Finance
Gov. Evers Calls Joint Finance Committee into Special Meeting
MADISON, Wis. (OFFICE OF GOVERNOR TONY EVERS PRESS RELEASE) – Gov. Tony Evers today approved Senate Bill (SB) 1015, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 97, securing $15 million in crisis response resources to support healthcare access in Western Wisconsin in the wake of the recent announcement of HSHS and Prevea Health’s decision to close several locations. In addition to severely impacting healthcare access in the area, according to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD), the closures have been estimated to impact approximately 1,400 workers, among others, in the surrounding region.
Gov. Evers today approved Act 97 with improvements through line-item vetoes that will provide additional flexibility for the $15 million crisis response investment, enabling the resources to be used to fund any hospital services meeting the area’s pressing healthcare needs, including urgent care services, OB-GYN services, inpatient psychiatry services, and mental health substance use services, among others. Without the governor’s vetoes, these services would not have been eligible under SB 1015. Gov. Evers first made the announcement today in Madison while speaking with community leaders from the Chippewa Valley region at the Chippewa Valley Rally, an annual event organized by the Chippewa Valley Chamber Alliance, which represents the Chippewa Falls, Menomonie, and Eau Claire Chambers of Commerce.
“Recent hospital closures in Western Wisconsin have disrupted Wisconsinites’ ability to access basic, everyday healthcare services and uprooted the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of folks and their families,” said Gov. Evers. “My administration and I are working to do everything we can to support those workers and their families, as well as folks across the area who need to be able to access basic and emergency healthcare services alike.
“I’m proud to be securing $15 million in crisis response funding while using my constitutional veto authority to make improvements to ensure more flexibility so these critical resources can be used for any hospital services to meet the healthcare access needs of the Chippewa Valley region, no matter what they may be,” Gov. Evers continued. “It’s been clear in my visits to the Chippewa Valley region and my conversations with community leaders that the impacts of these recent closures do not end at hospital emergency doors—these closures are affecting access to critical healthcare services across the board, and we have to be responsive to these challenges to meet Wisconsinites’ and communities’ needs.”
SB 1015, as passed by the Wisconsin State Legislature, included unnecessary restrictions on the $15 million crisis response funding, limiting the funds to be used only for hospital emergency department services exclusively. The governor’s partial vetoes improve the bill significantly, broadening the scope of the grants that will be available under the bill and allowing the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) to make the crisis response funds available for any hospital services that meet the needs of the region.
Concurrent with the governor’s announcement today, Gov. Evers also directed DHS to submit an official request to the Wisconsin State Legislature’s Republican-controlled Joint Committee on Finance to immediately release the $15 million provided for under Act 97. A copy of the request submitted by DHS to the Joint Committee on Finance today is available here. The plan request submitted by DHS reflects the governor’s improvements made to the bill today.
“I’m urging Republicans on the Joint Committee on Finance to approve the department’s request quickly to ensure these resources are immediately available to help stabilize and support healthcare access across the Chippewa Valley region, and to do so without delay,” concluded Gov. Evers. “This investment will go a long way in helping address the very real and pressing healthcare access concerns facing Western Wisconsin, and it is critically important that we get this funding out the door to folks who need it.”
Upon Joint Committee on Finance approval of the DHS’ request, the department will conduct a competitive grant application process for the $15 million in funding for eligible hospitals and hospital services meeting the following criteria:
- Eligible hospital services are those provided in the Western Region, with priority for hospitals in Eau Claire and Chippewa Counties.
- Grantees must agree to expand capacity (capital and operational) at hospitals (defined as entities with DHS 124 license) that accept all payor types (commercial (consistent with existing networks), Medicaid, Medicare, self-pay, and uninsured) including any of the following services:
- Increase Emergency Department capacity/service, including accepting patients in crisis in need of potential evaluation under Chapter 51.
- Expand Urgent Care Services.
- Expand Inpatient Psychiatric Unit accepting adults and/or adolescents. The unit must accept emergency detentions under s. 51.15 and voluntary admissions.
- Expand Inpatient OB/GYN services.
- Expand mental health and/or substance use services.
- Expand or establish hospital-owned and operated ambulance service to transfer patients to an appropriate patient care setting.
