The NCAA Board of Governors voted unanimously in October 2019 to permit student-athletes the opportunity to benefit from the use of their name, image and likeness in a manner consistent with the collegiate model. The three divisions have begun the process of soliciting feedback and developing proposals to meet the Board’s January 2021 legislative deadline. To learn more about the Board of Governors’ action and for additional resources including legislative timelines and Q&A documents, visit the NCAA Taking Action webpage.

The Joint Committee on Employment Relations (JCOER) met on Wednesday, December 18, 2019 and voted to authorize the UW System compensation plan that was approved as part of the 2019-21 state budget. This includes both a 2% wage adjustment in January of 2020 and another in 2021.

The committee also approved the trades contracts below, submitted by UW System. The contracts will need full legislative approval before going into effect.

• 2018-2019 agreement between the State of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.
• 2019-2020 agreement between the State of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.
• 2018-2019 agreement between the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.
• 2019-2020 agreement between the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.
• 2018-2019 agreement between the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.
• 2019-2020 agreement between the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee.

The Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities held a public hearing on Thursday, December 12 at UW-Oshkosh. The committee heard from students and others on the following legislation relating to UW System:

• AB 536– establishing a career advancement scholarship program
• AB 444– free expression

President Cross submitted testimony on AB 444 for information only. You can see the testimony as well as the annual Academic Freedom and Freedom of Expression report attached below.

Chancellor Leavitt and UW-Green Bay’s Student Success Coach, Samantha Post, testified in favor of AB 536. You can see their testimony here.

The State Building Commission met on Thursday, December 12, 2019 and approved the following UW System projects:

• UW-Platteville – New Sesquicentennial Hall – Authority to Construct – $55,189,000 ($54,602,000 GFSB and $587,000 PRSB).
• UW-Eau Claire – Haas Fine Arts Theatrical Light/Rigging – $2,997,700 GFSB.
• UW-La Crosse – White Hall Renovation – $2,994,900 ($994,900 PRSB and $2,000,000 PR-Cash)
• UW-River Falls – Davee Library Electrical Distribution Equipment – $1,405,900 GFSB
• UW-La Crosse – Badger Street Mall Renovation – $895,100 PR-Cash
• UW- Whitewater – Williams Ctr Pedestrian Bridge Replacement – Increase of $333,900 ($190,300 GFSB and $143,600 PRSB)
• UW-Whitewater – Chilled Water Loop & Steam Pit Repairs – $5,000,000 ($2,850,000 GFSB and $2,150,000 PRSB)

Minutes from the meeting will be posted on the DFDM website once available. The next SBC meeting is tentatively scheduled for February 18, 2020.

The Legislative Audit Bureau released an audit on Friday, December 6, regarding state-owned residential properties, which includes properties own by UW System. The Audit indicated that the Department of Administration (DOA) has not formally revised policies pertaining to state-owned residential properties leased to state employees since 1975.  Under provisions of ch. 16, Wis. Stats., DOA is required to administer state-owned residential properties that are managed by state agencies and leased to state employees. Certain employees may be required to reside in the properties as a condition of employment while other employees may opt to reside in them. The audit states the DOA has not completed an appraisal since 1995. The Audit also includes findings and recommendations specific to UW System. See the Legislative Audit Briefing Sheet for a summary of the report. The full report, including UW System’s response starting on page 55, can be found here,

The Board of Regents met on Thursday, December 5 and Friday, December 6 at UW-Whitewater. The event kicked off with the All In Wisconsin tour, which coincided with the Board of Regents meeting. Chancellor Watson kicked off the event discussing the university’s success in a variety of areas and highlighted the findings of UW-Whitewater’s new Economic Impact Report. In addition, Regents in the Education Committee voted to approve revisions to UW-Madison’s freshman admissions policy. They were also presented the annual report on the system’s academic programing, showing UW institutions implemented 38 new academic programs, with the majority in areas of high market demand.  The Capital Planning and Budget Committee approved seven project requests, including UW-La Crosse’s request for authority to construct the $49-million Fieldhouse and Soccer Support Facility. A full recap of the December 5 meeting can be found here.

The Friday, December 6 meeting focused on education options that are available to nontraditional adult learners across the UW System. One way the System is expanding access to adult learners is by serving returning adults looking for opportunities in innovative online formats through the newly formed UW Extended Campus. See the UW System news release to learn more.  In addition, Regent President Andrew S. Petersen provided updates on several ongoing searches, including the search for the next UW System President. As the search gets under way, there will be listening sessions to gather input from faculty, staff, other university stakeholders. Input will also be collected on the UW System’s presidential search website. A full recap of the December 6 meeting can be found here.

Meeting materials, including agenda and video webcast, can be found at the Board of Regents website.

President Ray Cross and Regent President Andrew Petersen joined UW-Whitewater Chancellor Dwight Watson on Thursday, December 5, for the eighth stop of UW System’s All In Wisconsin tour to highlight the findings of UW-Whitewater’s new Economic Impact Report. The report showed UW-Whitewater injects $514.9 million into the regional economy, supporting 4,480 jobs and $198.7 million in wages and generating an estimated $23.1 million in tax revenue to the state of Wisconsin. See the UW System news release for a full recap of the event. UW-Whitewater was the final stop for 2019. The tour will resume in early 2020 and visit the four remaining UW System universities.

The Assembly Committee on Government Accountability and Oversight held an executive session on Wednesday, December 4 to vote on the following legislation related to UW System:

• AB 370– state debt guaranties; delegations by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System; organizations affiliated with the UW System; and standards of conduct for certain UW System employees

The Committee voted to pass the bill in a 5-4 vote.