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PPF Pearls: State investment in workforce development

As Governor Walker prepares his biennial budget, anticipation is building over whether he will propose additional state investment for workforce development. The Public Policy Forum’s July 2012 report on Wisconsin’s workforce development system identified 36 programs in nine state departments that provided employment and training services in fiscal year 2012, and found that a vast majority of the $407 million supporting those programs came from federal sources, with only $34 million (8%) contributed by the state.

The state contributed funds for 13 of the 36 workforce programs it administered in 2012, with nearly half of the state funding going to vocational rehabilitation. According to Competitive Wisconsin’s recently-released Be Bold 2 report, $19.3 million of the state’s total contributions were matching funds required by federal programs, while only $14.7 million represented state appropriations.

Past Forum research has indicated that Wisconsin may be more dependent on federal funding for workforce development than neighboring states, and has shown that federal funding has been decreasing over the long term, a trend that does not appear likely to change in the near future due to the current fiscal pressures facing the federal government.

The governor will present his budget in February.