3. Any expansion of services begun on or after January 22, 2024, is eligible for the grant funds.
The governor’s veto message detailing his partial vetoes of SB 1015, now Wisconsin Act 97, is available here.
EVERS ADMINISTRATION’S RAPID RESPONSE TO HEALTHCARE CLOSURES IN WESTERN WISCONSIN
While not exhaustive, details regarding the Evers Administration’s ongoing rapid response efforts to the HSHS and Prevea health systems closures are available here and detailed below.
DWD Rapid Response Efforts
- DWD is coordinating rapid response with the local workforce development board. The rapid response support includes assistance with job search and placement, unemployment insurance application assistance, interview preparation, career counseling, and navigation of childcare and health insurance information, among other resources.
- DWD’s rapid response teams are continuing to gather critical information, meet with the affected employees and employers, and identify opportunities to connect affected employees with new opportunities that provide family-supporting wages.
- DWD and the local workforce development board hosted community job fairs to assist affected workers and the general public on February 7 and February 20.
- DWD worked with the local rapid response team to offer 11 information sessions in affected communities.
- DWD continues to coordinate with DHS and other state agencies to support continuity of healthcare services in the region.
- Additional services will be made available via DWD’s mobile career labs and job centers for affected employees.
DHS Rapid Response Efforts
- DHS has met with both the local leadership and the systemwide leadership of HSHS and Prevea Health, and the department will continue to have regular meetings with these leaders moving forward.
- DHS is facilitating conversations between the leadership of HSHS and Prevea Health and the leadership of other regional healthcare systems, including Marshfield Clinic Health System and Mayo Clinic Health System, and is continuing to urge the three systems to increase transparency in their planning and decision-making.
- DHS will continue to monitor EMS, trauma, and crisis response going forward, in addition to ongoing transition and continuity of care planning, including:
- Coordination of an agreement to transfer certain patients from HSHS to Mayo Clinic; and
- Necessary steps to ensure all local OB/GYNs have privileges at all local hospitals so they can continue to provide care locally regardless of the facility at which they are working. This is particularly important given the pre-existing shortages with regard to OB/GYN care in the region.
- DHS’s Bureau of Human Resources has notified employees of the department’s Northern Wisconsin Center, who mostly use Prevea Health and HSHS, and the bureau is working with them to help them find care.
- DHS is conducting outreach to facilities and organizations to encourage them to have a presence at upcoming job fairs in the region, including long-term care facilities, assisted living facilities, DHS-administered facilities, etc.
Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI) Rapid Response Efforts
- OCI is in communication with Western Wisconsin insurers about their efforts to maintain access and provide timely information for their policyholders.
- OCI continues to be in contact with health insurance enrollment assisters in the region to answer questions and support their efforts to provide clarity for insureds impacted by the closures.
- OCI has been in contact with the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF) on State Employee Health Plan issues to monitor the situation.
- OCI has been in contact with the Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration to ensure they are aware of the situation and prepared to support people with employer-based coverage impacted in the area.
ABOUT THE DISLOCATED WORKER PROGRAM
The Dislocated Worker Program provides transition assistance to workers and companies affected by permanent worker layoffs. The rapid response teams help companies and worker representatives develop and implement a practical transition plan based on the size of the layoff event. Types of services include:
- Pre-layoff workshops on a variety of topics, such as resume writing and interviewing, job search strategies, and budgeting;
- Provision of information about programs and resources through written materials and information sessions; and
- Career and resource fairs.
Workers affected by a permanent layoff may also access basic re-employment services at no charge through the state’s Job Centers. Certain services, including training assistance, may be an option for some workers after enrolling in one or more of DWD’s workforce development programs. Additional information on the Rapid Response Team process is available here.
Gov. Evers today also vetoed SB 1014. The governor’s veto message for SB 1014 is available here.
An online version of this release is available here.
Copyright 2024 WEAU. All rights reserved.
The seven-week military conflict in the Middle East will redefine Hong Kong’s role as a global financial centre, positioning the city as a safe harbour for capital and investments.
