Bewley Won’t Seek Reelection
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | February 1, 2022
From WisPolitics.com …Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley, D-Mason, announced today she won’t seek reelection this fall, telling WisPolitics.com in an interview, “It’s time.”Bewley, 70, was elected to the Assembly in 2010 and then the Senate in 2014. She became minority leader in 2020 after then-Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, stepped down from the position in the spring.Bewley will serve out the rest of this session as minority leader.“I think people know when it is time to move forward,” Bewley said in a phone interview. “For me, it’s finding more ways to help Democrats and progressive causes. It’s time to move forward to make room for younger people. The work has been the best work that I’ve done in my life, certainly it’s the most important.”
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Bargaining Reminders and Issues in the Era of 4.70% CPI Increase
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 31, 2022
From The Legal Side . . .
In its most recent School Law FYI, the BoardmanClark Law Firm provides some reminders for districts that have a duty to bargain and discuss some issues that could present themselves in a rising inflation environment.
The SAA regularly receives these legal updates and we believe this is valuable information for SAA members. We are distributing this update to SAA members with the permission of the BoardmanClark Law Firm. The information in this update is no substitute for consulting with your district legal counsel, and we encourage you to do so.
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DPI Announces Increases in Voucher Schools for 2022-23
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 28, 2022
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction reported today an increase in private schools participating in the state’s three Private School Choice Programs, as the application period for parents/guardians to apply for their students for the 2022-23 school year opens Feb. 1, 2022.
The state’s three Private School Choice Programs allow eligible students to attend a participating private school in K4 through 12th grade. The private school, on behalf of the student’s parent, receives a state aid payment for each eligible student.
For the full news release and for more information, see here.
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SAA News Release on Governor’s Surplus Proposal
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 27, 2022
The SAA has issued this news release on the Governor’s proposal to use Wisconsin state surplus revenues.
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Evers Proposes Surplus Spending Plan, Including Over $600 Million for K-12
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 27, 2022
From The Wheeler Report . . .
Governor Evers held a press conference today to announce a proposal to spend parts of the $3.8 billion projected state surplus. His proposal, LRB-5877, would include the following provisions (as reported by the Governor’s release):
- Allocate $815.7 million toward a surplus refund of $150 for each Wisconsin resident.
- Create a nonrefundable caregiver tax credit for qualified expenses incurred by a family caregiver to assist a qualified family member.
- Increase the newly created Wisconsin nonrefundable credit match on the Child and Dependent Care Credit from 50 percent of the federal credit to 100 percent.
- Invest nearly $611 million in K-12 education, including:
- $188 million in general equalization aid to provide continued property tax relief and offset inflationary cost increases, including:
- $162.4 million in additional revenue limit authority to provide a per pupil revenue limit increase of $200 for the 2022-23 school year is offset by the general equalization aid increase.
- $15.5 million to account for the choice levy increase is offset by the general equalization aid increase.
- $172.6 million to increase the state’s special education aid reimbursement rate in FY23 from an estimated 30 percent to 40 percent.
- $103.7 million for increasing per-pupil aid by $128 per student.
- $20 million for out-of-school time grants to support high-quality after-school programs and other out-of-school time programs.
- $20 million for lead testing and remediation on school grounds and $250,000 to purchase water bottle filling stations that provide filtered drinking water.
- $20 million for a new reading professional aid program to help schools employ, hire, or retain reading teachers and reading specialists.
- $18.3 million for a revamped bilingual-bicultural aid program, which will expand eligibility and support more districts and $750,000 to help teachers become licensed/certified as bilingual teachers and teachers of English as a second language.
- $18 million toward additional investments and expanded eligibility in the school mental health aid program.
- $5.7 million to increase high-cost special education aid reimbursement from 40 percent to 60 percent in FY23.
- $9.9 million toward an Urban Excellence Initiative that will expand summer school grants, enhance early childhood education opportunities, support community engagement to improve academic achievement, and support principals in the state’s five largest school districts.
- $3 million for a driver education aid program for low-income students.
- $2.6 million to fully fund reimbursements under the school breakfast program.
- $2.4 million to alleviate the difference in federal reimbursement for federal payments for reduced-price and free meals.
- $750,000 to help teachers become licensed to teach computer science.
- $23.4 million to provide an additional $642 per pupil increase for all private and independent charter school programs.
- Provide $111 million for the University of Wisconsin System.
- Provide $28 million for the Wisconsin Technical College System.
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