State Representatives Ed Brooks (R-Reedsburg) and Romaine Quinn (R-Rice Lake) thanked members of the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) June 2 for acting upon their recommendations for the University of Wisconsin System budget.

The JFC passed a budget motion that proposed a $50 million reduction to the proposed cut, which the UW Board of Regents will distribute to parts of the System in order to ensure stable funding.

“I am very happy that the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) inserted this provision in the budget,” said Quinn. “Clearly, the intent is to mitigate cuts on Wisconsin’s two year campuses and the UW-Extension, and I trust that the UW Board of Regents will keep that in mind.”

State Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette), Assembly Co-chair of the JFC, was a vocal supporter of the change.

“This solution was a team effort,” said Nygren. “Representatives Brooks and Quinn, as well as my fellow members on the Finance Committee, wanted to ensure that all parts of the UW System continue to function at a high level.”

Brooks, whose district contains UW-Richland, and whose constituents are also served by UW-Baraboo, was also grateful for the change.

 “Wisconsin’s two-year campuses and Extension program offer many resources for people throughout our state,” he said. “They provide a great service to the 50th Assembly District, and I’m glad we were able to work together to ensure their programs continue effectively and efficiently.”

With the UW portion of the budget complete, the JFC has only a handful of items left to deal with before the entire budget bill is taken up by both houses in the Legislature. Once the bill is approved by the Assembly and the Senate, the budget will be delivered to Republican Gov. Scott Walker for his signature.