Wisconsin Attorney General Blasts Republican Decision to Eliminate Funding for the Office of School Safety

Tuesday, June 13th, 2023 -- 1:00 PM

(By Sarah Lehr, Wisconsin Public Radio) Wisconsin's attorney general says an Office of School Safety will be forced to make severe cutbacks after Republican lawmakers denied requests for additional funding to replace federal money that's running out.

According to Sarah Lehr with Wisconsin Public Radio, Republican Gov. Scott Walker created the office in 2018 in the aftermath of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

The duties of that office, which are outlined in state law, include distributing safety grants, providing training, crafting recommendations and collecting blueprints of school layouts. Since then, the office's role has expanded, and it's currently being bolstered by federal funding, including $1.8 million from the American Rescue Plan Act that's set to end before 2024.

As of this spring, the office employed 16 people, with 12 of those positions funded by time-limited federal dollars. In his budget request, Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul asked for more than $2.2 million total for the office, which would have allowed it to keep up staffing at 16 positions.

In his proposal, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers had a more modest request at nearly $1 million for the office. But, on Thursday, the Legislature's Republican-led Joint Finance Committee rejected both of those proposals and declined to allocate any additional state funding.

Kaul says it's likely the office will be forced to eliminate its 24/7 hotline, which fielded more than 3,800 tips over the course of a year about issues including threats, bullying, suicide and mental health crises. Kaul also says the future of critical response teams could be in jeopardy.

Last year, the office helped create 12 of those regional teams across the state. They're made up of school administrators, members of law enforcement and mental health professionals, who are trained to coordinate with each other, so they can spring into action when a crisis happens.

In all, the Republican budget plan maintains over half a million dollars total for the Office of School Safety, enough for about four full-time positions.

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