Gov. Tony Evers’ administration has ordered state agencies to cut spending by 5% as revenue drops during the coronavirus pandemic.
WisPolitics.com obtained a letter that state Department of Administration Secretary Joel Brennan sent to state employees Tuesday evening informing them of the cut.
Brennan also said in the letter that a state hiring freeze will continue albeit with exemptions for positions related to responding to the pandemic and positions considered essential for maintaining state agency functions.
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Merit raises have been suspended and employee travel will be restricted to pandemic response, he added.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Evers told President Donald Trump in a recent letter that the state could lose as much as $2 billion over the next year, although the administration hasn’t conducted a revenue projection since the pandemic began.