Anecdotal evidence suggested that more banks had turned to Hong Kong to protect their businesses and committed themselves to expanding their presence in the city. At the same time, inquiries about adding allocations of mainland Chinese assets among global investors had recently increased, potentially enlarging the customer base for the city’s asset-management industry and family offices and driving demand for offshore yuan-linked financial products.
For years, Hong Kong’s status as a financial centre in the Asia-Pacific region has been challenged by Dubai, which has risen to prominence as a gateway linking Asia and Europe in capital flows, transport and logistics. With the war destabilising the Middle East – at one point forcing the closure of the Dubai International Airport and sending stocks in the Gulf region plunging – Hong Kong has re-emerged due to its geographical location, a pegged exchange rate, free capital flows and support from China’s economic strength.
“In that context, China and Hong Kong are attracting renewed attention,” said Gary Dugan, CEO of The Global CIO Office in Dubai, which advises family offices and ultra-high-net-worth individuals globally. “There is growing interest among some clients in increasing exposure to China and Hong Kong. It is less a simple flight to safety and more a reassessment of where investors see relative value, policy consistency and long-term strategic opportunity.”
Dubai now relies on trade, tourism and finance as the pillars of its economy, reflecting the success of its four-decade diversification away from oil for sustained growth. The United Arab Emirates city is home to Jebel Ali Free Zone, the biggest free-trade zone in the Middle East, and the second-largest stock market in the region, with combined market values of US$1.01 trillion. The city, also a global hub for gold trading, has a population of 4 million, about 80 per cent of which are foreign expatriates. Dubai’s economy grew by 4.7 per cent in the January-to-September period last year.
Before seeking a new referendum MPS needs to rebuild trust in the community through completing state audits, putting in place controls to prevent overspending and routine reports to the public.
For MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius, who just wrapped up her first year leading Milwaukee’s public school system, her tenure has been punctuated by some very big numbers.
The first is $252 million. That is the amount of new spending voters narrowly approved in an April 2024 referendum to support operations in Wisconsin’s largest school district. Just months later, MPS was rocked by revelations the district was months behind in filing key financial reports to the state, which led to former Superintendent Keith Posley’s resignation.
The second is $1 billion. MPS faces a deferred maintenance backlog exceeding $1 billion. The district’s enrollment has declined 30% over the last 30 years, leaving many schools at less than 50% full. That, in part, is driving a plan to close some schools and to improve others to help lower costs.
The final is $46 million, the deficit MPS was running for the 2024-25 school year, an unexpected shortfall which has led to hundreds of staff layoffs.
Getting the district’s accounting, budgeting and financial reporting back on track has dominated Cassellius’s first year at MPS. In an April 15 interview with the Journal Sentinel’s editorial board, she talked in detail about the challenges putting that into order and progress she sees in restoring transparency into its operations.
State funding and aging buildings create budget nightmares
Cassellius says state needs to keep up its share of school funding
In an interview with the Journal Sentinel editorial board, MPS leader Brenda Cassellius says budgets and buildings are her two top worries.
Cassellius said the on-going budget crisis is her top concern. She said the state’s failure to live up to its share of funding is exacerbating MPS’ budget woes. A group of school districts, teachers and parents filed suit against the state Legislature and its Joint Finance Committee claiming the current state funding system is unconstitutional and prevents schools from meeting students’ educational needs.
Funding for special education is especially critical. About 20% of MPS students have disabilities, almost twice the share of the city’s charter schools, and the average of 14% across Wisconsin.
“What’s keeping me up now, you know, is really just the budget crisis we’re in, with not only this year but multiple years going out without additional state aid, we’ve been not getting funding for what our needs are for our students, and particularly our students with special needs,” she said.
Although the state budget increased special education funding to a 42% reimbursement rate, the actual rate has been about 35%. Another component to the budget headache is the age of MPS buildings. The average age is 85 years-old compared to 45 across the nation.
“We have just kicked this can down the curb or kicked it down the street or whatever you call it for too long. And it’s time that we really take on a serious conversation about the conditions of the learning environments in which we send our children,” she said. “Particularly in Milwaukee Public Schools, we serve the most vulnerable children. Children who have language barriers, children who have disabilities, children in high-concentrated poverty.”
