MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Republicans voted Thursday to renew just a handful of temporary positions that will expire this year at the state’s licensing agency, prompting worry from Democrats and agency leaders that lengthy licensing backlogs could return.
The Department of Safety and Professional Services oversees licensing for professions ranging from nurses and pharmacists to electricians and martial arts referees. Just four years ago, professionals reported waiting hundreds of days for the agency to process their applications. That led to hiring delays and staffing difficulties.
A nonpartisan audit published in 2023 found that the agency had cut its wait times roughly in half largely due to the use of new technology and contracted staff in its call centers and licensing operations.
Watch: Wisconsin Republicans renew fraction of licensing staff requested by agency leaders
Now, 29 of those temporary positions that agency leaders say were crucial for eliminating backlogs are set to expire later this year. In his budget, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers proposed replacing those roles with 24 permanent positions.
“The reality is, if we don’t get those people approved, we will see hold times on our phones go from mere minutes to nearly an hour. We will see licensing times in Wisconsin double,” DSPS Secretary Dan Hereth said in an interview. “Not only can our economy not afford that, but the citizens of Wisconsin can’t afford that.”
Republicans who control the Legislature’s budget-writing committee voted Thursday to renew just five of the temporary positions in DSPS’ call center and none of the temporary license processing staff.
“By not having those positions, not being able to approve those licenses for our medical professionals, for our business professionals, you’re making peoples’ lives harder again,” Democratic Rep. Tip McGuire, who sits on the Joint Finance Committee, said.
Asked about the decision not to renew any of the licensing positions, the committee’s chairs had little to say.
“Budgets are always about analyzing the data that’s given to us and making decisions, and so that’s exactly what we did with this agency and every other agency,” Republican Rep. Mark Born said. “We added staff to the base today to continue to provide services at DSPS.”
The budget the Legislature writes will ultimately go to the governor’s office later this year. Evers can use his partial veto power to remove items from the budget but cannot add in new items.
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