Here & Now

Luther Olsen On School Choice And Biennial Budget

Zac Schultz: Should we expect the Republicans in the Legislature to rewrite Gov. Walker’s school choice expansion? Earlier, I sat down with Republican Sen. Luther Olsen, a member of the Joint Finance Committee who has the answer. In the last budget you were part of a group of Republicans who completely re-did Governor Walker’s school choice proposal. Do you see something similar happening this round?

Luther Olsen: Well, it’s interesting because the schools aren’t happy with what the Governor did because he took equalized aid out of their budgets. In fact, he took money out for kids they never had. And the choice people aren’t happy because of the amount he took. Right now they get $7200, $7800, depending on what level you are. This would bring them down to between $4000 and $5000. And we heard the other day from somebody saying we can’t work for that kind of money. So I think there’s going to be some changes. I don’t know what they’re going to be. In fact, I’m thinking that the statewide expansion may be limited to a smaller number and trying to figure out a way through GPR funds that it can bring it up to the original number, the $7200 and $7800, because nobody’s happy with what’s going on right now. But it sort of proves what I’d always said, which is, “There’s never enough money for two systems.”

Zac Schultz: Do you like the idea that this particular plan targets “switchers”, people who were already in public schools?

Luther Olsen: That’s what the whole thing was designed for. In fact, we even thought in the last budget that “switchers” would be the number one area that students would be in this program, but of course that didn’t turn out, and so mostly it was “stayers” that just finally got paid by State money.

Zac Schultz: The Joint Finance Committee is holding listening sessions outside of Madison. What value do you get from listening to people outside the Capital?

Luther Olsen: Well, it’s good because we get around to the different parts of the state and hear what just regular, common folks, Wisconsin bread and butter citizens, have to say about different issues. And I’ve been on — this is my sixth budget, so it’s been 12 years, and it’s interesting because now with social media, the Internet, people really know what’s in that Budget. Before it was a lot of vagaries. Now they are zeroed in and they know their subject very, very well and are not afraid to tell us what they think.

Zac Schultz: You’ve already had your first session. Did anything, one issue come through more clearly than others?

Luther Olsen: Well, it was really obvious because I sit next to Senator Harsdorf and she did a little tally of the subjects that were up. K-12 education blew everything away, I think. In fact, it was more people talking about that, from superintendents to school board members to parents to business people concerned about what the budget said. They talked about that probably more than anything else total.

Zac Schultz: What do you see being able to do with K-12?

Luther Olsen: Well, we’re going to have to look at this. I know we cannot go and have $130 cut per student over two years. We have not done that. The only time we did the big cut was the first year of Act 10. Then we gave them some money. Last budget we gave them $150 each year. We’re going to make sure that we do the same thing because if we value K-12 education in this state, which we do, we have to fund it. To me, it’s a number one priority.

Zac Schultz: Do you think the Assembly Republicans on Joint Finance agree?

Luther Olsen: I really do. I think everybody knows that we can’t — nobody can go home and say, I’m sorry, but you’re not even — you’re not going to get a raise to meet your cost increases. You’re going to get a cut. That really, you know, decimates the whole K-12 education system.

Zac Schultz: Speaking of Assembly Republicans on Joint Finance, Co-Chair Nygren recently said that the autonomy for the UW-System is on life support and could be done. Do you agree with that?

Luther Olsen: Well, I think that we really have to zero in on what that autonomy looks like. What I’ve said a number of times is if we are still responsible for the University System at the Legislature, we really would like to have some authority. If we can flip that, saying, okay, the Board of Regents is responsible for the University System, then they should have the authority. But it’s hard to be responsible when you have no authority. And we’ve got to figure that out, because it’s always been for a long time the Legislature and the Governor were responsible for the University System.

Zac Schultz: In the last budget one of the biggest changes, school choice, took place on the Senate floor. Do you expect any major changes to come that late, or do you think most of the work will be done in Joint Finance?

Luther Olsen: Well, I’m hoping that we get everything done in Joint Finance. My goal is to make sure we have a budget that at least there are 17 votes in the Senate to pass. If we don’t get that job done, then I think we’ve been a failure.

Zac Schultz: All right. Thank you for joining us today.

Luther Olsen: Thank you.