What needs to happen before MPS seeks another referendum
Voters need to be comfortable MPS has made tough budget decisions
In an interview with Journal Sentinel editorial board, Brenda Cassellius said voters will need to see budget improvements before seeking more spending
Cassellius said MPS will definitely need to go back to voters for a new referendum in the future. In addition to the 2024 measure, voters approved an $87 million plan in 2020.
Before doing that, she said the district first needs to rebuild trust in the community through completing required state audits, putting into place controls to prevent overspending and routine reports to the school board and public about finances.
“I don’t think that the voters are going to want us to bring something forward until they feel comfortable that we have done the cleanup that is necessary,” she said. “And we’ve built the trust that we have the sufficient controls in place.”
In the interim, she’s hoping the state will meet its constitutional responsibility to adequately fund public schools.
“What the public expects is you know where the money is, you’re spending it as close as you can to children, you’re getting good on the promise around art, music, and PE, and the things the public said they wanted to fund,” Cassellius said. “And they want their kids to have so that they have a quality education and an excellent education in Milwaukee Public Schools, and that they had the right amount of staff that they actually need. In the school to be safe and to run a good operation.”
Rebuilding finance staff in wake of $46 million in overspending
MPS is rebuilding school finance staff in wake of reporting lapses
In an interview with the Journal Sentinel editorial board April 15, MPS superintendent discusses accountability for district’s financial problems.
The $46 million budget shortfall from the 2024-25 school year started coming into view last fall and was confirmed in mid-January. Cassellius noted that in addition to hiring a new superintendent, MPS also parted ways with its comptroller and CFO.
“We are really rebuilding the personnel and staff of the finance department. That is what’s critical, is having the right people in the right seats doing the work,” she said. “Also critical is making sure that you have the right controls in place. The audit findings found that we did not have proper controls in place and now we have those proper controls in place and when we find things we put new SOPs in place and that is what any business does.”
Identifying that shortfall, though painful, was the result of better accounting.
“Being three years behind in auditing means that you don’t have full sight on your actual revenues and expenditures. And so we have now full sight of our revenues and our expenditures and that’s why we were able to see this new deficit of $46 million,” she said. “And we still continue to work with DPI on those processes to make sure that every month we’re doing monthly to actuals and doing those accounting, reporting that to the board. In a way that is consumable to the public that they can understand.”
Jim Fitzhenry is the Ideas Lab Editor/Director of Community Engagement for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Reach him at jfitzhen@gannett.com or 920-993-7154.
Property markets move in cycles, and with interest rates rising and other pressures like high fuel costs, some markets are clearly slowing down. Many first-home buyers who have only ever seen markets going up are conditioned to think that when purchasing, competition is always intense and decisions need to be made quickly.
In those times, buyers often feel they need to act fast, stretch their budget and secure a property at almost any cost. But things have definitely changed.
In a softer market, the dynamic shifts. Properties take longer to sell, competition thins, and it’s the vendors who begin to feel pressure.
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For buyers who understand how to navigate that change, the balance of power quickly moves in their favour. The opportunity is not simply to buy at a lower price. It is to negotiate from a position of strength.
If that’s you right now, these are the key skills first-home buyers need to take advantage of in softer market conditions.
The most important shift in a soft market is psychological. In a rising market, buyers often feel like they are competing for limited opportunities. In a softer market, the opposite is true. There are more properties available, fewer active buyers and less urgency overall. This gives buyers options.
When buyers understand that they are not competing with multiple parties on every property, their decision-making improves. They are more willing to walk away, compare opportunities and avoid overpaying. Negotiation strength comes from not needing to transact immediately. When that pressure is removed, buyers are able to engage more strategically.
One of the most common mistakes first-home buyers make is continuing to apply strategies that only work in rising markets. Auction urgency is a clear example. In strong markets, auctions often attract multiple bidders and create competitive tension. In softer conditions, properties are more likely to pass in, shifting the process away from a public bidding environment into a private negotiation.
This is where leverage increases.
Private negotiations allow buyers to introduce conditions that protect their position. These may include finance clauses, longer settlement periods or price adjustments based on due diligence. Opportunities that are rarely available in competitive markets become standard in softer ones.
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