(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s proposed biennial budget, if passed, includes a deal to repurpose $172 million in earned interest from unspent COVID-19 relief funds originally controlled by Gov. Tony Evers.

The deal would fund key initiatives and, according to Sen. Eric Wimberger, R-Oconto, “solve a potential constitutional crisis.”

The budget agreement between Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee and Evers follows a months-long spat over the interest earnings, opening unprecedented legal challenges which lawmakers saw as a road to impeachment, a veto or a court fight, The Center Square previously reported.

Wimberger said that appropriating the money toward other budget initiatives was an approach that could avoid those options.

“The agreement settles that question and, in fact, probably solves a potential constitutional crisis going forward,” Wimberger said.

According to Wimberger, the key question at hand was, “Can the federal government give money to a state with instructions to spend it or not spend it, and then have the governor collect the interest and not have to turn it over to the treasury and then be able to spend it at his discretion, essentially taking the power of the purse out of the Legislature?”

By keeping the money, Wimberger previously said Evers had created a “$172 million slush fund” for himself.

The interest earnings caused lawmakers to raise several concerns about whether the interest is a federal or state fund.

Some argued it belonged in the treasury because state law indicates that state funds must be deposited into the treasury, while others argued on behalf of Evers’ Department of Administration that the interest functioned the same as actual Coronavirus State and Local Recovery funds themselves, and were therefore at the governor’s disposal.

While The Center Square previously reported Wimberger had co-authored a bill requiring Evers to transfer the $172 million to the treasury, lawmakers such as Sen. Mark Spreitzer, D-Beloit, contended the bill was pointless since Evers could just veto it.

One way or the other, lawmakers on both sides concluded the issue would probably end up in a court fight with the governor.

However, Joint Finance Committee co-chair Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, said leaders rather decided to negotiate with Evers to put the money towards actual budget initiatives than to leave it up to Evers’ discretion or litigation.

“In our discussions with the governor, we continued to find ways to make investments – preferably one-time investments – to get the money used for something so it didn’t just become a slush fund that he was just gonna try to control,” Born said in an interview with The Center Square. “I think they became interested in finding something to use so that it didn’t become a litigation in the future.”

After the tentative deal, the $172 million under Omnibus Motion 130, now puts the money toward child care, builders, food security, and university investments – some of Evers’ biggest budget priorities.

Of that, $110 million of the earnings would support “bridge payments” directly to child care providers, which means the money will invest in providers to cover expenses for the short-term until long-term financing is secured.

Also, $50 million will go to a building commission grant program to assist non-state organizations with “facility construction.”

The budget would transfer $5 million from the interest earnings to support a pilot program by the Department of Children and Families to increase the monthly maximum payment rate by $200 for children under 18 months old and by $100 for children aged between 18 months and 30 months.

Another $5 million investment would be made to a food security grant program to make up for federal funding losses in DATCP’s grant programs for nonprofit food assistance organizations.

$1 million would be given to UW-Green Bay’s “Rising Phoenix” program enabling high school students to earn college credit.

Child care, which receives $115 million of the $172 million, was one of Evers’ highest budget priorities, which he even threatened to veto the entire budget over if the Joint Finance Committee didn’t “do something about [it],” The Center Square previously reported.

However, when asked whether or not appropriating the $172 million towards Evers’ child care priorities was a factor that led him to giving up the interest earnings as part of the budget deal, Born said, “I could only speculate as to what the factors were that got the governor make a particular decision.”

Evers’ office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment at the time of publication.

The proposed budget is set to be voted on by the state Senate and Assembly today and could be sent for Evers’ signature soon thereafter.