative chambers to vote this week; if adopted and signed by the governor, the change will take effect across Wisconsin. Jim said Madison’s share of the annual increase will be approximately $3,100,000 per year.

Details and local implications

Jim said the package includes several other notable items: roughly $330 million for childcare; higher special education state reimbursement (to about 42% in the first year and 45% in the second year, by his account); an increase in University of Wisconsin system funding (he cited roughly $2.256 billion over two years); a repeal of the sales tax on utility bills; and a one-time $10 million line moving to a permanent appropriation for a food security initiative grant program.

On special-education funding he said the change “brings it to 42% in the first year and 45% in the second year,” which Jim characterized as the highest reimbursement rate in about 30 years. On municipal services he described the increase as restoring roughly half of the calculated cost of providing police and fire services, saying the change brings the municipal services payment to “about 51% of the value of the services we provide,” by his calculation.

Housing and other legislation

Jim summarized ongoing work on housing-related bills including a stalled loan program intended to encourage development and an omnibus package being developed by Representative Brooks that could include development-by-right provisions, accessory dwelling unit language, plat-approval changes, and TIF/TID reform. He also warned the committee about a recent appellate decision he cited as the “Cobley appellate court case,” which he said could let tenants recover rent if any lease provision is illegal; he said that decision concerns landlords statewide and could have broad effects on small landlords.

Council questions and Welch Group role

Alders asked about Welch Group’s notification and coordination with city officials. Alder Tishler asked about how the firm registers positions and whether it consults the mayor's office before registering; Jim responded, “We don't do anything without the city saying telling us to do it,” and described a process in which the firm brings bills and registration choices to the city and follows the city's direction. When Alder Tishler asked for clarification, she said, “When you say that you are bringing things to the city for approval Mhmm. Who are you bringing it to? The city's a the city's a big entity.”

City staff (Sam) and Jim told the committee Welch Group can provide a monthly legislative update tailored to the council and that a legislative-tracker document will be distributed on a recurring basis. Jim also said lobbying activity reports due later in July would be provided to the council as part of routine filings.

Why it matters

If enacted and signed, the municipal services payment increase would deliver an estimated $3.1 million annually to the city of Madison, money councilors said could help offset costs for police and fire. Several councilors pressed staff and the lobbyist for specifics on how the omnibus motion affects other local aid lines and asked city finance staff to parse the motion’s statutory text once it becomes available.

Ending

Jim closed by urging continued coordination with the mayor’s office and council leadership on longer-term legislative priorities, especially housing. The committee did not take formal action on the briefing; members asked staff to circulate the longer internal legislative memo and to work with Welch Group on recurring updates.